Free Methodist Medical Fellowship

Umri Mission Hospital

For one of the most memorable trips of their lives, on January 31st, Michelle and Gordon Reed set out for India with Bishop Joe James and his wife Marilyn. The plan was to visit several cities where annual conferences were being held. They would then travel to Umri Christian Hospital. Nothing went entirely as planned, but God's blessings were abundant. Needs Met Before leaving, Gordon received email from Dr. Alexander Daniel, Umri Hospital Medical Director, requesting a fiberoptic gastroscope. After making only three phone calls, Gordon managed to find a used set of four Olympus scopes, video camera, light source, and monitor. Using funds from the Free Methodist Medical Fellowship, the equipment was purchased. Difficulties After this blessing, the trip's difficulties began. Winter weather in Amsterdam made the Reeds miss their connecting flight. Re-routed through Saudi Arabia and Doha, Qatar, they arrived in Bombay with no luggage and no medical equipment. Four days later, the luggage arrived but the medical equipment did not clear through customs. As they hurried to catch their flight to Bangalore, customs officials impounded the equipment Days of Blessings The next few days contained many a blessing. The Reeds met with many wonderful people, and visited several churches and youth hostels. For their visit at Umri Christian Hospital, they were guests in the home of Dr. Alex and his wife Rupa. Alex is a general surgeon, but like most missionary doctors, he is the resident surgeon, anesthesiologist, obstetrician, pedia-trician, etc. More importantly, he has a sincere calling to care for the poor, and a desire to seek out the will of God. God's Comfort During their two days at Umri they attended the hospital board meeting, working in the outpatient clinic, and made rounds. Then, unexpectedly, Gordon awoke in the middle of the night with abdominal pain. An x-ray confirmed the diagnosis of a small bowel obstruction. They jumped into a jeep and drove two hours to Nagpur where Gordon was taken to a hospital where he was treated and stabilized. Gordon was moved to Bombay for surgery at Hinduja Hospital, a large 350-bed teaching hospital downtown. Gordon's talented surgeon, Dr. Chan-diramani, was trained in London, is the department head, and has several residents and fellows working with him. Shortly after Gordon's arrival, he had a laparotomy. A prolonged ileus and eventual nutrition concerns necessitated over a week in the ICU. Rest was hard to come by as there were no private rooms, but only beds separated by curtains and visitors would come and go until about midnight. The hospital bill had to be paid in cash every other day. The Reeds' family wired money to India and Michelle would then take a cab to the Western Union office where she would collect a bag full of Rupees. The Lord truly protected her as she carried that money through the streets of Bombay. True Friendship Before discharge Gordon was able to spend a few days in a private room. The stay itself was not without blessings. Pastor Moses visited from Bombay. His prayers were just what Gordon needed. Says Gordon "He was filled with energy, passion, and sincerity". The sweat poured from his face as he prayed for healing and a safe journey. From that point on, Gordon's condition improved. The flight home was easy and comfortable. "Michelle and I feel privileged to have received an incredible outpouring of love and sacrifice and prayer in India", says Gordon. "The members of the Free Methodist churches put their lives on hold to come and help us." Rupa, Dr. Alex's wife left her daughter with their housekeeper and flew to Bombay to make sure someone was there for Michelle. Rupa took Michelle to meet her relatives who arranged for her to have a cell phone to call back to the US. Rupa spent every day sitting in the hospital waiting room, reading books and waiting for Michelle. "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:12-13). Dr. Alex, Jacob, and Pradeep drove 800 kilometers nonstop from Umri to Bom-bay. They tried, unsuccessfully, to get the medical equipment out of customs. (Pray that the equipment will be released.) The hardest times teach us the most valuable lessons. When we suffer, we are drawn closer to God. Michelle and Gordon were blessed as He called them to India, then healed Gordon's body, then carried them back home. News from Umri's medical Director The Umri Nursing School is now fully fledged with official recognition. Two groups of ten students per year are being admitted into the 18-month auxiliary Nurse Midwife Course. Umri Mission Hospital will be assigned two more junior doctors. There is still a need for a team of specialists in the areas of internal medicine, gynecology, pediatrics, orthopedics, and community health. Of great importance is the procurement of a new analyzer for the laboratory as well as awaiting the purchase of a much-needed autoclave and surgical instruments, and finally an upgrade of the X-ray equipment. In an email, sent to assist Dr. Reed in his preparation for the visit to Umri, Dr. Alexander expressed his desire for a gastroscope. He writes, "The really useful thing, and what I would really like (but may not be possible at such short notice) would be if you could somehow bring a used but working fiberoptic gastroscope set if you could find someone to donate it to us." A complete endoscopy set was provided at low cost as a practice located in Indiana was upgrading its endoscopy suite. This equipment was located and purchased virtually days before the Reeds left for Umri. FMMF advanced the funds ($2500).
 
 

---

Last Updated: 
Merlin Coulter, M.D.