Life in the lab of the Africa Mercy

I got to see malaria under the microscope this week.

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This is a slide from the NYS department of health.  That's where I've seen malaria slides before.
But this one was for real.

Actually, we have a good, accurate serological test in the lab for malaria.  It's a much better test than looking for the parasites in a blood smear.  But we knew this patient had malaria, so we made a slide for fun.  That's what we do for fun in the lab.

Here's a picture of a blood bank in a hospital at home:

Here's a picture of the blood bank on the ship:

It's the crew!  We talked to a nurse who told us that once she gave blood, walked over to the unit where she was working, and ended up transfusing her own blood into her patient.  That's different!
We do have some units of blood stored.  We draw some of the more common types, and keep it in our small refrigerator.  Blood is good for five weeks, so it doesn't get wasted.
If your blood type is B, you're in demand on the ship.  Africans have a higher percentage of B than the population on the ship.

Most patients who are having surgery are admitted the evening before their surgery.
We have one patient whose facial/neck tumor is so large that he has been admitted early.  He has a trach and a feeding tube to prepare him for surgery.  Every morning we run his tests to make sure his levels are OK.  He has become part of our morning routine.  There are a lot of people praying for this man!

Debbie