Ngaoundéré’s Protestant Hospital in Cameroon
Ngaoundéré’s Protestant
Hospital in Cameroon
Hospital Agency: Œuvre de Santé de
l’Eglise Evangélique Luthérienne du
Cameroun (OSEELC) – Work of Health of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church of Cameroon.
Hospital Profile: Ngaoundéré Protestant
Hospital (NPH) is located in the francophone area of north/central
Cameroon. Ngaoundéré is a city of 100,000 people, but the
hospital serves a very large rural population as well. The
predominant language is Fulfuldi, although French, some English, and
many tribal languages are also spoken locally. Approximately 60-70%
of the people in the region are Muslim, but there is a large Christian
community as well. NPH is the newest PAACS residency training site,
and will officially begin the PAACS program in January, 2009, with three
residents. The hospital has three large operating rooms, a 24 hour
Emergency Room, an ICU and Burn Unit. A wide variety of surgical
diseases are seen. Trauma is very common, mostly from motor vehicle
accidents, but also from gunshot wounds, burns, farming accidents and
animals. Fractures, both acute and old, and chronic osteomyelitis are
common clinical problems. Neoplasms of all kinds are seen, but
predominantly breast, head and neck, lymphoma, prostate and GYN tumors.
Almost 40% of our surgery is OBGYN- hysterectomies, ectopic pregnancies,
C-sections, obstetric trauma and neoplasms. The hospital is
scheduled to have a new 68 bed inpatient surgical ward built during
2009, which will greatly enhance the quality of surgical care. AIDS, TB
and malaria are prevalent, as well as other tropical diseases.
Time Difference: + 5 hours Daylight Savings Time
(EST) USA- +6 hours EST- USA
Travel: From the United States fly to Europe and
connect to Yaoundé, the capital city. Three European Airlines
fly to Cameroon - Air France, Swiss Air and Brussels Air. It is
also possible to fly to Douala, but not as easy to get to
Ngaoundéré from Douala. In Yaoundé, there may be
commercial air service to Garoua, which is 3 hours drive north of
Ngaoundéré. Someone from the hospital can pick up
visitors from there. There is an overnight train daily between
Yaoundé and Ngaoundéré. SIL Missionary Aviation
offers an alternative but is the most expensive of the options. It is
best to contact the PAACS Program Director when arranging for travel
because local travel circumstances are constantly changing and need to
be arranged on a case by case basis.
|
Drs. Tim Bartholomew and Jim
Brown
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Location: Ngaoundéré is located in the
central highlands of Cameroon on a plateau north of the forested areas
of the coast, and south of the desert in the far north. The earth
is red and there are some rolling hills and scattered small
mountains. There are a few large trees but most of the countryside
is scrub growth of small trees and bushes.
Language: Most local people speak Fulfuldi, or
their own tribal language. Almost all the hospital staff and
business people speak French. English is spoken by a few people but is
not nearly as well known as French.
Climate: There are two seasons - rainy from April to
October, and dry from the end of October to April. During the rainy
season, the entire countryside is green. The dry season is very
dusty from the harmattan winds from the north, and often there is smoke
from burning of dry grass resulting in a constant haze.
Housing: Guesthouses on the nearby housing
compound are available for visitors. Cooking facilities are
available in the guesthouses. Food can be bought in town or at the
door, and many meals are taken with missionary families.
• Program Director: Jim Brown, MD,
FACS
• Assistant Program Director: Dr.
Timothy Bartholomew (Maxillofacial Surgeon)
• Beds: Approximately 140 – 68
surgical
• ORs: 3
• Program begins: January 2009
• Number of residents: 3
