Hello everyone,
I hope you’re fine. This is Micha. Today, I would like to share with you all about our last trip to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
On February 24, I took the road for a long trip to Kinshasa (capital of the DRC). The objectives of this trip were to discuss the details of the evolution of our project with the Kimbanguiste hospital team in Kinshasa (KKH), to re-evaluate the training needs, and to provide our followers with an opportunity to see live on the filed so that they have get a better understanding of the reality of work at HKK and to get to know the staff who are our partners in this project.
After several hours of flying that seemed endless, I arrived on February 25 at 19h at N’djili International Airport. First difference observed: The temperature, I left Montreal while it was still minus 10-15 degree, and then there in Kinshasa, it was 28 degree in the evening!

Just a short night to rest and the next morning I’m on the road for a busy week. I must admit that I was nervous about seeing the team at KKH, after all, a year and a half had passed since our last meeting. But all my apprehensions were gone once I met them. When I arrived, they all hugged me – doctors, nurses, administrative officers, and so on. I felt like home, as if I had left the day before …
After this warm reunion, it was time for me to get to work. My first day was basically explaining where we were at our budget for the establishment of the neonatal unit, our challenges and barriers, and future plans. We were also dedicated time to listen to expectations and concerns of the staff.

As for the rest of the week, I was mainly on the ground juggling between emergency department, pediatric and gynecology/obstetrics units. With my phone, I had to take as many pictures as possible to help people understand the reality of the KKH and what we were doing on site.
I’m not going to lie to you, I’ve often had little battles with my conscience doing this… Let me explain: the KKH is in one of the poorest municipalities of the city of Kinshasa, the majority of patients are in extreme poverty situation and I was thinking with myself should I show these images?! But to allow people to understand the environment, they also had to see it. I could have explained it hundreds of times, but they would not understand the depth of it until they see it for themselves.

In order to better understand the situation of KKH and its functioning, I will explain you the path of care when a patient arrives at the HKK. It does not matter if it is a child or an adult, before being able to consult a doctor in the emergency department, all patient must obtain a consultation sheet at the admission of the hospital, this consultation sheet costs 6,000 Congolese francs, the equivalent of $4.50.
Once this consultation sheet is given, patients can consult a doctor who according to the diagnosis will give them a medical prescription and a blood test orders to be done at the laboratory. Not only the patients or their families must then go to the hospital pharmacy to pay for the medications, the material needed for his treatment, but they must also go to the laboratory to pay for all the expenses related to the tests requested by the doctor. Once this is done, patients can return to the department where their care will be started by the care team.

The problem is that from the beginning the majority of patients do not even have the means to get the consultation card, let alone the cost of the medication and other expenses related to their hospitalization!
Sometimes, given the urgency of the situation, some patients are seen directly by the doctors without having a consultation form and again, if they cannot afford to pay for the treatments, some professionals (doctors or nurses) sponsor them at the pharmacy or the laboratory of the hospital so that they can obtain the medication and other items necessary for their treatment.
Once the necessary care is delivered, these patients cannot leave the hospital without having paid their balances. They become insolvent and can stay as such for several months. Believe me, the corridors of the HKK are full of insolvent cases waiting for a miracle to happen so that they can finally return home…
This insolvency situation is not unique to the KKH, unfortunately it is a common situation among many hospitals in Kinshasa.

For today I’ll stop here to avoid giving you too much information at once, but do not be disappointed, I’ll be back next week to explain the rest of this trip.

It was Micha who were with you today