COUNTRY: Laos
PROGRAM: UniBreak Groups
PROJECT: Nursing & Midwifery
WRITTEN BY: Rosie Haynes, Griffith University
Most people were happy as we headed back up to Pak Xeng for another full week of clinics, as it is impossible not to fall in love with the quaint village, the families we are staying with, the feeling of overwhelming community and friendliness. It seems however, that we ran into some bad luck in regards to weather this week and the day we all went river rafting was the coldest day so far. However that didn't stop some brave people from jumping in for a quick swim and what we consider a shower when we are at the village. As we traveled down the river it was interesting to see hydro electricity contraptions set up at most of the rapids, which collect electricity for the villages. Continuing our run of bad luck with weather, it was on the hottest day of the week that we visited one of the schools and donated a heap of sports equipment, we then played some of the Lao kids in a game of soccer in the blistering heat. Some of the students who attend this school walk for up to 12 hours on the weekend, carrying their week’s rice to attend school. During their week’s stay they live in tiny huts with a small fire, non of the luxuries we have in Australia, putting a whole new spin on Student Living.
For one of the meals this week the cooks made crinkle cut chips, though when they reached the dinner table they were found to be cold and soggy. This however was not a problem and they proved to be a favorite among some of the group. The next night, as the cook caught on to how much we enjoyed the chips plied us with more chips than we could handle, bringing out three plates piled high.
The clinics went well this week, and on several days as the villages were small we were able to finish early and get back in time for a nice swim in the river. This week seemed to be the week of wound care. On the first day we were called out to a house of a boy who had broken his leg, when we arrived to inspect his ankle it was found that not only was it infected but also it was massively swollen to the point that the skin had broken. It was a very satisfying feeling as we were able to transport him to hospital so he would receive IV antibiotics that would save not only his leg but also his life. Through out the rest of the week we were bombarded with wounds with everything from infected boils to gravel rash. By the end of our week’s clinics we were asked to partake in a traditional ceremony so that the villagers could show their appreciation for the work we had done there, this involved being given handfuls of egg and sticky rice to eat and often being handed our second serving before we had finished the first, and also having many pieces of string tied around our wrists. The ceremony was to ensure our good health and many children, for the future, and something about making sure we have our 32 souls intact.
To finish off the week, we were able to take in some more of the culture as were invited to join some of the ladies at our village in learning the local craft of weaving scarves. It was lots of fun and quite amusing as they attempted to teach us how to weave through hand actions and lots of pointing as we didn't have a common language. We also discovered how much taller most of us were as we struggled to fit our legs under the intricate weaving contraptions. We were able to support local business as most of us bought some of the beautiful and intricate scarves that the ladies had made. After the weaving we were invited to a cooking classes and we all split up to learn different traditional food including papaya salad, stir fry, beef soup and beans with coriander. After spending two weeks in Laos and time up in the villages I am sure that coriander is their favorite herb which they put in everything, as the girls who make the beans with coriander reported that there were equal parts coriander to beans mmmmm. After getting to try our wonderful creations the group then headed down to Luang Prabang for a tour of the local nursing and midwifery school where we were able to see the different courses available and ask lots of questions about the health care system currently running in Laos. It was interesting to hear how they were planning on improving their hospitals and hoped to soon be level with the health care system currently working in the majority of South East Asia.For one of the meals this week the cooks made crinkle cut chips, though when they reached the dinner table they were found to be cold and soggy. This however was not a problem and they proved to be a favorite among some of the group. The next night, as the cook caught on to how much we enjoyed the chips plied us with more chips than we could handle, bringing out three plates piled high.
The clinics went well this week, and on several days as the villages were small we were able to finish early and get back in time for a nice swim in the river. This week seemed to be the week of wound care. On the first day we were called out to a house of a boy who had broken his leg, when we arrived to inspect his ankle it was found that not only was it infected but also it was massively swollen to the point that the skin had broken. It was a very satisfying feeling as we were able to transport him to hospital so he would receive IV antibiotics that would save not only his leg but also his life. Through out the rest of the week we were bombarded with wounds with everything from infected boils to gravel rash.
By the end of our week’s clinics we were asked to partake in a traditional ceremony so that the villagers could show their appreciation for the work we had done there, this involved being given handfuls of egg and sticky rice to eat and often being handed our second serving before we had finished the first, and also having many pieces of string tied around our wrists. The ceremony was to ensure our good health and many children, for the future, and something about making sure we have our 32 souls intact.
To finish off the week, we were able to take in some more of the culture as were invited to join some of the ladies at our village in learning the local craft of weaving scarves. It was lots of fun and quite amusing as they attempted to teach us how to weave through hand actions and lots of pointing as we didn't have a common language. We also discovered how much taller most of us were as we struggled to fit our legs under the intricate weaving contraptions. We were able to support local business as most of us bought some of the beautiful and intricate scarves that the ladies had made. After the weaving we were invited to a cooking classes and we all split up to learn different traditional food including papaya salad, stir fry, beef soup and beans with coriander. After spending two weeks in Laos and time up in the villages I am sure that coriander is their favorite herb which they put in everything, as the girls who make the beans with coriander reported that there were equal parts coriander to beans mmmmm. After getting to try our wonderful creations the group then headed down to Luang Prabang for a tour of the local nursing and midwifery school where we were able to see the different courses available and ask lots of questions about the health care system currently running in Laos. It was interesting to hear how they were planning on improving their hospitals and hoped to soon be level with the health care system currently working in the majority of South East Asia.
Midwifery update: Over the past couple of weeks, us midwifery students (Laura, Jordan and Hannah) and our lovely midwifery lecturer Jane, have been running daily midwifery health promotion classes to improve maternal and infant health and well being. These classes encompass the antenatal, labor, birth and the postnatal period, tailored to the needs of women living in these remote underdeveloped villages. The women who've participated in these classes have thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to share their birthing knowledge, culture and experience with us. It has been a privilege and an honor to work with the women and village midwives in trying to ascertain better health in their remote villages. It has been amusing to watch the villagers fascination with the dolls brought for demonstration in these classes, as most of them have never seen a 'Baby Born' before and even the men were playing with them. As some of the villages did not have a separate room for these classes to take place, several times we set them up in the open and a large majority of the village would attend. As the villages asked different questions about birthing there were times when it was easier to show than tell and everyone had a good laugh as the midwifery students gave advice on different positions to give birth and accompanied it with a demonstration as well. (By Laura)
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