November Newsletter
Topic: Mission
The November newsletter is now available on the website.

October Newsletters
Topic: Mission
Both October newsletters are now available on the website.

Prayer Meeting
Topic: Prayer
You are very much invited to the Anthis Prayer meeting, at our house (David and Ruth Mason) on 1723 Beacon Cove Court, Katy. Tel. no. is 281 599 0357. We meet this Thursday 26th at 7:45pm until 9:15pm.

Snacks and drinks provided - newcomers always welcome - feel free to call for directions - although we are close to the Fry and Highland Knolls intersection if you are looking for us on a map.

Hope to see you Thursday!

God bless,

David Mason

August Newsletter
Topic: Website
The August newsletter is now available on the website under Newsletters. Also, the prayer requests page has been updated on the website.

Joel's August 2004 Medical Blog
Topic: Mission
It is amazing what one can see in just several days of ENT clinic in Jos, Nigeria. I have had a family practice resident from the Jos federal medical school (Jos University Teaching Hospital) doing an ENT rotation with me for the past two weeks, and we have both been learning a lot.

A young boy came to the clinic last week having aspirated a straight needle. The Chest x-ray revealed the pin in the right lung's lower lobe. (How do you like our xray "view box?")





With our only functional ventilating pediatric bronchoscope it was not possible to even visualize the pin, much less remove it. The only other option is to subject this boy to a very big open chest operation in a city without even one ventilator in an ICU. So I am following him for now - with more modern bronchoscopic equipment I might try to remove it again.

A beautiful two and a half year old girl returned to the clinic for followup regarding her profound hearing loss. She lost her hearing one year ago after being very sick with a high fever. Six months previously she was not able to cooperate enough to wear a hearing aid. But, praise God, now she was both cooperative and able to wear a hearing aid. Pray that she will now be able to hear enough to function in the hearing world.

A man came in with a large left neck mass, and a previous biopsy done months ago that was read as adenocarcinoma. The search for a primary (original site of the cancer) has not been revealing. I recommended he go to Ibadan (a 10-12 hour drive away) where they have CT imaging capabilities, as well as the ability to treat cancers with chemotherapy and radiation therapy (our only option in Jos is surgery). Additionally, there are pathologists at Ibadan who might be able to find that he actually has something other than adenocarcinoma. But he says he has no money to go anywhere else. He accepts God's will and begs us to do whatever we can.

A baby came to the clinic with an encephalocele (brain tissue that is herniating through a defect in the skull of the forehead) in need of repair. There are no neurosurgeons or plastic surgeons here in Jos. So the missionary general surgeon and I are trying to figure out the best plan of action for this child.

A sixty year old man came to the clinic with a history of a lifelong swelling of the left cheek that had become larger and more tender in the previous week. The man actually had a rare congenital abnormality called a First Branchial Cleft Cyst that had become infected. Once the infection is cleared up with medicines, then I will remove the cyst with surgery.

A man drove over 16 hours to come to see the ENT doctor regarding his advanced maxillary tumor. Remember, we have no CT or MRI imaging capabilities here in Jos. Is his tumor resectable? What kind of tumor is it? The only place in town to send pathologic specimens for examination is the local federal medical school called JUTH (Jos University Teaching Hospital). In a normal situation it takes at least 3 to 4 weeks for the pathology results to be returned after surgery (it usually takes only 2-3 days to get results in the US). But we are in no ordinary situation currently. JUTH has been on strike for the last two weeks. That means there is no where in Jos to take surgical specimens for pathology. I took a small biopsy of his tumor and sent the patient to Zaria, six hours away, in hopes that the university there was not also on strike and could give us a pathologic diagnosis before considering further treatment options.

The strike at JUTH has affected many other patients as well. A sick child came to our hospital last week and was admitted to the pediatric service with a possible lymphoma. I took the child to the OR to biopsy the lymph nodes in the neck. But again, there is no where to send the specimen in Jos for pathologic evaluation because of the strike. We asked the family to try to take it to the Kano University Teaching Hospital for evaluation. It is difficult to watch a child grow closer to death each day while you await a pathology report that may never come.

A man who was a victim of the Muslim Christian crisis several hours drive to the south of Jos in May 2004 was brought to our hospital last week from another hospital. His throat had been cut and he had been left to die. Some good Samaritan had rescued him and taken him to the bush hospital where he was nursed back to life. But he was not able to talk and was only able to breath through a very small hole in his neck that remained from his wound.

I took him to the operating room this week and gave him a larger hole in the lower neck to breathe through called a tracheostomy. I also explored his larynx (voice box) which was the area of his injury, and reconstructed it and closed the laryngocutaneous fistula (the small hole he had previously been breathing through). Pray that the Lord would restore his voice and his normal breathing passage. Pray also that the Lord would heal him emotionally and spiritually. He doesn't know if any of his family is still alive.

