Dear colleagues and friends of Kijabe Pathology,
I can’t believe that is has been eight months since I last communicated with you! I have been shirking my pledge to write quarterly. Please forgive me. It must be my age. As one gets older, that is always a good excuse for bad behavior. However, much is happening at Kijabe and with our service. So let me begin by recognizing our wonderful volunteers who have already served this year. Dr. Garcia and Dr. Lieberman, thank you for serving in January, and thank you, Rochelle, for extending to February 14. Thank you, Dr. Nzioka, for covering the practice until April 10. Thank you Drs Busler (Forrest and Valerie) for covering April 11-28 along with Dr. Correa who also served April 10-23 (I love to see and hear about the Vanderbilt influence). Thank you to Dr. Ferguson and Amy for serving at Kijabe June 12-July 7. In addition, I thank your children as well. I am sure they were a big help to Dad in his work. Dr. Davidson, thank you for covering July 15-August 8, almost into the Kenyan elections. Then Mari and I came to cover the service August 13-September 22 along with Dr. Lawrence who joined me for September 1-22. I thank God for keeping us all safe and useful in His service.
Mari and I have been on a mission while here at Kijabe. In addition to covering the lab, we have also been working like beavers shopping for the upgrades needed in Sitaplex 3B that many of you so graciously funded with your generous gifts last winter following my appeal, Moving from a Flat to a Home. I am happy to report that the Hospital did replace the mattresses and (as I am told) installed a new showerhead heater. Our experience with the water and shower is that it is unpredictable, and thus fulfills the definition of an adventure.
The furniture manufacturer in Naivasha that I hoped to purchase furniture from went out of business, so we had to go into Nairobi to shop. The furniture choices were made and the items were delivered to Sitaplex 3B on a Saturday. We hope you enjoy the changes as much as we have enjoyed them. You made it possible.
What a nice improvement! We were excited to be the first of many to relax, read, and entertain friends.
But Mari wasn’t done. Risking our marriage, she asked me to help her reupholster the dining room chairs. She found out that the Masai Shukas or blankets would be excellent upholstering material and at a fraction of the cost of material from the fabric stores. We dedicated a weekend to the job. Dr Eric and Amanda Hanson allowed us to use their staple gun, which probably saved our marriage. We needed three blankets to do the job and one extra evening. We got it done and I must say the reupholstered chairs really made a difference in the dining room’s appearance.
Mari then cleaned out the hutch and arranged to travel once more to Nairobi to get a few extra items such as glassware and a six-piece china set which closely matched the one that we already had in Sitaplex 3B. She also purchased a few other items for the kitchen and bath.
We were pleased with what we were able to accomplish and, after a little vegetable shopping of course, enjoyed inviting some friends over for a meal and fellowship.
Now for the serious part of the “News”. Our Technicon tissue processor is on Death Row or if you wish, the “critical list”. It has served us well for 20+ years. It came to Kijabe around 1997 from Nairobi when Pathologists Overseas turned over their African humanitarian outreach to the AIC Kijabe Hospital. It came with a matching second unit that over the years was scavenged for parts to keep it functioning. Now it only “rotates" thru the stations, the oscillation function no longer working. The tissues are inadequately perfused making thin sectioning difficult and staining uncertain.
Dr. Brad Jensen has been able to secure a donation of a Sakura flow through tissue processor last January, but it is still in the States, held up by Kenyan regulations of the need for safety certification, as I understand. There will likely be an additional import tax of $7000. I don’t know when or if it will arrive. It will require maintenance and service from outside Kenya.
