Over the river . . .

On Friday, March 9th, we traveled across the Yangon River to a village where many live because they cannot afford to live in Yangon. LDS charities had financed a water project there several months ago. The water level was too high and good water could not be found, so a fenced pond and pumps were used. There was some additional unused funds so some water filters had been bought to be used in the primary schools.
As we approached the boats --sanpans--that we were to ride on, we watched men carry bags of what we thought was probably rice from the boat to the dock. They were still doing it when we returned several hours later.

These were the smallest boats we've travelled in. At miday it was hot, but on the river it felt cooler.

The houses we saw as we approached the village. These are just across from Yangon, the largest city in Myanmar. The river is salty and rises and falls with the tide so most are built on stilts with a muddy residue underneath when the tide is low.

These are the pumps with the pond in the background. The water is collected during the monsoon season to last until the next one. This pond is fenced to keep animals away from it.

Because the water is not very pure--lots of sediment--and bacteria, it would be ideal if every family could have individual filters, but the cost is higher than LDS Charities projects allows and prohibitive for most families.

The water tested after passing through this clay filter has fewer bacteria than the bottled water we drink. LDS charities provided 58 to the two schools.

Elder Jones and I are looking at the filters in one classroom

We were greeted by school children lined up before we got to the school. Seeing them is the high point for our visit in my opinion. School will be out now until the monsoon season begins. School isn't held during the hot months which will last until mid May or when the rains begin.

As we left the school, the children followed. I turned back to see Dad surrounded by kids. The Pied Piper??

We had rough cement walks through the village--narrow when one woman was holding my arm and another carrying my umbrellas. This boardwalk was built with whatever was available and it was none too stable.

But then we had to find our way to the boat on blocks or mud! Obviously the tide was out!

Sister Jones being helped out to the boats. She has had both knees replaced and keeps saying "if my kids could only see me now!" After another ride across the river, we were back to our air-conditioned apartment and a shower to clean up. Another interesting day.

Mission Accomplished

On February 19-23rd, neo-natal training, a major initiative of the Church's humanitarian efforts finally was accomplished in Myanmar! It was originally scheduled for last August, but permission from the government didn't come in time, so the training was cancelled. So all the groundwork was done before we arrived in Yangon. Another major initiative had "bombed" as a team of vision doctors came and were not allowed to visit the hospitals or do any surgery. We still lenses for cataracts in our closet still to be distributed.
Finally in January the government's Ministry of Health signed a Memorandum of Understanding with LDS Charities, which cleared the way to get permission for the team of doctors to come and to waive custom and shipping fees for the $33,500 worth of medical equipment shipped from the US to be distributed to the medical personnel who would come to be trained.
Carl and I became the executive secretaries for the team making all the arrangements for the sites, lunches, and coffee breaks. I spent three days photo-copying all the tests that were given after each of seven lessons. We really enjoyed the association with the doctors and the team.
In Myanmar there are 67 neo-natal deaths per thousand. About 100 doctors and nurses were trained and they are committed to going out and training ab out 1000 midwives and others in villages who deliver babies.

From left to right are Steve and Ronnie Jackman from Dallas, Texas. She's been a charge nurse in the infant newborn intensive care part of a major hospital. Her husband input all the exam scores on the computer. Next are Shayne and Allison Stokes, from an AF base in northern Japan. He's a pediatrician; and branch president on the base. They shipped several large boxes of blankets, beanie caps for newborns and gowns for a boy's Eagle project and distributed them in a village, at an orphanage as well as a hospital. Next is Donna Dizon-Townson, the medical leader, a neo-natal specialist and professor at the Uof U. Next are Merrilee and Mike Preece, the team leader. We exchanged lots of emails during the months preceding the training.
Next is Gordon Lassen, from Provo, a respitory therapist and Van Bohman, a pediatrician from Las Vegas who successfully cared for a woman carrying sextuplets about six years ago. He had the bad luck of missing his LA connecting flight and arrived 24 hours late, and had the same bad luck going home, having to wait 12 hours for a connecting flight to Las Vegas.

This is Baby Anne which costs about $600. The throat is anatamical correct so the procedures can be practiced. The arms also can come off so they can observe the working of the lungs.

