Nepal Day 9

The ninth day we set up the medical clinic in a local building where construction was almost complete. We had to move all of the large pieces of concrete out of the way. The floor was still covered with dirt. This is not the best picture of me, but it give you an idea of how we were running the medical clinic. I was seeing patients with an interpreter. Prior to patients coming to see me in the clinic they had to go to a class about sanitation and hygiene. The people in Nepal actually had fairly decent healthcare in comparison to other third world countries. The majority of issues were mostly chronic pain issues. The people in the Lamjung region are really hard workers. They carry 100's of pounds long distances, spend hours bent over in the rice paddies, and walk up and down extremely steep terrain every day. It is no wonder these people have arthritis and other chronic pain issues.

While I was in the medical clinic other groups of people were working in a dental clinic. The dental clinic was teaching people in the area how to pull teeth, so that they could extract teeth after we left. Dental care was definitely an issue. The majority of older locals had only a couple of teeth. The first person the dental clinic saw got 11 teeth pulled out of the bottom row of teeth.

There was also another group of people who were doing construction. Down the hill from the school house there was a sit where the first college in the area was being build. Lucky us, we were building the toilets to go with the building. A large group of people were digging the trenches for the foundation. I was told that they were having difficulty for a part of the digging because it was filled with tons of rocks. The local people were working with them and it sounds like they had a great time working hard.

Another group worked with the local people on business prospects to help end poverty in the area. The biggest project was building a trekking route through the area. The business team was guiding the local people to put together a business plan and make sure that all bases are covered. This group is continuing to work with the people even though we are home. They were also helping some women bring in money to buy bees and a trainer to teach them how to get honey. Then with the honey they will be able to sell it and make an income. The business group was making miracles (Go Natalie!)

Lastly, there was the group of teachers. They spend everyday working with the teachers in the area on how to improve their teaching. How to get students engaged. Things that even the teachers in the U.S. have to struggle with daily. From my observation, the teachers in the area loved what they were being taught and were excited to come to these classes.
This is a view from inside the village looking out to the surrounding mountains.
Another view.