During a medical mission in 2002, a child was brought to the clinic. He had swallowed a coin which had become lodged in his esophagus. He was unable to eat and could barely swallow enough to keep himself hydrated. The local hospital was unable to help and so a few of the team accompanied the child and his father to Pignon, a two hour bumpy ride down an unpaved, dusty road. After reviewing the X-ray films it was determined that they would not be able to retrieve the coin. There was no pediatric endoscope anywhere in Haiti, and there are only about 3-4% of the hospitals in the US that have them. So this little boy had very few options. The longer the coin remained in his esophagus, the greater chance it would erode through the lining and he would die from massive infection.
The team returned dejected but not hopeless. We all joined in prayer that God would find a way to help this little child. Plans were made to fly the boy and his parents to Port au Prince the next morning. The doctors there were willing to assess him and do surgery if necessary.
That afternoon we got word that the doctors were able to retrieve the coin from Jeffery and he will be all right. Praise God! His father brought the coin to the clinic for the doctors to see.
