IHC, we love yuh bad

While in conversation ah few years ago wid Dr Datta, she was telling me about some serious medical cases she had at de Pediatric Ward down at Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH). She did mention dat she was trying to source funding foh passages to send some ah d’s kids off to Virginia way dey could get corrective surgery foh free. Off and on ah would see ah lickle clipping in de Papers way some kid was in need or actually returned from ah successful operation in de USA, but ah was never excited like say de way ah big-up de other medical program de “Vision Now” program from Cuba, dat on de other hand, got nuff publicity from everybody including yours truly.{{more}} Was not until ah few weeks ago ah was watching K45, ah local TV station and ah saw ah gathering ah happy children and parents showering “thanks and praises” pon ah team ah Doctors from ah program called, International Hospital for Children, from de same Virginia, dat ah realize de extent ah de valuable contribution to our children’s health dat d’s noble professionals have been making foh free.

De progress is unbelievable. De Program started here in 2002 in partnership wid de Rotary Club South, de Admin and medical staff at de MCMH, yuh can always count on Sir Fred in d’s matters and de Guv-ah-mint of SVG, ah overs dat if is one time dat dey Guv-ah-mint is stepping up to de plate is in dis one. Of course two ah de live wires on de local front are Dr.Datta and Sister Jackie King, de IHC’s Eastern Caribbean Rep. Since de inception in 2002, 80 children have had surgery, here and in de US; advanced diagnostic services to 1, 767 children; 173 children at de MCMH had surgical intervention. To date 36 teams in de subspecialties visited SVG, dey specialize in some fields, names dah will mek me bite me town, but basically tings to do wid heart, brain, bone, eye, reconstruction, and general surgery. And we talking of almost six million US dollars dat was provided at no cost to de families in SVG. De program is on ah all time high wid de advent of technology, ah ting called telemedicine, surgeries are being done here at MCMH by our local specialist under de visual supervision of specialists stationed in Virginia. All ah dis good stuff happening at de MCMH, and instead ah de PM coming at his Press Conference and bigging up his Guv-ah-mint’s contribution to de program, he dey pulling down de nurses and doctors calling dem pussy cat. Man when ah overs all dat was said on TV and all de good tings way going on, ah say to me-self ah must write and big up de IHC team and tell dem dat words cannot express our gratitude and appreciation. Thanks IHC we love yuh bad!

ITS ALL IN DE HEAD

Some time ago Fitz Dowers wrote ah witty piece on Nicknames, of course dat was when Nickname was a part ah we culture. Foh example nobody knew ‘Mother Bakes’ real name, or ‘Percy Coals’ or ‘Arthur Jumby’ foh dat matter. Very few people have nicknames now-ah-days, except of course de pull-ah-trick-hands. Maybe dat is why on Sunday while on our way to Church in Mespo, ah was amused when my wife pushed her “Wise Head” out de car window and hail-up one of her class-mate, loud! Loud! to de top ah she voice ‘Hammer Head’! Now I know is only one ‘Hammer Head’ or Hammers, de former national Footballer, so ah wondering way Hammers doing in de country so early pon ah Sunday morning. Dat immediately set us off recapping all de people dem who got ah Nickname from de size or shape ah dey Head alone. Ah opened de bowling wid ‘Head Head’ ah bad John character in de early days ah Joshua’s PPP. First it was ‘Big Head’ Mc Kie, followed by Joshua’s christening of de late PM Cato and called him ‘Big Head Mah-Goff-he’, dat uses to hurt Labour Party people. And Dr. Ken John’s fren, Andrew Cummings Q.C. keep asking me if ah don’t think Ken qualify foh ‘Big Head Kenneth’. Dey does call my farmer buddy from Richland Park “White Head”, he keeps me supplied wid yams, de man black, black. Dey was Cashew Head, pronounced Coo-shoe Head, dah’s when ah head shape like ah Cashew nut, he’s another fren ah mine. ‘Lickle Head’ was ah fisherman from Bequia wid one ah de smallest head ah ever see, he made ah living fishing on de rocks. Did someone say ‘Bawl Head’, look leave Arm-in out ah dis, furthermore he’s ‘Bald Head’. One ah dem Vincies in de Subway in New York mek de mistake say dey biggin-up ah ole fren ah mine and called him ‘Shark Head’ dat almost caused ah Riot. And we had two ‘Bullet Head’ from de Village, Kingsley not Kingsley Belly, and Shark Head’s brother, Arnott. We had ah Van Driver from Mespo, yuh couldn’t ask foh ah more polite and courteous driver, yet dey called him ‘Hog Head’. Well ‘Shit Head’ dead and gone , ah don’t have to explain way dat one come from. Calling ah woman ‘Man Head’ had nothing to do wid she studying man, dat was about short hair, and before de Miriam Makiba hair style. ‘Crack Head’ got nothing to do wid ah fractured skull; ‘Nut Head’ nothing to do wid Nuts and ‘Thief Head’ or ‘Steal Head’ nothing to do wid thief. On de other hand ‘Air Head’ is literal, almost de same as when de PM brass-up his ministers foh not being reading, dat however is ‘Done-see Head’! Ah ‘Soft Head’ woman is plenty ‘Head Ache’ foh she fellar if he’s ah ‘Tuff Head’, in our day at school, three or four lashes wid de teacher’s leather strap was de cure foh dem ‘Tuff Head’ students. And never tell yo-self is Weed or alcohol alone dat does mek yuh “ Head Bad”; tek me foh example, ah don’t drink or smoke and still ah can’t remember half ah de tings ah did plan to write bout de Head, yuh want to guess why? ‘Me Head Bad’! And wid dat ah gone again.

One Love Bassy

Bassy Alexander is a land surveyor, folklorist and social commentator.