*Overview:
* Holm was badly burned, and a local witch doctor applied a tribal salve that kept him alive.
* The burns looked so clean, no infection at all, a clear indication that the witch doctor's potion had done its job.
* The hospital played host to a steady stream of visiting doctors and other medical personnel interested in learning about the treatments used there. Many of the visitors came from abroad.
* An Ethiopian doctor observed that the black substance used on my burns look like an age-old tribal remedy used in rural areas of Africa. He had heard that one of its ingredients was boiled snake.
* Doctors at the National Burns Center credited the black paste for saving my life, by preventing infection and dehydration ... even though the make-up of the substance remained a mystery.
* "... the paste was almost identical to the best chemical treatment available at the U.S. National Burns Center."
* Several months later, two Air Force doctors were sent to Africa to investigate the substance ... they evidently found that it did include snake oil, plus tree bark and herbs. Some of the herbs could not be identified.
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* An American doctor took one look, saw no hope, and left the room. He reported his conclusion to a senior Embassy officer.
* A second doctor approached. He was an older Belgian doctor with much experience in the Congo. He realized that after 11 days in the bush without care I needed immediate treatment. He put IVs into both my ankles and then "flooded" me with antibiotics and nutrients. It was a jolt I sorely needed, and it helped prepare me for the long flight to the National Burn Center.
* I believe it was the result of all that the Belgian doctor had pumped into me during my short stay in Leopoldville. |