Why Bother
It's a lot of hard work and planning to get to the places where the people you want to help may be situated. Travel for 3 hours a day on bumpy highways and tracks, risking life and limb with careless drivers, (not my driver Billy who is excellent). Is it really worth it ? Only the people involved can answer that question.
Every 2 days for the last month my friend Bill (who calls himself my driver but is actually much more), has taken me on a 200 Km round trip to good to a small village near Takoa in Cambodia. Making this journey before you can even start is a strain to begin with but has become somewhat of a ritual.
We start out from the city at 0930 and Bill goes on to fight his way through the traffic, a fast but careful driver he gets us to our destination at about 1045 where we stop and have a coffee and a little breakfast Cambodian style.
Preparation the day before
Resupplying the equipment that may be needed. Bandages, compresses, antiseptics
Cleaning and steralising and instruments I may need to use.
Resupply of any medications needed. Simple supply of basic anagesics, worming tablets, stuff for upset stomachs and a supply of vitamin suppliments.
Sulture Kit
Sphigmanomometer, thermometer, stethoscope and torch.
What makes all this time and effort worthwhile, at least to me, is the warmth and generosity of the people, not just those who you may be there to help but all the people that you meet. The really sick people like Sray Crieat and Sar Chim are the primary reason for the visit but we not only are able to help them but also offer assistance to others living around them.
Many of the older people have lead a very strenuous life, working the fields and complain of the usual things that you would expect, bad backs, bad knees and elbows. We are able to offer them a little respite with the help of Ibuprofen (nothing they could not purchase from a pharmacy if there were one close by and if they had the money ) Sar Chim was in so much pain when we first saw him he needed some stronger anagesia and after discussion with our support Doctor we provide him with a short course of Codamol. These things, and the consultation in Phnom Penh for Sar Chim were free and we covered any costs through donations from friends and personal resource.
So why do we bother with all this work, and cost. Personally because I cannot ignore another person, who through no fault of their own, is sick and unable to help themselves. I cannot walk away and shrug my shoulders. Can we ignore people, who do not ask for help but gladly accept it when offered, I think not.
The lady in the picture above had a bad case of RED EYE, very common in Cambodia and quite easily treatable but she had no money to buy eye drops. We provided the necessary eye drops and the next time I saw her she was completely recovered.
We are not Doctors and do not profess to be, but we have a lot of skills that we can use and will refer any person who we are unable to effectively and safely deal with to medical practitioners in Phnom Penh but most of the things we see are quite easily dealt with using basic or advanced methods of first aid.
