Reflections of a Volunteer

By: Nathalie Malabato

Angkor Wat is an architectural heritage located in Cambodia. It is listed as one of the world’s wonder list. I cannot compare its beauty to anything else because it’s one of a kind.  Its greatness and splendor convey pomp and a luxury surpassing any wonder sight you will ever see. However, behind the beautiful architectural and largest religious monument is the word poverty.

The massive bombing of Cambodia during the Nixon administration, the subsequent Khmer Rouge regime and the invasion of the country by Vietnam in the 1980s has resulted in thousands being deprived of basic needs such as education, health care, food, water, and sanitation.

My grassroots working experience in Samrong Tong and Lvea Aem has given me a better picture of the real Cambodia. Despite the existence of the ASEAN Young Professional Volunteer Corps and various NGO’s in the country, the quantity of aid is insufficient to assist the country’s rapidly expanding population.

The medical mission to both villages, which I took part, catered to a total of 888 patients for both children and adults. They availed free medical consultations and medicines for their specific ailment. 60 participants from the Villagers Health Social Group (VHSG) and hygiene promoters in the villages attended a one-day workshop on “Harnessing the Potential to Develop Cambodia”. The workshop provided information on health issues in Cambodia such as hygiene, sanitation, nutrition, and alternative medicine. Its objective is to raise awareness of these important issues in order to raise the villager’s commitment to sustainable health practices and to empower the participants.

          Personally, I would say that it was heart-breaking to see children growing up in a community having limited access to health care services. Out of 10 children, 8 are suffering from malnutrition and 50% do not get the full number of vaccinations- some do not even receive a single vaccination.

One mother told me that none of the children in her family had received a single vaccination. Although Cambodia has an immunisation programme, many had not been reached by it.

A mass education campaign regarding life-threatening diseases and the necessity of immunisation is of fundamental importance in the country. AIDS education should also be included in the campaign that every citizen must be aware.

          Moreover, during our medical mission, we identified several common health problems experienced by children such as bacterial and fungal skin infections, poor hygiene practices, and pulmonary problems. Gastritis and anaemia are the most common problems faced by adults while hypertension, diabetes, urinary tract infections, and eye defects such as near sightedness are some of the growing health issues in the two villages.  After studying the medical history of some of the patients, I felt sad to know that most of them just go to a hospital or clinic for consultation and to get medicine from a doctor without knowing what the drug is for. As a health care provider, it is our duty to educate our patients and they have the right to know what kind of medicine they are taking in. When I asked one patient to show me her medicine, she just showed me a white and a yellow tablet placed in one small clear plastic without any description of the medicine. There are no regulating bodies in Cambodia to prohibit the dispensing of drugs without prescription. It’s like a convenient store where you can buy anything you want. Definitely, there are drugs that should not be dispensed over the counter since they can have fatal side effects if not used properly. This is a very serious matter- the selling of expired medicines in addition to hardly any information being given to the patients in their own language which I personally experienced during my visit to several pharmacies in the country. Doctors are routinely bribed to promote their medicines. It is vital that the Khmer people be educated about this important issue.

          Access to unsafe water in Samrong Tong and Lvea Aem was one of the challenges during my stay in the community. People don’t have clean water source, thus, everybody uses rain water for cooking, bathing, and washing. During the dry season, villagers also use a water pump but they need to share this within the community since not everyone has one. Both villages have poor sanitation systems. Although villagers learn to adapt to what they are limited to, the health of individuals is at risk.  

I saw a big gap between the health care delivery systems to the poor and the rich. Basically, rich people can afford to pay for good doctors and the best hospitals in the country while the poor have to use government hospitals where they receive substandard care due to the large volume of patients and shortage of health care workers.

As a health care provider, I found that there’s a lot to improve. The advocacy on health care issues should be addressed through massive information dissemination at the grassroots level. Using mass media is not enough to bring information to the people especially to those who are unable to read and write, nor have television in their homes or simply resist change. There is a need to work with the people, integrate with the community, and to build trust in order to promote change.

I accepted the challenge to participate in the AYPVC’s mission designed to bring together young professionals from ASEAN member states to undertake voluntary community work in areas of their expertise in various location. I am very thankful for the opportunity to be of service to the people. I have learned that there are three secret ingredients necessary to become a successful change maker. First, be passionate about what you do. When you are faced with challenges, you can easily find solutions and be able to easily adapt to changes. Second, learn to appreciate little things. When you feel that it’s exhausting/tiring doing community work, remember those people around you who need to work under the sun to be able to earn some money, look around at the people who don’t have much but still manage to give something to you, and at the children who only have one pair of slippers and cannot buy new ones. Lastly, reach out to the people who are less empowered. If you try to make sincere connections with rural people, you can definitely empower them and bring about positive change.

About the Author:

Nathalie Malabato is a registered nurse and registered social worker who was accepted as one of the ASEAN Young Professional Volunteer Corps for Cambodia. She joined the medical team who reached out the children, women and youth living in Samrong Tong and La Vea Aem, Cambodia.