From St. John’s to Benin – medical officer shares knowledge
[caption id="attachment_20464" align="alignnone" width="590"] Lt(N) Greg Morrow supervises while local teachers practice first aid at Foyer Don Bosco school in Cotonou, Benin, during Operation Projection West Africa. Photo by Cpl Angela Gore[/caption]Lt(N) Jeff Lura, PAO Operation Projection West Africa ~On the first day of March, sailors from HMC Ships Kingston and Shawinigan arrived at Foyer Don Bosco, a small school in Cotonou, Benin, nested within West Africa’s largest open-air market. Using their expertise coupled with good old “elbow grease”, they painted walls and repaired furniture in the school. Afterwards they played games with the children. On the same visit was medical officer Lt(N) Greg Morrow, but he had a different mission. He was there to teach basic first aid to a group of enthusiastic teachers. His lessons were made more important by the fact that ambulances and hospitals are not widespread in Benin; in many cases, teachers would be the only care available to an injured student. “It was a challenge,” said Lt(N) Morrow after the training. “We [in Canada] take for granted that medical care and supplies are available everywhere, but that’s not the case here. I had to really keep it simple, since these villages lack basic services and emergency response.” With the help of a translator, Lt(N) Morrow demonstrated how to deal with cuts, scrapes, fractures, and spinal injuries in a way that would be useful to the teachers after his departure. By all accounts, his instruction was well-received. “It was perfect,” said teacher Pascal Akakbo after the training. “We’re confronted with problems and injuries here all the time, so a better understanding of how to respond will do so much good. We will use this [newfound knowledge] very often.”When he’s not sharing his expertise to the far corners of the globe, Lt(N) Morrow spends his time...