Telecommunicatons in Haiti are still not back up. But one of our Volunteer Ministers just came through with a message on what she has been doing in the hours since her plane landed in Port-au-Prince. She is stationed in the L'General Hospital in Port-au-prince, Haiti.
"I am on the night shift. We got to the hospital yesterday morning. I stayed all night and through until 10 or 11 this morning. I delivered two babies successfully, managed the labors of several others and transfered others to ob/gyns from the Swiss and Norwegian Red Cross in the morning. I am the only Scientology Volunteer Minisiter on night shift and we have a tight crew of EMTs and Doctors. There are great friendships being made.
"Delivery last night was rough because the mother was 16, first baby, and she was terrified and very exhausted. No father. She was actually psychotic, flailing around and screaming, 'cut it out of me' in Creole. I held her in my arms for a long time, rocking her, and I carried her several times. The translator and med student who helped me were so wonderful. After about 8 hours, we finally moved her to a room with power (yes, we were in the dark for all of the above) and I got the baby out. I was instructing the translators to command her: 'be strong and deliver this baby now!' I had them tell her there is no other way—she is going to do this NOW. I had to show her how to push and get her to understand me.
"Not only that, and you may not understand the importance of this, but the woman did not tear. That takes major skill, and the doctor who watched the delivery was blown away that I did it. He kept trying to get me to give her an episiotomy [vaginal incision to aid childbirth]. I kept telling him no. Big win for me professionally. He heeded me.
"The med student who helped me has become a great friend and he said 'The way you did that was like you do it several times a day.' So amazing!"
