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Avec Deux Mains: Confessions of an Educated Woman

http://dberruti.blogspot.com/2014/07/confessions-of-educated-woman.html

Confessions of an Educated Woman. He says he has 17 children- no, wait, 18.' B. translated, and counted, as my new patient attempted to list off the names of his offspring. Trying to do cognitive retraining with a 40-ish year old man who suffered from a traumatic brain injury (TBI) two weeks ago can be challenging . . . attempting to do it in Hausa without wasting anyone's time takes a lot of creativity. I repeated in shock. After expressing my shock, I told him that I have one brother- that's it. When I...

dberruti.blogspot.com

Avec Deux Mains: Get Involved

http://dberruti.blogspot.com/p/get-involved.html

Looking for creative ways. In the work here in Niger? Apart from leaving some comments on the blog, there's five categories of action you can take to have a hand in what's happening at Galmi. No, this isn't a cop-out option. The way I see it, my team and I couldn't make it here without prayer support from 'back home' (which, for our community, is literally around the globe). Please be praying for us! Know someone who might be interested in the work here at Galmi Hospital? The work here, visit. Ride For W...

dberruti.blogspot.com

Avec Deux Mains: Niger in the News

http://dberruti.blogspot.com/2015/01/niger-in-news.html

Niger in the News. Niger has made the news again. This time in response to the happenings in Paris. Churches and the private homes of many Christians in the large cities across the country have been burned. Please pray the peace of Niger! To read one report of the violence across the country, click here. Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom). Occupational Therapist by trade . . . West African transplant by calling . . . cross-cultural screw-up by accident. View my complete profile. A Shepherd Needs His Shoes.

dberruti.blogspot.com

Avec Deux Mains: Lessons from the Widow and her Mite

http://dberruti.blogspot.com/2014/11/lessons-from-widow-and-her-mite.html

Lessons from the Widow and her Mite. My favorite thing to do in Niger on a Sunday is drive an hour up the road, weaving around broken-down-trucks and boys-driving-the-harvest-home-on-donkey-carts, to attend a tiny village church. Humble, in every sense of the word, this small community of brothers and sisters faithfully meets to give thanks for the little they have; together they learn how the Living Word of God should change their daily lives. And the cold weather that is arriving? When we had finished ...

dberruti.blogspot.com

Avec Deux Mains: Lessons from a Tetanus Survivor

http://dberruti.blogspot.com/2014/09/lessons-from-tetanus-survivor.html

Lessons from a Tetanus Survivor. Thank you,' S. whispered to me in English before transitioning back to Hausa. 'I thought I was dead, but you gave me my life back.'. We were sitting on a mat, under a tree in the Ambulatory Care Unit behind the hospital. Already today she had done her own laundry in a modified position and climbed a small set of stairs. A world away from relearning how to swallow her own saliva. I looked up from the patch of sand where I was etching designs with a stick. I have one now.

dberruti.blogspot.com

Avec Deux Mains: The View from Here: OPD Portraits

http://dberruti.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-view-from-here-opd-portraits.html

The View from Here: OPD Portraits. Took the new camera for a quick spin around the Outpatient Department (OPD). Still trying to figure out all the diversity with ISO and other perks of the upgrade . . . but not too shabby for the second use. Favorite shot of the day: my friend S. came back to visit. You can read some her story here. I would agree, not too shabby. These are gorgeous! 04 November, 2014 12:50. 08 November, 2014 09:26. 10 November, 2014 00:16. 10 November, 2014 00:16. View my complete profile.

dberruti.blogspot.com

Avec Deux Mains: Topless Transfers

http://dberruti.blogspot.com/2011/06/topless-transfers.html

While the saddest news of the week is that Little B. Got bubbles and all they have the hope of receiving comme. Gift is a pair of wooden crutches). But I have a new patient occupying much of my afternoon. A woman about my age with a very sweet smile. H. came to our hospital with multiple bed sores. She recently suffered a T11 level spinal cord injury, and the hospital she originally went to sent her home after two days. No wheelchair. No patient education. NOTHING. Modest. They are always. If baby cries ...

dberruti.blogspot.com

Avec Deux Mains: I've Got Your [Naked] Back

http://dberruti.blogspot.com/2013/12/ive-got-your-naked-back.html

I've Got Your [Naked] Back. I woke up this morning feeling confident about my Hausa . . . I've had a few surprising interactions this week when I understood what was being said and the Nigeriens I was talking to didn't turn to someone else for clarification! It may seem small, but for me, successful communication attempt was a huge victory. My Hausa still leaves a lot to be desired, but I can make a few jokes and I've gotten really good at pretending to understand what is happening around me. We all went...

dberruti.blogspot.com

Avec Deux Mains: A Local Legend

http://dberruti.blogspot.com/2014/09/a-local-legend.html

Since leaving the US in 2009, I've racked up my share of good stories. Some funny. Every once in a while one of those stories becomes a bit of a legend. And this is one of them. I hadn't really thought it was that good of a story . . . it sort of was just one of those new-normal kind of stories. That is, until I shared it with a group of summer interns on the eve of their departure. I also have been grilling them about hand washing. It's the first thing we talk about EVERY session: when to wash your hands.

dberruti.blogspot.com

Avec Deux Mains: Ticket to Ride . . . Twice

http://dberruti.blogspot.com/2011/11/ticket-to-ride-twice.html

Ticket to Ride . . . Twice. The first time I flew with CaptainE. He gave my very first flying lesson. Take off is optional, landing is mandatory. Today’s lesson: Stay calm, even when the pilot tells you we can’t land. I’m writing this from the air. I should be writing this on my couch in Galmi . . . but we couldn’t land. So we turned around and are heading back to Niamey. It’s always incredible to see the villages from above . . . and the patterns left on the topography by the wind and ...But there&#8217...