As requested, I enclose a report of the progress of my trip to Liberia. I once again thank you for your assistance in providing funds that allowed me to travel out. The whole experience from start to finish was invaluable and even now in returning home the fruits can be shown in my renewed fervour and motivation to continue my studies, an aspect that sometimes gets lost in the stress of exams and deadlines. Hopefully if it is God’s will I will return to Liberia in the near future and help wherever possible on a more professional level.

I was asked to tell all, including the highs and lows, of my trip, but to be honest there weren’t really any lows, more just experiences that in looking bask reflected more a persistent yet understandable concern and awareness of how vulnerable I was, This did at the start cause me some concern but I would later laugh at my nervousness. Nevertheless I did make it to Liberia in one piece with all my baggage and I can honestly say that from as soon as I landed I was taken aback by, not really the poverty because that I was expecting from previous discussions from my brother and sister that had been before, but more with the Liberians themselves. You would think that in their history of violence and poverty they would be angry and quite aggressive, but it was the complete opposite. The friendly, polite and giving personalities of the Liberians are one of a kind in my experience of travel. To access John-Patrick’s full report, click here

I was staying at St Dominic’s in Tubmanburg with Father Garry Jenkins, a South African Missions (SMA) priest that has been in Liberia for the last twenty odd years working with the Liberians and also experiencing the brutal war on a very personal level. Some of the stories he would tell me later (for example, being taken captive by the rebels after the cease-fire was announced) would later lead me to an understanding of his incessant concern for those who were staying on his campus

Aside from Father Garry, there was also Dr Eileen and Elizabeth, both working in St Dominic’s for the last ten months. Dr Eileen has been a doctor for fifteen years and was a Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist for three years before she came to Liberia. It was with Dr Eileen that I spent most of my working time.

The objective of the project was to experience working in the Clinic and in light of that experience to try and produce a clinical database using Microsoft Access that would be plausible in such circumstances. There were aspects such as staff numbers, the problem with computer literacy and inappropriate data to consider. Essentially a successful outcome was to produce a database that was hassle-free in order that the staff could use it without any problems and in such a way that it could perform simple queries and generate reports. These reports would then go forward to organisations such as the World Health Organisation (WHO) and could give them a wider understanding of the situation in Tubmanburg. This could in turn generate money for the clinic and allow the WHO to target areas where money or resources could really have substantial impact.

Through weeks of mind changing and editing of the database, the final decision was, that for the time being the main aspect of the database on which Dr Eileen wanted to focus was the Maternity Data. It seemed at this stage somewhat pointless producing a database that in the end would be useless in the way of generating any useful report that could be used. The Maternity Data on the other hand could be used extensively. This I finished in Liberia, but the queries and reports are still in progress.

Time was an issue due to the generator only available for four hours each day, so when I wasn’t working on the database I spent my time in the clinic. Despite my lack of clinical understanding (having only finished my first year of studies) working in the clinic was by far the most valuable experience. A lot of what are major problems in Liberia are somewhat minor and almost non-existent in the western world because of our healthcare system It really brought to light how much we have and how ridiculously little they have. The clinic also gave me a chance to help in an immediate way for a few days each week. The laboratory technician had recently left just days before I had arrived and the need for one was quite desperate. For about 2-3 days each week for three weeks I would work in the clinic as the laboratory technician! Working in the clinic also gave me the chance to assist in my first delivery (although it wasn’t to be my last during my stay) and to practice clinical skills that I had been taught so far.

When I wasn’t working I was living in my older brother’s limelight. Paul had come out to Liberia for 9 months last year (2005) and in that time had got to know the boys on the campus quite well. I have heard he was quite a legend out there! So I tried my best to live up to the family name. I had brought some guitar strings out with me knowing that they had guitars but no strings and this gave me the opportunity to teach them a little, but mostly they just wanted to hear the same songs over and over again. I like to think that I brought ‘Coldplay’ and ‘Jack Johnson’ to Liberia!!

The lack of transport limited us mostly to Tubmanburg, but most days the jeeps would go out on pastoral visits to surrounding villages or to Monrovia. This gave me the opportunity to meet other people from completely different backgrounds having lived their whole lives in the bush.

Well I guess the question I’m asking myself is “What now?”

The main work on the database is finished, but there are still some finishing touches that I am currently working on. Dr Eileen has been home for the last 4 weeks and I have organised to meet up with her and explain the changes that I have made and to make sure she can use it. Dr Eileen will then take the database with her and she will use it only for those patients that had their deliveries or are pregnant from July 2006. This means that hopefully in 7 months time the database can then start generating information. Improvements can then be documented from then. Until that time the database can be used to aid in the reports that the clinic has to fill out for the WHO each month.

I think that when I am more experienced in my medical training I could really make a difference, even if only for a few weeks. So maybe in a few years time I will once again be landing on Liberian soil with that same feeling of anticipation.

I would like to thank all of those that were involved in deciding the funding for me, especially Maureen. I am aware that you do not usually fund individuals and that my case was a ‘one off’, so even more, thank you!

Kind regards

John-Patrick Byars

News | 17th June 2007 @ 1:15 pm