All the trainees had lectures, then demonstrations, then practice.

Between the training in Yangon and Mandalay, we had a day of sightseeing and a bit of shopping. The doctors bought longyis, the usual dress for men in Myanmar and wore them on the last day of training to the delight of the trainees. Dr. Stokes really liked them--said much cooler than pants. Most of the others kept their pants on.

Here a doctor being trained is practicing .Gordon Lasson is demonstrating the correct way.

Dr. Van Bohman on his knees--he was 6'4" teaching nurses.

Dr. Donna Dizon-Townson teaching her team. Each doctor in the practical sessions had about five observing the demonstrations and then practicing. Some had language problems, but usually a doctor could translate for them

There was a really good rapport established in Mandalay and permission was obtained for the doctors to visit a women's hospital. The team really enjoyed the visit and were quite impressed with the care. Here a woman had just given birth to twins. Women just stay one day in the hospital and family is outside to help care for the baby and to bring food to the mothers.

I assume this is a grandmother caring for a newborn. They were just outside the big maternity ward where there were probably 30 or more beds in one room. In this hospital we were told that there are over 5000 births each year.

This is a tiny baby getting special light treatment. Tiny but very active. We were taken everywhere--saw a woman who had just delivered a baby, her feet still in stirrups, put on gowns and masks and taken into surgical rooms.

We stayed in Mandalay and the team took a three day trip to two famous sites--Bagan and Inle Lake. We haven't been to either, but had cancelled one week of English classes and had wheelchair ceremonies on the 24th of February, so didn't accompany them. We saw them for a few hours on the 27th after they returned to Yangon and before leaving.

Our responsibility isn't over. We have to get reports from the trainers to see that they have followed through with their commitment to take the equipment they were given and train others. Dr. Win, who works with us, will have to do most of the follow-up work, but we'll have reports to write.

All in all it was a busy and we hope very productive trip. The church sponsors about 24 of these trainings each year. The Preece's, he's a retired cardiologist, will travel to Malaysia to do a training in April and are scheduled to fly to Africa to inspect and determine sites for training there.

Your humanitarian contributions at work!

Ride, Anyone??

We have traveled in a variety of cars and trucks while here in Myanmar, and have seen some unusual ones. We were in a nice air-conditioned car in May Mio, where we traveled to a wheelchair donation ceremony last month, but saw some interesting taxi's there.

Looks like another century, doesn't it. We've seen pony carts in other areas, but his was the first covered carriage.

On the day we traveled from Yangon to Mandalay during the Neo-natal training, we had a sight-seeing day. We went by boat up river from Mandalay about an hour and visited an unfinished pagoda, damaged by earthquakes during the last century. We chose to walk (accompanied by very persistent women trying to sell us something, but could have taken this taxi!

And this is the taxi we took from where we stayed in a very nice hotel to the home where we attend a sacrament meeting on the Sundays we stay in Mandalay. We climbed into the back after the driver had to jump start the battery to get it started.

Most of the time in Yangon we travel in a small Toyota car, about 25 years old but very well cared for by aa driver that we depend on for a lot. Usually the are four large people in the car with him. (That's two couples!) Occasionally we do have to take a taxi, and have ridden is quite a variety. Some of them have doors that no longer open from the inside, many of them drive without lights at night (on the theory that they are conserving their battery) unless they really need to have them on. In Mandalay the majority of people get about on motor bikes or bicycles, and there's lots of honking as cars or trucks pass. Here in Yangon, both motor bikes and bicycles are outlawed in the city, as well as honking. So we see lots of buses, some of which were abandoned at the end of WWII but are still being used in the outskirts of the city. Many small trucks also serve as buses with as many as seven seated on each side with that number standing in the middle and another five to seven standing on the back hanging on.

There are many nice cars also here, but we haven't met many people who own them. There is a young couple here who drive a fairly new Toyota van. He works for the US Embassy. Some of us occasionally get a ride home from church with them. And in the garage downstairs there are many nice cars, belonging to UN or diplomatic services, or workers on the new US embassy being built.
Just thought I'd share these pictures and give you an idea about life here.