I'm back in Saigon following the cycling trip from Dong Thap. Before moving on to that adventure, however, I want to catch up on the week....
On Wednesday, the medical team set up its clinic at a public building (like a one-room town hall) and neighboring clinic building in Dong Thap. (This isn't a clinic like you and I would picture one, but was just a little three-room building.) It felt like a pretty remote area, because we had to leave our buses 10-15 minutes away and take "tuk-tuks" into the site. (Tuk-tuks are these crazy little vehicles with a spot for the driver in front and then two benches in back to cram in as many people as possible. The road was too narrow for the buses, and there is no way the bridges would have held them.) So, we unloaded the buses and loaded up 4 tuk-tuks with our medical team and gear.
It's amazing how quickly we can set up shop once we reach a site. When we got to our location on Wednesday, people were already waiting for us out front, so we had to set up quickly. I had the chance to work with the dentist, Judy, again, which was great. We only saw children in the dental area on Wednesday.....no adults. There simply wasn't enough time to see everyone, so the children were given priority in hopes that there can be some improvements made to their dental conditions. We saw a total of 277 people at the clinic on Wednesday.
I spent Wednesday morning painting flouride onto the kids' teeth. In the afternoon, I switched with another team member and recorded the Judy's notes for her. We would make notations of which teeth needed to be pulled and filled, in hopes that Catalyst can arrange for some follow-up care for these children. (And just to mess with the compulsive lawyer who was taking notes for her, Judy would through in an occasional "refer for complete orthodonic work up" my way.) It was the same situation as in Kien Giang though......for every child with relatively healthy teeth, there were a dozen children with several teeth needing to be pulled.
There was one cute situation....
There was an adult with significant tooth pain, so Judy saw him. He needed to have a tooth pulled, but Judy didn't have anything to numb his mouth with. She explained that to him through a translator, and he still wanted it pulled. So, Judy pulled it right then and there, and the man was very grateful. There was a little girl behind him in line, who had previously complained to the nurse of tooth pain, which was noted on her form. After seeing what Judy did to this man who complained of tooth pain, however, this girl insisted that she had no pain whatsoever!
Also, although I didn't see any of this unfold, my understanding is that there was an accident at a construction site near our clinic that day. Five men injured in the accident were brought to the clinic and treated by the physicians there. It was great that they had the opportunity to step in like that and provide unexpected care to the people of Dong Thap.
Photo from the Beach at Phu Quoc in the Gulf of Thailand
People starting to gather for our clinic in Rach Gia, Kien Giang
A house near our clinic in Kien Giang
Measuring "patients" in Kien Giang
Boys at the Kien Giang clinic
More photos from the clinic days in Kien Giang
Applying flouride in Kien Giang
A cemetery outside the dump in Rach Gia, Kien Giang
The dump in Rach Gia, Kien Giang
Many of the people we served in Kien Giang live in the dump. You can see "houses" in the distance on the left.
People living in the dump
These are the same boys from the fifth photo above. I saw them in the clinic one day and then again at their home in the dump the next day.
This is a source of water in the dump...
...and this is a truck pumping raw sewage into that water
Our clinic in Tan Hoi Trung, Dong Thap
Life in Tan Hoi Trung, Dong Thap
Driving through the Mekong Delta
This bridge crosses the water between the road and a house. There are donzens and dozens of bridges, one after the other, spanning the waterways.
Our clinic in My Hiep, Dong Thap
Our clinic in Saigon
During our clinic day in Saigon, we saw girls from the Little Rose Warm Shelter, including those who have been the victims of human trafficking.
This little girl is holding one of the many "goodie bags" that we handed out.
Bikes, bikes, bikes
We distributed 250 bikes while in Vietnam, including to the girls we saw at the Saigon clinic. (You can see that this little girl is using the bike to haul the food that we distributed as well.) Bicycles are an important mode of transportation in Vietnam.
Photos from Camp in Long Hai, Phuoc Thuy
We hosted camp for 330 kids, including the girls we saw at our clinic sites.
The camp was held on this beach on the South China Sea.
Most of the kids at camp had never been on a bus, taken a shower, or slept in a "real" bed. Everything from having a lunch big enough to fill their bellies to using a toilet that flushed, was brand new to them.
I painted A LOT of little fingernails at camp!
Saigon Opera House
Government building in Saigon
Sidewalks in Saigon
The team for the 100-mile bike ride from Dong Thap to Saigon!
The ride raised money for the bikes that we donated to children in Vietnam.
Hitting the road at 5:30 a.m.
Early morning traffic in the delta region
Taking a break along the road
Lots of bridges along the route
Cars, trucks, motorbikes, and bicycles all share one road
Carb loading -- Pringles and...
...bread carried me a long way
Lunch at a local restaurant along the way
Our last break with 15 miles to go
One rider jumped in the van so that Tuan (middle, long pants) could get on a bike and lead the way into Saigon for us.
Saigon at last!
This is what we looked like 100 miles and twelve hours after leaving Dong Thap. We had just finished weaving our way through Saigon's rush hour traffic.
The Foerster Kiddos
