Birthday beach
Last week I became one year older! I even bought birthday cake to work (on the instructions of my colleagues who made sure I knew that birthday cake is as important a tradition here as in the UK). They all chipped in and surprised me with a lot of lovely longyi fabric to take home. They are the most generous people you could meet, yet they have so little compared to us. Their kindness both fills me with respect and makes me feel guilty as I really didn’t want anyone spending money on me.
I spent the weekend away on a special birthday trip to the beach, swimming in the warm water of the Bay of Bengal and eating seafood chowder. My nephew and great nephew who live in Bangkok joined me, making my celebrations perfect. I felt well and truly spoiled.
More Exams
Our first year students have been busy with exams this month. I was so impressed to see how hard they worked and I am sure they will make wonderful midwives. When their exams are finished we will celebrate their progression with a capping ceremony. I’m really excited to see this. These first years feel extra special to me because I can remember them arriving nervous on their first day. The leaps and bounds they have already made are truly inspiring.
A pat on the back
Another one of my projects is complete! We have put together a room for an “E-library”. I have set up four project laptops, two new PCs and two old PCs. This opens up a whole new source of knowledge for the students, giving them access to the most up-to-date medical information, ensuring they can safely care for women in labour.
To make the room extra inviting we painted the shelves, replaced the curtains, and even resurfaced the tables. It is a complete transformation. My hope is that by next week it will be up and running, and I will get to see it in use (I will try and get some photos for you).
Everything seems to be moving so quickly, my plans are progressing faster than I could have hoped. I’m lucky that everyone here is so enthusiastic and keen to try out new things. I would not have believed a few months ago that we would achieve everything we have. It’s all down to the hard work of my colleagues plus just a bit of encouragement and direction from myself.
Exploring other hospitals and schools
Our university is about to be closed for a month’s holiday. So I have been trying to get a work travel visa from the Ministry of Health and Sport. If successful, the Principle and I are planning on visiting other schools and teaching hospitals in Myanmar. This way we can compare teaching and share knowledge.
Sam Busby working at a rural health centre in Myanmar
I am really looking forward to seeing the difference of learnings across other regions. Working in a city, I hear about the challenges rural areas face, where midwives have to travel massive distances to ensure that they are present for a birth.
We need to ensure that the midwives we are training will be able to handle a variety of issues, so I am keen to see what other universities are doing to prepare midwives for the challenges they will face. I know previous VSO volunteer Sam trained midwives travelling to remote areas to deal with complications during delivery.
News from a fellow volunteer
VSO sent me a wonderful talk from another one of their volunteers. Her name is Alexa Vardy and she was a volunteer doctor working in a labour ward in Ethiopia. I believe that a number of you actually supported her before you supported me. Here she is speaking in London to a group of supporters. What she has to say is completely fascinating and it was so interesting for me to see the similarities and differences in our experiences.
Alexa Vardy whilst on her placement in Ethiopia
Tooth fairy
I can reliably inform you that the tooth fairy visits Myanmar. I managed to break a tooth, conveniently in the VSO office. I now feel quite confident about getting future injuries, after seeing how quickly the VSO country office arranged a trip to the dentist and made sure I got there. I did not relish the visit but knew I had to go.
The practice was called Evergreen. Not a word or description you would want to associate with teeth. However, all my misgivings were unfounded. I went into this new building, and the dental practice looked like something from a sci fi film. I had an assessment and VSO paid for my crown. Instead of those horrible impressions they gave me a scan and made my crown from computerised 3-D imaging. I watched a cube of ceramic being transformed in less than 10 minutes. A perfect fit.
Thank you
As you can see, there’s been a lot of progress over the last few months and even more planned for the future. Once again, there is no way I could do this placement without the support of all of you. I love having you by my side.
Best wishes
Carol
