October 2011 Newsletter

Nov 20 2011

Samban Clinic

The ways we are involved in ministry to the Ap Ma people are varied.  One particular way has been through medical ministry.  In November 2007, we re-established health care in Samban after a 15-year closure of the originally government-manned Aid Post.  Under the care of our Community Health Worker, Mariana Posatia, thousands have visited this remote clinic to receive care or treatment.  Currently our doors are open from 9-3 M-F and 8-10 on Saturday.  All after-hour emergencies are brought to our house as the nurse lives 2 miles away.  For her, that means a 45-minute walk to and from the clinic.  Currently we have two students studying nursing who will return to Samban to continue this vital work and expand the service we are able to provide. 

 

Working Together with Samaritan

OIPNG tries very hard to work together with government and non-government organizations to provide consistent service for the Ap Ma people.  In our schools, this meant that we registered them with the national government so that now they receive government subsidies to provide for some of the students’ needs.  We also registered our clinic with the national government which means that we receive part of our medicines for free.  However, there is still a gap between what the government will supply and what the people need.  Our partnership with Samaritan is helping to fill that gap.  Samaritan Aviation is a NGO (non-government organization) that specializes in medical evacuation and supply.  They assist the government in distribution of their supplies and also bring in their own supplies as well.  They have a float plane here in Wewak, our provincial capital.  With this plane, they are able to reach the large number of people (along the Sepik and Keram rivers) who have a hard time making a trip into town with their ill or injured patients.  OIPNG has received their assistance both in transporting patients and goods.  We are thankful for our partnership with them and their willingness to help the Ap Ma people. 

Two Very Different Outcomes

Two women delivered healthy baby boys in Samban.  The hours that followed their births were filled with tension.  They failed to deliver the placenta.  We arranged for both to be flown from our village to town to receive treatment in the same provincial hospital.  Both arrived at 9:30 am.  One lay in the ER until 3:30pm before receiving treatment.  She died at 4:00 pm.  The other received treatment at 10:00 am and was released 3 days later.  There was only one difference in these two cases.  When the second woman arrived in town we happened to be there to help her.  We spoke out to the doctors and nurses on her behalf pleading for assistance while waiting in line.  Hospitals here are very different than in the US.  The backwards, shy nature of the village people puts them at an immediate disadvantage.  Patient advocacy is needed to make sure they receive the treatment they need.  Could you be an advocate for the people of Samban?  Could you make their pleas known?  OIPNG asks that you consider both advocacy through prayer and in person.  We are seeking Christian men and women to help us in town.  Advocacy is just one of the tasks a town team would need to do.  If you are interested in joining OIPNG as a town team member, please email us at the address at the top.

 

Prayer Needs

· Pray for the children of recently deceased parents. There have been 6 babies born whose mothers have passed during or after their birth, and a father of 4 just passed away.

· Pray for the US government and the decisions they make that affect the world market and the dollar value abroad. 

· Pray for those who are thinking about missions that they would come to know God’s will in their lives.

· Pray for a time of peace and productivity in the village as we have been worn down emotionally and financially by the constant stream of medical problems.

· Praise the Lord for his faithfulness and care. 

· Pray for protection as the men continue construction on the Elementary classrooms.

· Pray for safety during the timber milling for the Elementary Classroom, Literacy Center, and Clinic.

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