A man came to the clinic with an old poorly healed jaw fracture. I was able to use a set of donated specialized mandible fracture instruments and plates that I had just brought back from the States with me in order to properly treat his injury.

And there are many other patients who come to the ENT clinic at Evangel hospital with conditions that range from nasal allergies to laryngeal tumors, from chronically draining ear infections to nasal polyps, from hearing loss to hoarseness.... Please pray that the Lord would continue to use us to extend the healing ministry of Jesus Christ here in northern Nigeria.

RSS Feed
Topic: Website
This blog has an RSS feed. If you have an RSS reader (which is software), you can add this RSS feed to it so you can be notified when a new entry is posted. If you use My Yahoo as your internet start page, My Yahoo now includes RSS reader functionality so that you can add this blog to your start page and instantly see when new entries are posted.

The link to the RSS feed can be found on the menu on the left, near the top. This is the address, which is what you tell the RSS reader to look at:
rss.xml

Prayer Requests
Topic: Prayer
The Anthis's shared several areas of prayer need:

1) Their security in Jos. This is not just the Muslim-Christian conflict which is flaring up in Nigeria, but also from crime.

2) That Austin, Abby, and Allison will continue to adjust to living in Nigeria.

3) That the move to their new house in the hospital compound will go smoothly.

4) That Cindy will not feel overwhelmed with her new role as physician to the other missionaries.

5) That the Lord would move in the hearts of those with whom they share His mighty Gospel.

6) That Joel and Cindy would grow more proficient in Hausa.

Recent Outreach
Topic: Mission
Posted on behalf of Cindy:

I (Cindy) have been on several different and very exciting medical outreaches in the two months.

One was to a small Muslim village in neighboring Bauchi State. I traveled with a team from our local Church in Jos. It was exciting to be part of this team that included doctors, nurses, agricultural specialists, pastors, a music group and a Gospel team (all Nigerians except me.)

The goal of our local Church is to see God plant a Church in this village. We used medicine and agricultural advice as a way to build bridges for the Gospel. The village does not have electricity or a clean water supply. None of the children I saw had any immunizations. Many of the children had signs of malnutrition.

We began our outreach by visiting all the local chiefs in the villages around the area. They were open to our visit and one chief of a neighboring larger village gave use permission to hold a medical clinic in his village as well. While we were greeting him, he requested that the Baturi (white doctor) see him and his wife for medical concerns. I was called from outside his palace (where I was waiting with the other women on the team.) As I crossed the threshold into the compound, I heard gun shots. Of course I did the logical thing and ducked. I was greeted with roars of laughter from the chief and the others inside. It seems that it is a local custom to fire your gun when an honored guest arrives. I recovered and treated the chief and his wife without any further blunders!

We slept under the stars (I actually brought a small tent) and began our work in the morning. We held a medical clinic and I made some house calls. We returned to the neighboring village where the chief had given us permission to hold a medical clinic. We were greeted by the young men of the village who told us we were not welcomed in their village. In fact, they said if we got out of our vans they would beat us. If you read the Nigerian news you know these are not idle threats. The chief had gone out for the day and was not there to sort out the trouble. We decided we would not stay where there might be trouble. We headed back to the village where we were staying and continued our work there. I had the privilege of sharing the Gospel with several of the women I saw in the clinic and several prayed to receive Christ.

We held a meeting each night which included an agricultural talk and a gospel message. On Sunday morning we held a worship service. Several from the village joined us. After the service we laid the cornerstone for a small Church building. It will be the first in this village. We pray God will establish His Church in this village.

God Will Make a Way....
Posted on behalf of Cindy:

I (Cindy) had the opportunity to travel out to the "Bush" for another medical outreach this weekend. This time I went with the outreach team from Gidan Bege. My previous trips have been to an established community health clinic to help the community health workers already working in the village. This time we went to an area with no available health care. There is no government or church health clinic within a 2 hour drive of where we went. The only health care in the area is a tradition healer.

We arrived at our destination after one hour on paved roads and an additional hour of off-roading. After meeting with the local Muslim chief, we were disappointed to learn that we would not be allowed to hold our health clinic and evangelistic meeting because of an important wedding in the community that night. We were able to set up under a tree and see some patients while conversations with the chief were on-going. I saw many very ill and malnourished children. The physical and spiritual needs of the area were great. I saw one very ill child with multiple cuts on his small chest. These were made by the local traditional healer in an attempt to cure the cough this small baby had. We gave the medicine we had and we prayed that God would preserve this little one's life.

