Tuesday, CURE Children’s Hospital of Niger held its second screening evaluation clinic. Over 50 children were screened at the gate. 9 new children were examined by Dr. Negrini and 2 came back from last week. 5 of them are eligible for surgery. The screening days are bittersweet for me as I would love to help everyone. So many heartbreaking stories. The needs are so great here though, and I must keep focused on what we CAN do.

The little boy in these pictures will be having surgery on his hand. He came in hiding it in a piece of colorful African material. It looked like he had been badly burned. We saw many more burns yesterday but this was not a burn. His crippled hand was the result of a broken wrist that had been “treated” using “traditional” medicine. It was bound up and probably, from what I know, had some sort of leaf or root bound to it. Now his hand is unusable. There are many things that if treated properly and early could be helped. This little boy will be helped and I can’t wait to see him again.

Of the children screened yesterday, there were a bunch that had cerebral palsy. This is common here and many need therapy. There is nothing we can do surgically speaking. It was neat to see Hassane praying with them and our PT friend, Jennifer referring them and giving advice. There was not one particular case that stuck out to me yesterday. What did strike me was the attention to the whole child. Examining their bodies and praying for them. It is so wonderful to watch our team working together. Bringing hope to those to who CURE Niger may be their last hope.

With the first surgeries less than a week away, I am amazed as I have watched this vision become reality. Many will come through our gates and be transformed! What a privilege to be a part of it all.