If you think you know what 'hot' is, a visit to Cambodia may change your
mind. With temperatures hovering in the nineties, today we earned "our stripes."
Our site was a PIO (Peoples' Improvement Organization) orphanage on the outskirts of Phnom Penh. As I mentioned yesterday a whole community was leveled by the government and the local people were relocated to a new site because AIDS was said to be endemic within this population. It's quite hard to believe that the government could have detected AIDS in this community because none of the poor people seek or have access to medical care; it's far too expensive for them.
The new housing in this site resembles the small storage cubicles where we at home place our unwanted items that we are not yet ready to discard. The government has basically done this, by storing this unwanted population in a remote corner of Phnom Penh. Interestingly, there is no facility to treat any illness in this new site, which probably makes sense, because no one there seems to be sick. The truth of the situation is revealed in the expensive, luxurious property which now occupies the former community. Sadly, this is the Cambodian way.
The children today were quite young and had very decayed teeth. There is a process called arrested caries, in which the previously decayed area turns into a hard brown/black stain which is extremely cavity resistant. Fortunately, many teeth had undergone this process and we were able to retain them as space maintainers. While these teeth are not pretty, they are the best space maintainers that these children will have.
Our site was a PIO (Peoples' Improvement Organization) orphanage on the outskirts of Phnom Penh. As I mentioned yesterday a whole community was leveled by the government and the local people were relocated to a new site because AIDS was said to be endemic within this population. It's quite hard to believe that the government could have detected AIDS in this community because none of the poor people seek or have access to medical care; it's far too expensive for them.
The new housing in this site resembles the small storage cubicles where we at home place our unwanted items that we are not yet ready to discard. The government has basically done this, by storing this unwanted population in a remote corner of Phnom Penh. Interestingly, there is no facility to treat any illness in this new site, which probably makes sense, because no one there seems to be sick. The truth of the situation is revealed in the expensive, luxurious property which now occupies the former community. Sadly, this is the Cambodian way.
The children today were quite young and had very decayed teeth. There is a process called arrested caries, in which the previously decayed area turns into a hard brown/black stain which is extremely cavity resistant. Fortunately, many teeth had undergone this process and we were able to retain them as space maintainers. While these teeth are not pretty, they are the best space maintainers that these children will have.
The students arriving from a nearby orphanage.
Throughout the day, the chanting of Buddhist Monks could be heard from a nearby property. They prayed for a recently deceased individual. Their chants asked that all this person needs and wants be provided for them in their next life. It created an eery backdrop for our patients who waited in line to be seen. As the treated children walked past those who were waiting, they would inevitably scare the waiting children with tales of dental torture. I wondered if the children somehow thought the Monk's were chanting on their behalf; wishing them a safe and comfortable visit.
Todays patients.
I am told that our volunteer group is proving exceptional and I'm proud to be included in the bunch. The students are from Columbia University, as are the recent graduates, many of whom attended this trip as students. Our group comes from Brazil, Japan, Ghana and a smattering of eastern and western US states.
Better than Gatorade.
Tonight we are planning a group dinner at a beautiful outdoor restaurant. Last night we ate at a noodle house. Grand total with appetizer, entree and drinks was $8 per person. I felt guilty to pay so little. Tracy and Michelle who work in the Fort Lee orthodontic office joined us on this trip. They say that "they get it." They have been swept away in this beautiful country. It is hard to say what it is, perhaps its innocence or naivete, or maybe just the wonderful nature of the people. But we all feel lucky to be here.
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