Excerpt from draft of "Apostle to the Pygmies – The Doctor Jerry Galloway Story”
Dr. Jerry Galloway examining a child in the village.
Children who suffered from measles and its consequences filled the hospital. One or two children died each week. The problem was worsened by the belief that if the people gave the child an enema laced with red pepper and herbs that it would rid the body of measles. Some of the children died from the caustic enemas. The grandmothers had a great deal of influence on the younger women, as far as the use of home remedies was concerned. They kept the more youthful women from bringing sick children to the hospital. One of Luba’s cousins had a two-year-old son who died that week after his grandmother had given him an enema to chase away three evil spirits. They had brought him to the hospital, but it was too late.
The measles epidemic continued into late November. There was not enough room in the hospital, and beds filled the hallways. The mayors from two villages came and insisted that I send nurses with medications to their communities.
“If I had a nurse, I would send medications, but I do not have any extra nurses,” I explained to them. “How many of your youth have you sent to the nursing school?”
“We have not sent any,” they replied.
“The only way things can improve is if you sent some students to nursing school!”
One problem that blocked the progress of the Ekonda and Botoa was that they did not look to the future. They would wait until a crisis arose and then expect an immediate solution. I told my students that if they learned one thing, let it be that they should look out for their future and project their needs in advance.
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