Project "Hope Reborn"

She finds herself alone. Forsaken. Not wanted. Abandoned. For twenty plus years she has been an outcast- one of the forgotten poor- an embarrassment to her village and family, so she is outcast. Despair is a close friend. Hope is gone.

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For twenty plus years she has been alone- deserted by husband and family. She has miscarried- longs to hold the child that should be hers. She is filthy- incontinent- with no means of proper hygeine. Although she is beautiful- she does not know it. She does not know that there is a Heavenly Father who has created her in His image and loves her as she is...

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Years before, at often a young age of 15-20, this woman found herself in a complicated delivery. Often because of either 1)obstructed child birth, 2)illness, or violence, she is in labor for 5-7 days. As a result of the trauma that has occurred in her body by the constant contractions, death of tissue occurs and a fistula (or hole) has formed- often to the bladder. The result? She will miscarry the baby- and she will be incontinent for the rest of her life.

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VVF is incurable; the oldest case recorded is in 2050 BC in Egypt. The first attempts at surgical correction of this disorder occurred in the 1900s- with great surgical advances made by the Mr and Mrs Hamlin- a missionary couple based in Ethiopia. You can read their story in the book Hospital by the River.

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Over this outreach, Mercy Ships did two rotations of VVF surgeries- done by Dr. Steve, a surgeon that trained under the Hamlins in Ethiopia. Overall we took care of over 70 women from the northern part of Ghana.

The pics below are from our dress ceremony- a tradition done for all the women before they go home. They are given new dresses, and we have a great time of celebration and dancing. As you enjoy the pics, I'll share some more about these amazing women.

These women have already endured so much in their lives- and then they hear that there is a chance to be treated. They travel for days to arrive for screening- out of the hundreds that come, only 80 can be done. Many are turned away; for those who recieve the pink appointment card- hope has been renewed. Just maybe, this time, they will be healed.

Barbata and Esi (Both surgeries were unsuccessful but both women became huge encouragements and powerful testimonies of the love of Christ to the other women in the ward)

Arrival to the ship with 30 other VVF women- some of whom speak other languages- is a new experience. Western doctors and nurses begin educating them on the events that the next two weeks (at minimum) will bring. Then surgery day comes...."maybe this time..." One by one they are escorted the the OR , and each one is prayed with by the surgical team. For the next 48 hours- it's bedrest, and close monitoring. Only in the next couple days will we know if there were not any complications and if the surgery was successful.

(Caroline Tangue and I- She is one of our Mercy Ships disciplers and an amazing woman who loves the Lord. Every night she diligently and faithfully comes and prays at the bedside of every patient.)

Some days are very hard. Tears flow as some of the women realize that they are not healed- their condition was too complicated for a full recovery. Others do have a full recovery. For the first time in the lives of these women, they are able to share their struggles, their despair, their hope and their faith with one another. Never before had they met another woman- not to mention, 40+ who knew their pain and heartache.

(Prayer before they were discharged home)

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We had a blast with these ladies as we took care of them. I loved the first time I put on Cinderella for them. Although it was in English, and they didn't have a clue what was being said, their faces lit up... and women from the ages of 20-65 were glued to the screen. Our selection of Disney movies were asked to be played time and time again. :)

( Nursing Staff and our VVF patients)

We were able to provide maternal health teaching to these women- so they could understand what had caused their conditions. Education is powerful as there was a new understanding of not only themselves but also the trauma that their bodies had suffered from.

(Testimonies)

(Esi- I prayed with her many times as Esi had a hard time during her recovery, both physically and emotionally.)

I was truly humbled as I heard the testimonies of these beautiful women- especially those who even though they did not know physical healing, chose to give all glory and honor to the Lord.