March of 2001 found us (Volunteer Medics Worldwide) in the Ivory Coast , West Africa for a mission combating eye disease. We were working in cooperation with the Christian and Missionary Alliance group working in many areas all over that country. Cataract, Glaucoma, Trahcoma and River blindness are main causes of blindness in this region. Our goal was to somehow make a difference for as many people as we could who were victims of these diseases. We were able to bring several hundred doses of the medications needed to do our job as well as a few hundred pairs of reading glasses for those whose problems were more simple. Many times a pair if reading glasses can make all the difference in the world to someone who can't sew, cook or read well enough. Our mission started in Abidjan with John (a missionary and his wife) taking us to a church in center or the city to begin our examinations and treatment. We taped our snellen chart for testing vision on a dirty wall full of holes and the whole process began. Once on site and rolling the people began to pour in and never stopped until the darkness drove them away. We saw every type of problem from near myopia (nearsightedness)to to severe trachoma and glaucoma. One woman brought in several children all on her own to see what could be done for them. Each day in Abidjan we were at a different church, a different location taking care of the mass of people that showed up for a chance to see and feel better. There many people who came with other health problems and we did our best to care for them as well with the medications and treatments that we had brought along for those special cases. Many times we find Hypertension (high blood pressure)in people we see and it is good to be able to treat them on the spot. It is always a good idea to treat what you see when you see it as you can never be sure they will have access to exams or treatment after they leave your temporary clinic. We spent several days in the mode before we moved uo to Bouake and the northern territories of Ivory Coast. We were taken up there by Carina a trilingual teacher and missionary from Holland. She makes a great cup of coffee too!! Carina made us feel so wellcome and a part of the show that it was really hard to leave her when the time came. Carina introduced us to Steve and his wife Amy who were in charge of the The Christian Missionary Alliance ministry in Bouake. Steve and Amy were so full of energy and good spirit that we sometimes wondered if they were really real! Steve and Amy took us into there home where we met their three children who were all treasures from God. As the days went on it was clear to see that this familly was one fine unit of love and care. Peter, the smallest at four years old, even helped us hold up an eye chart during exams held their own home. Witch Doctors and all manner of bush medicine men awaited us in the wilderness of Northern Ivory Coast. Many types of their "Traditional Medicine " only served to sprout infections and make simple problems worse. Mant times water and food are witheld from sick adults and childrena as they are felt to be dying and not worthy of the same treatment that healhty people require. Even free health care is a political event in the Ivory Coast and before we were allowed to go into certain areas , we had to agree to see certain members of the Mayor's and County Chief's familly and friends. We sat silent but anxious to get to work while all of the paperwork and hand shaking took place to allow us to go deeper in the wild and to do what we came to do in the first place, "take care of the people"!! I remember one very hot day in makeshift church with a hot tin roof, the temperature was about 105 degrees and we were examining people inside. Under the hot roof our medications had begun to melt and we had to cool them somehow before they went completly bad. Perfect setting for a headache with, a very sick baby screaming in the background , people fighting to get in to be seen next and th heat so that you could cut it with a knife. A man was suddenly rushed in holding his hand over his eyes and screaming that something flew into his eyes while his working in the fields nearby. I stopped what I was doing and had a look where I found three different types of foriegn bodies in his right eye. The eyelid was bleeding due to the scraping and scratching of metal and wood chips in the eye. I gave him a topical (local anesthetic to help numb the eye then we placed him right there on a church bench (pew) to remove the objects from his eye. Steve a minister now became first assistant in the eye operation. Steve was not used to that sort of thing (retraction of parts of the eye during sugery) but he did such a wonderful job that we were able to get all of the objects out , medicate and patch the eye for the healing process. The last day in the the Ivory Coast we were taken back to the Southern part of the country on the beach coast on the border with Ghana. It was sort of a farwell/rest and relaxation trip for all who were involved in the eye care mission. Our first encouter with a green mamba (nasty Snake) not in the wild but in the garden of a restaurant at "Assini Plage" when we were leaving for the beach side. Once seen the snake was quickly beaten to death by men with long sticks all too ready for the event. (No blood no foul) We spent the rest of the day trying to wind down from the hectic , hard and fast pace that we had held over the past two weeks but it was almost impossible. I remember the sunset that day, the images of the natives and their fishing boats and the blessing I had in my soul for what God allowed us to do there. I knew that I would be back if God would make a way. We are now planning a mission for March 2002 where we will be working with an Italian team of Eye Surgeons doing their yearly mission to the Ivory Coast. Written By , Gerald Scott Flint, Volunteer Medics Worldwide email: volunteermedics@aol.com website is Volunteermedics.homestead.com