Volunteers in May 2008
We were blessed to have a lot of people come our way in May. There was quite a variety of people and they each added something unique to the place.
Dr. Sam Gillis is a retired surgeon from Birmingham, Alabama. This was his second visit with us and he was a tremendous help. He was here for about a month and did nearly 100 cases.
Dr. Erle Kirby, a general surgeon from Canada, also made his second trip to BMC and worked with Dr. Gillis for a couple of weeks. He has been coming to Ghana to help in a clinic in Tamale for several years and just last year came to work with us here. We are glad he did and hope he can come again.
Tanna Donalson is a PA student from Oklahoma. She came with her husband, Shane and some of their friends, Elisabeth Diefenderfer, Jennifer Dierksen and Micael Latshaw. Her friends stayed for only about a week, but Tanna stayed on and worked with us for about a month. She also brought a lot of supplies and drugs made possible by a grant from the PA Foundation.
Jane Park, a former missionary to Ghana came for a visit with Ronna Ward, Austen Ward and Brooke Perrin. They helped out in various areas of the hospital. Some worked in the supply store and some helped to organize and straighten out the OR office.
Dr. David Stockton, faculty member in the Department of Family Medicine University of Tennesee School of Medicine came for his second visit and brought one of his residents, Todd Montgomery. Rose Marie Spangle, a lab tech, joined them. They were a big help, seeing patients in clinic, taking call and helping with minor procedures in the OR. Rose Marie brought a very nice microscope for the lab.
Justin Chan and Stevienne Tam are two fourth year medical students from Hong Kong. We enjoyed having them here observing how we do things and learning about tropical diseases. They added to our international mix.
Chris Pittman and Beth Jones are two nurses from Mississippi. They came for a one week visit and it was a pleasure to have them with us as they observed the work here and learned about what is going on here.
Dr. Colleen Crowe is an Emergency Physician resident who also spent about a month working with in April and May. She was a big help and we really enjoyed having her here. She worked hard seeing patients in clinic, taking call and helping out in the OR. We apologize for leaving her off the list in the initial post. We wish her all the best as she finishes her residency and starts to work.
As you can see we had a good variety of people come our way to help and we greatly appreciate the interest and support of so many.