Serving God in remote and deprived places is risky and can even be dangerous, but it is vital so that people can be reached with the Gospel and life-saving help, especially in an emergency. With its deep valleys and mountainous terrain, people in Papua New Guinea are often several days’ walk from medical facilities. Communities rely on Mission Aviation Fellowship aircraft as their primary means of transport. In times of emergency, flying is the only option.
In partnership with MAF, Rumginae Hospital serves many remote communities with medical emergency flights, as well as taking teams to run mobile health clinics in the surrounding villages. The hospital maintains a link to villages by radio provided by Christian Radio Missionary Fellowship (CRMF). Dr Addy Sither recounts, ‘It is a Sunday morning and all is quiet. And then an ear-piercing alarm sounds at the hospital. This alarm indicates that someone 
needs to contact Rumginae urgently, usually in a medical emergency situation.’
It was Pastor Willie Samobia calling on the radio to say there is a patient with a retained placenta in the village of Suabi. The woman, Rachel, had given birth in the early hours of that morning, but the placenta was stuck inside her. She had lost a lot of blood and was weak. She was in critical need of medical attention to remove the placenta. Dr Addy immediately called pilot Manfred Hanicke, requesting an emergency flight to Suabi. He quickly prepared the plane, and they landed at Suabi after just 30 minutes.
Rachel was carried on a stretcher by other women from the village, meeting the plane as it landed. After a quick examination, Dr Addy found she was in shock. Setting up an intravenous drip, she gave Rachel fluids to help replace those she had lost, and soon her blood pressure and pulse began returning to normal. Rachel, along with her new baby and husband, were strapped into the aircraft and Manfred flew them back to Rumginae.
Landing at the hospital, the medical team was waiting, ready to take Rachel for surgery. They removed her placenta and, after receiving a transfusion of her husband’s blood, she made a quick recovery. Dr Addy writes, ‘Without the radio, there would have been no way for Willie to contact doctors for help with Rachel. Without the flight, she would have died, as it would have taken a long time to walk to the nearest health facility able to help her.’
Written by Emma Stewart, MAF UK.
