SPOKANE, Wash.-- A Spokane nurse has returned home from a trip to Africa where she was a part of a team transforming lives through surgery.
Mica Kondryszyn said she was able to learn about the extreme lack of health care in Cameroon and the surprising amount of hope despite medical conditions many had.
Kondryszyn was on board a mercy ship. It is like a hospital on a water.
For five months, Kondryszyn cared for and grew close with her patients, while also sharing the gospel with them.
She said many who came aboard had conditions not often seen in the United States because of our access to surgery.
"There were other surgeries where there might be a facial tumor that just looks awkward, and in their culture it's very shameful," said Kondryszyn. "If it's a dad and he's got a tumor, he's not going to go to the doctor because that's his family's money to live," she said. "In some ways I feel like I was the one that was a blessed because I get to see God changing lives through simple surgeries, and to me that's incredible."
The "Africa Mercy" is typically stationed in one spot for up to 10 months to provide care.
Different countries invite the ship to come to them if they feel it can be helpful to their people.
Kondryszyn works at Sacred Heart Medical Center, but she was able to take a leave of absence for her trip. She said others who are able to help should do the same because, even though you are giving the gift of the life, she said the experience in itself will be a gift to you.