- Eline Rinsma
- Nurse on nursing unit Cardiothoracic Surgery
- November 2023
Two years ago, I joined the mission to Qena for the first time. I'm proud I that I could participate. Together with the team I anxiously stepped onto the plane to Egypt, my head and body filled with nerves, curiosity and enthusiasm.
The team was extraordinarily diverse and specialized team, but we instantly shared good and bad times.
What was striking for me was that such obvious things as access to care, access to medical resources and equipment, were hardly present.
Not having these self-evident materials and equipment and on top of that the language barrier, turned my work on the ward into a real challenge. Still I needed at least to find out how the patient is doing, right?!
By being present on the ward for most of the time, it allowed me to get to know people and forge relationships in the most creative ways with both patients and their families. What was very rewarding was how I gained the trust of patients and families and was able to make little jokes despite the language barrier.
What impressed me, was that we were able to help a young mother of four children. A woman who would have had a very bleak prognosis if we hadn't operated on her. I had the privilege of meeting this patient on an earlier occasion on the ward. At that time it was still not certain whether we could help her at all. Ze looked terribly ill, and I was so worried for her well-being. The lady was very frail, and I was worried how she would endure an operation. Fortunately, the operation was a success and the patient recovered well. She was radiating health and besides that it also meant that her children would not have to live without their mother.