Dr. Darrell Davidson who served in Kijabe July 15-Aug. 8 informed me of the University of Indiana’s Global Health Initiative in Eldoret, Kenya. They had a Sakura processor which malfunctioned and they experienced delayed service, as it had to come from abroad. They purchased a Myr Tissue Processor, STP 120, (pictured right) that is made in Spain and sold in Kenya through distributors who are licensed in Kenya. Darrell had visited Eldoret to see the instrument and was told that they have had NO down time for 3 years. Dr. Jeff Lawrence and our lab histotechnologist Phyllis had another on site visit last week and concur with Darrell’s opinions. Medionics, the Kenyan licensed distributer’s quotation for their best processor is $20,000 which is double the capacity as that shown on the right and features a fume extractor/filter designed to minimize the odors (of which we have plenty now). Delivery is guaranteed within one month of the placement of the order.
Darrell proposes that we purchase this processor for Kijabe and use it immediately, and as a reliable backup to the Sakura when that instrument should arrive. I agree. To do so we would need to raise the money within two weeks of this letter. We propose raising $30,000 through donations to Samaritan’s Purse Kijabe Pathology Project account # 002585, which would cover the costs of the instrument, and the anticipated $7000 needed to bring the Sakura into Kenya. If we are successful in raising this amount, we would have an extra $3000 for unanticipated contingencies. Would you prayerfully consider making a donation of $1000 to $5000 or more as soon as possible through the SP Kijabe Pathology Account 002585? I know we can do it! I don’t know how many more years the Lord will bless me to serve at Kijabe but I do want to leave the lab in a position to move forward in the future years. It all starts with good tissue processing and sectioning.
If you are willing to help purchase of this tissue processor there are two ways of giving:
David Shirk, director of “Friends of Kijabe” informs me that you may give through “Friends of Kijabe” or see the running totals of our donation efforts at this link: http://friendsofkijabe.org/pathology/ . He asks that if you prefer to donate through Samaritan’s Purse, please forward a copy of your donation receipt to david@friendsofkijabe.org so he can keep proper reports of our progress. As funding arrives, David will work with Phyllis and Kijabe Hospital purchasing department to make sure the ordering process moves forward efficiently and quickly.
- Mary Everett, my angel at Samaritan’s Purse, offers these options for donations through Samaritan’s Purse.
- Online Donation. Simply click on this link http://www.samaritanspurse.org/medical/wmm-doctors/ or go to www.samaritanspurse.org and click on the following….
- From menu across the top hover mouse over “Donate”
- Click on “Support a Physician”
- Type in Kijabe Pathology and follow the prompts
- Donation by Phone. You can also make a credit or debit card donation by calling our Donor Ministries department at 828-278-1555 Monday-Friday from 8:30a-4:30p EST. You will need to have the Kijabe Pathology’s WMM project code number 002585 available when calling.
- Donation by Mail. The third way to donate is to mail a check made payable to World Medical Mission (or Samaritan’s Purse). Please be sure to include Kijabe Pathology or 002585 in the memo line of the check to insure that these funds are posted to the correct account. Please mail the check to:
- World Medical Mission
- Attn: Mary Everett
- PO Box 3000
- Boone, NC 28607
Regardless of the way you choose to donate, you will be issued a receipt for tax purposes within 5-7 business days and again at the end of the year.
Hey, a good part of the serious “News” just came to me from David Shirk. Even as the draft of this message was being prepared to send out to my reviewers, the remaining $17,000 needed to purchase the MYR tissue processor was donated! Praise God! However other needs continue to arise, so please do consider the above listed donation methods in your yearend giving that can be placed toward pathology equipment needs and the estimated $7,000 for the import of the Sakura unit when it is cleared.
As the year draws to a close, I am so optimistic for the future. We have had many bright and energetic younger pathologists serving at Kijabe this past year, and their contacts and friends in the States encourages me to believe that we may be able to advance our pathology services significantly in the not too distant future. I hear from them suggestions and considerations of a new microtome, IHC stainer, and slide scanners for possible off site diagnosis from the States! Would that not be a blessing? Let us continue to pray for the Lord’s guidance as we continue our work and planning.
Thanks again and enjoy the day.
Blessings to all of you and always by His grace,
Lee DeMeester