Feb 23 update

Thank you for your prayers. This week, a part for the generator arrived and it began to function again after weeks of being broken. However…it’s temp is running high and they think it will only work for a week or so. The saga continues. Dr. Paul Saunderson of ALM (American Leprosy Mission) visited Anandaban this week to discuss issues regarding the research lab – planned projects, committees, etc. This coming week will be very busy. Anandaban is running its biannual Medical Officers training course on leprosy. I’ll talk on the immunology and pathology of leprosy for one session (if you are not into science – I’ll basically explain what the cells do during the disease). It’s truly an excellent course, as clinicians can see, feel and talk with leprosy patients representing the entire spectrum of leprosy and its related issues. It’s a very hands-on practical course. Dr. Ruth Butlin has flown in from England to teach a lot of the medical side. She lived here at Anandaban for 10 years as the Medical Superintendent, and then other places for years with leprosy patients as well. Also, there will be a partner’s meeting at the same time this week. Essentially, people from TLM supporting countries will visit Nepal to see things. Those will be two days of meetings and presentations in the city. There are also a number of deadlines this week regarding laboratory projects – national and international. Please pray we have the electricity and email to meet those deadlines!! Then there will be an annual meeting with the government authorities on Friday that review the mission’s programs in Nepal. Saturday, we will have our first medical camp of 2009! It will be in Shankhu. We will have to ride about 2hrs out in a jeep to get there (apparently the road is too bad for the bus). They say we can probably fit 14 or so people in the jeep (Nepali style) with the gear on the roof. I’ll take plenty of pictures! J This email method of blogging is a lot easier than the normal route. Loading a number of internet pages is tedious, long and often – frustratingly - just not successful. But at least this seems to be working!