Pool Report: Obama's Visiting Ghana Hospital

Pool report #3
Accra, Ghana
July 11, 2009

First a little bit of correction from a pooler whose spouse insists is color blind: On additional scrutiny, and with some consultation, it's probably fair to say the police uniforms are more charcoal, the president's tie is red and Flotus's dress is very light gray (with red, purple and yellow stripes near the bottom). Apologies all around.

Now back to your original programming: As morning hit midday, the motorcade ran into larger crowds en route to the hospital. People lined the roads, stood on balconies, peered out windows. A few waved American or Ghanaian flags. Many waved or cheered. The motorcade pulled up to La General Hospital at 11:12 a.m. and rows of little boys wearing Obama T-shirts cried out “welcome!”

Potus and Flotus were escorted to an open-air women's clinic next to the main hospital building, where a nurse named Mercy showed them around. Mercy Kotey, wearing a traditional white nurse's uniform complete with the white hat, introduced the visitors to about 20 pregnant women who were standing as Potus and Flotus arrived.

“Hello, ladies,” Potus called out as he walked up. “Nobody's going to have a baby right now, right?”

The women laughed. Potus told them to sit down. After some description by Kotey and Health Minister George Vankey, Potus said a few words to the pool: “Part of the reason this is so important is that throughout Africa, the rate of both infant mortality but also maternal mortality is still far too high,” he said. The kinds of programs he was visiting, he said, “are very important.”

Potus and Flotus then shook hands with each of the pregnant women. Flotus held hands the entire time with Kotey and asked each of the women how they were doing and were they taking care of themselves. The hospital receives help from the U.S. Agency for International Development as it focuses on prenatal care, HIV testing for pregnant women, malaria prevention, improved labor and delivery services, post-partum care for new mothers and infants, nutritional counseling and family planning. Ghana declared infant mortality a national emergency last year, according to the White House.

The first couple was then taken to three other areas of the clinic, where they met mothers with babies. “Hey! This is the highlight of the trip,” Potus said as he walked into one area to find a dozen mothers and their children. “Look at these cuties!” He hoisted a couple of the kids and leaned down to say hi to the rest. One seemed somewhat scared and cried. “What's the matter?” Potus asked her. Flotus then took the baby in her arms and she calmed down a little but then quickly retreated to her mother.

“I think it's the reporters who are scary,” Potus joked. “They scare me all the time.”

They moved on to a couple other areas where they were shown nutrition programs and still more babies. Potus hoisted another one who was crying. “She wants to make a speech – to parliament,” he said.

It's fair to say that the last-minute sprucing up of the hospital really was last minute, as the white paint on the curb was still wet, as several of the visitors discovered to their chagrin. Potus and Flotus departed from the hospital at 11:54 a.m. It appeared that they substituted the Chevy Suburbans for the limousines.

The motorcade passed more cheering crowds. One women held up a sign that said:

O nly
B lack
A merican
M anaging
A merica

The motorcade pulled up to the parliament building at 12:02 p.m. The speech is open press.