Bon Voyage, Anais!

Anais left Laos today via Hanoi to return to Oregon. She was here for a 3-month stint at WHO working on reproductive and women's health. Other than being super cool, she also sang in a band here! Last Saturday was her send-off party with a jam session.

Dark photos (L-R): David playing along with traditional instruments in the background; Anais & Jessie; the rest of the band grooving with the fish.

Afternoon in Thailand

I spent Lao National Day...in Thailand. The protests in Bangkok are hardly affecting life (from what I could tell) up north in Udonthani, the major shopping destination for Vientiane locals 40 minutes across the border. But it wasn't no holiday trip.

Vieng and the embassy car picked me up around 11am for a trip to Aek Udon International Hospital, a snazzy private hospital, to get my...um, stomach problems...checked out. Sure, I had my Cipro and Flagyl, but I could potentially have lots of stuff since I've been everywhere these last two weeks -- from stomping around remote mountainsides to doggy-paddling up waterfalls to sharing my table with a certainly worm-ridden newborn kitten.

Here are I am looking pretty chipper (although 1 kilo lighter) getting my blood pressure taken. After taking my history, the Thai doctor diagnosed me with a simple bacterial GI infection and prescribed for me:

• Levofloxacin (antibiotic) [sorry, Cipro]
• Hyoscine (for abdominal pain)
• Motilium-M (for distension, aka bloating)
• Smecta powder (like glue)
• Imodium
• Oral rehydration salts (orange flavor, yummier than the stuff from CDC)

All for 31 USD. Expensive by Lao standards, but the Lao who make more money will come here for health care because of better service. Here we are picking up freshcut coconut water at roadside stands and in the market to ease the tummy.

The King of Thailand says, "Now y'all come back now!"

CARE AI Meeting

Last Wednesday was CARE Lao's all-day avian influenza program meeting to share lessons learnt and discussing the way forward with donor representatives, government authorities (national, province, and district levels), and international partners, including the WHO and other NGOs.

CARE Lao's AI program works with all of these partners to pilot activities in Laos to build capacity in dealing with issues surrounding AI. This includes community-based surveillance, outbreak response, AI awareness, wet markets, model households, and the 166 free hotline to report bird deaths. I also presented on the health seeking behavior assessment and got questions from both local authorities (re: content) and partners (re: technical aspects). The two guys below were our simultaneous translators; very impressive!

Group photo!

After a day well done, the CARE AI team rounded out with Beer Lao at the Mekong Deck.

Health Headlines

My friend and colleague Not said it best (and with such cute English) with, "Ellen sad because small cat pass away."

That was the closest thing I've had to caring for an animal farther up the evolutionary tree than a fish, so the whole experience was rather traumatic for me. If a vet had been at the office, they never would've let me take it home b/c its chance for survival was so slim from the start.

And well, I've always said that I'd make an interesting case study for the mental-physical health link, and so here we go again. My stomach has not sat easy, and I'll leave it at that. Out of curiosity, I went online to see what's new in health and found these interesting headlines (disclaimer: I haven't actually reviewed any of these studies, so can't vouch for their findings):

• Lack of Exercise Explains Depression-Heart Link
• Women’s Heart Symptoms Often Blamed on Stress
• Americans Are Sicker Than They Think, C.D.C. Finds
• The Benefits of Therapy by Phone
• Better Mental Health, Down on the Farm
• Using Music to Lift Depression’s Veil

2 December is National Day here in Laos, and everyone in the city is getting ready with new coats of paint, strings of lights, and flags (the red, white, and blue Lao national flag + red and yellow hammer and sickle flag). The lights and gentle coolness of the evenings remind me of Christmas back in Louisiana. Curious to see what this 2 December holiday brings.

IMA-MAMA!

On Thanksgiving Day, Monica found a litter of 5 less-than-one-week old kittens in the cupboard of the CARE office. We think someone left the door open, and the mum came in to give birth. But when she left for food, she couldn't get back in. Monica put them in a box and got puppy's milk from the veterinarian for them. I was so joyous to have these furry visitors that I plopped the box on my desk and gazed/cooed at them in lieu of lunch (exactly between 12pm and 1pm). The fuzziness was quite very soul-nourishing after this stressful week at work.

We set the box outside in the late afternoon, and the mum cat actually came back for them -- even after we had touched them. I'd heard that mother animals wouldn't touch their young if they smelled human scent on them, so I'm glad that wasn't the case here. However, now we'll have a bunch more feral cats running around.

But this morning, we found that she had left behind the runt (the black one underneath the calicos). So in my excited state, I volunteered to be Mama Cat for the weekend!! This, of course, means no sleep -- which I fully acknowledge at 2am. Maybe I'll give you another update at 4am. My first experience taking care of "a baby." And I pray it goes well until we see his first poop (and know all his insides are functioning properly). THEN maybe we'll name him!

(Anne, I'm doing this for you. ;-P. Just kidding!)

Happy Turkey Day!

Maybe not so surprisingly, I had a more "American" Thanksgiving here in Laos than I often have back at home in the U.S. Ambassador and Mrs. Huso had a quaint dinner party for about 40-50 on their spacious front patio. Guests were mainly folks who work at the embassy and also a group of old friends and visitors from the Husos' native Hawaii.

The ambassador's residence, like most official residences here, is set in the French colonial style. Since it was my first time really spending time within an American presence abroad, I had never heard of the ART in Embassies Program. The new ambassador starting his/her tenure may choose from a collection of American art to exhibit in the residence to share a bit of American culture with guests. The Husos' collection features all Hawaiian artists.

Here is the painting Luana (Giclee print) by Pegge Hopper flanked by Pair of Whiskey Jugs (glass) by Mark Mitsuda who was the Husos' daughter's art teacher.

We had turkey and all the trimmings, plus sweet hibiscus tea. Dave was my +1, and I guess like attracts like because our dinner table became the "health" table with, among the Hawaiian visitors, a Japanese-American pediatrician, a Vietnamese-American biochemist/public health person who leads medical missions to Southeast Asia, and a fellow who had worked with the Hawaii health department.

The Hawaiian visitors were all en-route from the East-West Center alumni function in Bali, but got stranded here because the Thailand airport closed down yesterday. That has really caused a raucous here. Tons of stranded people, and the alternative flights out of Laos to Hanoi and Kuala Lampur are packed.

Overdue, but alas, keep waiting

Hey hey! Sooo much has been happening the last 1.5 weeks that it'll take quite a while to recount it all here. I'll do my best in fitting photographic glory! Meanwhile, here's a quick summary in reverse chronological order:

1. This week - Big deadline to complete protocol/questionnaires for technical review
2. Last weekend - Detour through Luang Prabang
3. Last week - Work visit to mountainous project site in northwest Laos to observe mobile health clinic in ethnic minority villages and collect info for protocol
4. Last Monday - Le sigh, motorbike accident...but I'm fine!!!

Here are a few photos from my site visit to keep your eyes happy. :-)

Mountain road and foot access to the villages

Modest homes in Prai ethnic villages

Villagers waiting outside the mobile health clinic set up at the school

Sneaking a peek at the AI awareness video with the children