Bang Saphan is 4 hours away and has our most vulnerable families that we work with.
The trip had several aims:
• Operate our field medical clinic to provide much needed medical care
• Equip the school children with bikes; helmets and school bags so they can ride to school instead of walk 7km each way.
• Pass on donations of clothes, mosquito nets, rice, canned fish and dog food
• Donate the 3 months supply of medicines to the qualified nurse living in the village
Our volunteers met in Hua Hin at 7am on Saturday morning and headed out in three trucks, one sponsored by our regular sponsor, Dave of Hua Hin Car Hire. The trucks contained medical supplies, donated clothes and mosquito nets. Hua Hin Today staff had kindly donated rice, canned fish and dog food for the village and loads of clothes were donated by Swarovski Gemstones (Thailand) Limited which they raised through staff in their first drive to help Jungle Aid.
Our volunteers included many of our regular volunteers; many of whom travel from Bangkok to support these trips. Our medical team consisted of Sam our osteopath, Em and Paula our nurses and Aashie our medical student. Each person was able to work with our amazing translators to see 22 patients. Our translators Thu, Joanne, Leyna and Nancy were incredible working non stop to ensure we saw all our patients but also gained as much information on what is happening in the village and the areas they are concerned about.
Medical clinic
Our medical team split in to 3 groups, each qualified volunteer working with a translator and a volunteer to support the team to record the medical data and dispense the medicine.
The injuries and illnesses we saw were conditions that the families regularly suffer from such as severe skin infections, open sores and wounds, worms, severe neck and back pain and vomiting and diarrhea.
There were also two ladies Yuyusa, aged 26 years and Damaylee, aged 39 years old that have suffered with broken teeth and severe pain for many years. Eating and talking has been difficult. Jungle Aid team organised with the leader to get both ladies attend the hospital the following week for tooth extraction.
The local nurse La Gee was very happy to receive the box of medicines, which enables her to treat the parents and children in her village when we are not there. Jungle Aid sponsors the box of medicines and is able to provide this because of the generous donations received by our sponsors.
Assessment
Our area manager teamed up with Joanne to help with translation and spoke with the village leader.
We gathered important information on the current state of projects being run by Jungle Aid and were happy to learn that the villagers are benefitting from the help we bring them.
We handed over three bicycles, together with helmets, puncture kits and pumps, and eleven backpacks to primary and secondary school age children. We were happy to learn that the children understood that these bicycles were to be shared by all children living at the shelter and they have to take younger children, who can’t ride bicycles yet, to school with them.
We found out that we need four more bicycles for the remaining children and three smaller backpacks for kindergarten aged children. We will bring these to the children when we visit them in December.
We also received an education sponsorship request for a very bright boy, with a consistent GPA of 3.x, who wants to continue on to high school after completing secondary school in March, 2016. His parents can’t afford it but are supportive to his studying further if he wants to study and can receive financial aid.
We found out that the villagers are struggling to pay the rent for shelter and one of our volunteers gave them money for the rent for November. In future, Jungle Aid will be supporting them with the rent so that children can stay at the shelter and continue their education.
After a busy day of seeing patients and speaking to many villagers for different perspectives, we left the donations, received from our generous donors at Hua Hin Today and Swarovski Gemstones (Thailand) Limited, with the villagers.
Villagers are always very grateful for the care, medicines, rice, canned fish, clothes and footwear that we bring them.
We can’t achieve this without the kind help from all of you.
As always, it was an amazing day.