Since we were not welcomed at our first destination, our local host suggested we travel to the next village. We were told the next village was just "ah chan" or translated "just over there." Well we called this the extreme outreach as the "road" was mostly a winding path trying to avoid rocks and trees. After an hour and a half, we arrived at a dried-up river bed across from the village. We all got out and surveyed the situation. In my very American mindset I thought, "No way are we going to get our vans across that!" The Nigerians with us said, "God will make a way!" They took shovels and pick axes and their bare hands and literally dug a road wide enough for the vans to drive across. All three vehicles with us made it across on this "road."

God definitely wanted us to make it to this small village. It was nearly dark when we arrived, so we went right to work setting up our generator and video equipment. We showed an evangelistic film and shared why we had come to hold a medical clinic in the morning. After the message 30 adults and 55 children prayed with counselors to receive Jesus. There is already a Nigerian missionary working in this area, and he will be there to do follow-up with all who made decisions. Before our outreach only 4 people were coming to his Sunday meetings. So, you can imagine his excitement upon seeing the Lord do such a mighty work.

After a night in a tent, we were up at first light to begin our medical work. All the children who came to the clinic were treated for worms. This is an endemic problem in the area and treating the whole community at the same time is the most beneficial way to do it. I saw mostly children (as we had an OB-Gyn with us who saw the women and a male health worker who saw the men). Many were scared of me because of my white skin, but warmed up to me as I tried to speak in their language. (Actually they roared with laughter hearing my Hausa.) I was able to help in simple ways and to do some educating with the Moms. It was a good but exhausting day. Please pray for those who received Christ and for all those in whom seeds were planted. Pray also that we might be able to return to the first village that turned us away. It is your prayers that are the real work of missions!

Village Health Care
Topic: Mission
Posted on behalf of Cindy:

In the last two weeks I (Cindy) have made 2 trips out to a small village in neighboring Bauchi State. The village of Dass is 3+ hours away and is home to a small ECWA (Evangelical Church of West Africa) health clinic. The clinic is staffed by a community health worker with some simple medications. We were asked to travel to Dass to see some more difficult cases and to encourage the church and clinic staff.

Our first trip was two weeks ago. Both Joel and I went along with an eye nurse, the supervisor of community health for Bauchi state and 3 very eager college students from the states here on a short term trip. We saw more than 60 patients, but we also left at least that many unseen. It is imperative for safety reasons not to be on the road at night so we had to leave in time to return before dark. Although we were frustrated by some disorganization, and serious lapses in crowd control, it was a good day. Joel and I got a chance to work together which was great. And we really got a chance to practice our Hausa as most patients spoke no English and we didn't have a translator (only occasional other patients waiting their turn who helped us) We saw many who had serious problems that could not be addressed in this simple clinic. We had a chance to stop and pray with patients and that was the highlight! I also enjoyed listening (through the curtain that divided our work station) to Joel dealing with lots of general medicine problems that he hasn't faced since medical school days. I was very proud of him (he should have been a family doctor!)




We had several patients come because the word had gotten out that Joel is an Ear specialist. One patient stands out in my memory. She was a beautiful little girl of around five from a Muslim family. She came because she had lost her hearing several years earlier. Joel examined her and counseled the father. She is a candidate for a solar powered hearing aid and she will travel with her father to Jos to have a formal hearing test in the sound proof booth in the eye and ear clinic at Evangel Hospital. Pray that she will be helped by the hearing aid and also pray that the door will be open to share the hope we have in Christ with her and her family.

We returned to Dass one week after our first trip to see the patients we had not been able to see on our first trip. This time Joel was not able to join us, but one of the Nigerian family practice residents training at Evangel came along, as well as 5 eager American college students. This time the clinic staff was ready for us. The line was orderly and I had a dedicated translator for the day. We saw 130 patients which mostly reflects the help of the Nigerian resident as his knowledge of Hausa and tropical diseases far exceeded mine. I still had time to pray with many of my patients. Many women came complaining of barrenness which in this culture is devastating and often leads to the husband taking another wife. There was little medical help to be offered in this simple setting, but God is the Author of all healing and we prayed for His solution to this painful problem. I also saw a woman, the mother of 5 children who was complaining of insomnia. As I questioned her more closely she revealed that her husband had recently deserted the family and converted to Islam. She was left alone to support her family and the stress was taking its toll. Please pray that her husband would return to the Truth and to his family, pray for my patient's comfort in this very difficult circumstance.

The last patient of the day on our second trip was the Chief of Dass. He was an old man (82 years) but very strong. He is a Muslim and has much power in the area. He came because he was having difficulty with his hearing. I examined him, and referred him to see Joel at his clinic in Jos. He is a good candidate for a hearing aid and we pray that his visit to Jos will begin a relationship that brings fruit for the Gospel.

Thanks to all of you that prayed for these medical outreaches. It is only by the power of prayer that we are able to minister here! We appreciate you all.