We arrived at Mae Salong in the Northwest region of Thailand after a 3-hour truck ride riddled with fog. This would be the rendezvous point with our Free Burma Ranger (FBR)/Shan guides. Since 1997, FBR has trained over 110 multi-ethnic relief teams. There are 48 full time teams active in the Karen, Karenni, Shan, Pa’O, Arakan, Kachin, Chin and Lahu areas of Burma. The FBR teams have conducted over 350 humanitarian missions into the war zones of Burma. On average between 1,000-2,000 patients are treated per mission with 2,000 more people given non-medical assistance. To learn more about FBR click here.

In Mae Salong, we met up with Larry, an FBR coordinator and US Army veteran. Larry explained that the road leading to Shan State was, “one of the worst roads” he’d ever seen. “It runs straight-up through thick clay mud, and when it rains it can be impassible” he said. It had been raining for the previous three days. We transferred our gear into another Toyota HiLux and hit the road again. After an hour we crossed the first Thai Border checkpoint. From there the road degraded from pavement, to dirt, and then to mud.

On the outskirts of a remote village we pulled over to address a new problem. Two small Shan men began installing chains on the rear tires. The pickup led the way through thick clay mud. We followed, hiking up a steep rutted road, providing muscle assistance when needed.

After an intense 10-mile/4-hour trek past three more checkpoints – and numerous times getting stuck in the viscous mud – we reached the Shan State’s village of Loi Tai Leng. This was our final destination, where we would spend the next 5 days teaching trauma and tropical medicine to a class of 51 student medics.

Loi Tai Leng rests on a plateau peak at 4000 feet above sea level. The village is butted against the Thai border, with one side of the main street residing in Thailand and the other in Burma. It had a much more permanent feel than the Karen camps, with many structures made out of concrete, a handful of general stores, and a hydraulic generator providing power to the army and government buildings. The climate in the Shan State is also different from the Karen region. Fog rolls in and out of the valleys, peaking during the monsoon season.

Our arrival was met with school letting out for the day. We walked the last 600 yards to the medical clinic. Greeting students along the way, we exchanged bows with our hands locked in prayer position. We spent our first night sorting through gear and prepping for four more days of intense training.

 

Jason led the first day’s lecture reviewing topics on battlefield medicine, including landmine and gunshot trauma.  Jason works fulltime for an organization that provides customized operational medical training throughout the world. Having served in the U.S. Army as a medic, Jason carries a calm confidence when leading a class. Working with a translator he covered complex topics as the students took notes in both English and Shan. The engagement and patience that the students demonstrated was astounding.

Our students ranged in age from 16-29 years old. Most lived in local dormitories, spending anywhere from 6 months to 2 years going to school and learning medicine. Many have roots in villages spread throughout Burma and will be traveling back to these villages after graduation to share their knowledge.

Andrew Stevens, a former Marine who currently serves as an emergency manager for the state of Alaska, visited classrooms at the main school, teaching disaster mitigation.

In March of this year, a 6.8 earthquake struck this region, damaging many buildings and resulting in 74 deaths. In 2008, Burma was hit with cyclone Nargis, in which over 140,000 Burmese citizens lost their lives.

Stevens stressed the importance of proper building construction and retrofitting specific to the region. He also reviewed disaster preparedness techniques that are taught and utilized back in Alaska. The school principal promised to continue the drills and implement them as standard training and practice for the entire school.

Throughout each day of training, Jason, Zach, Doc G, and Andrew would rotate through lectures with the students.

Doc G took each medical student through a surgical equipment and surgical assisting practical application.

For more than 30 years, Doc G has dedicated himself to surgical volunteerism. He has treated and taught the “bottom billion” in Africa, Asia, the South Pacific, Central and South America. He is constantly striving to “put himself out of a job,” by indigenizing skillsets in the developing world – making them less dependent on foreign aid.

In between classes on the second day, it was brought to our attention that a 6-year old boy had recently been blinded by a failed conjunctivitis treatment. Doc G worked with a translator to understand the situation better. Six months ago the young boy was taken to a local healer for an eye irritation. The healer used a white powder to help remedy the condition, which in turn resulted in massive inflammation, and eventually end-stage opacification of both corneas. This young boy now had hyphemia – a white puss filled anterior chamber in front of the iris.

 

Doc G quickly recognized that he needed to be at a center for ophthalmology, and would require a complex corneal graft procedure to reverse the damage already done. With only six months before he would loose his visual memory, Doc G expressed urgency in finding care now.

After a few emails and satellite phone calls we coordinated with FBR to transport the boy to Chiang Mai. Once there, they would attempt treatment at a ophthalmology center.

Zach led the tourniquet and major trauma lectures. As a paramedic, Zach faces trauma injuries on a daily basis. The class was taught using 6 different versions of a tourniquet, some as rudimentary as a stick and webbing.

On our final day we brought the students together outdoors for a hands-on practical surgical exercise. These scenarios provide the students with the confidence they’ll need when faced with a real medical emergency.

Once the surgical training ended we headed back to the clinic to prep for the graduation ceremony. The team had mixed emotions about the upcoming night – it would be our last in Burma. We shared one final meal with our students before presenting them with their certificates of achievement. Emotion was high. Some students shed tears, while others stood stoic.

After the ceremony we headed with the students to the temple for the Buddhist full moon celebration. Families from the surrounding region came together for the event.

We ended up hiking for a solid hour before day turned to dusk. Students led us through the jungle and down muddy paths. Chanting permeated the trees and eventually there were muted orange flames in the distance. We followed the students into a newly built Buddhist Temple and knelt with them as the monk chatted over a loudspeaker.

Once the prayer ended we made our way back to the courtyard to light 20ft. tall bamboo-pine torches lining the plateau. We were in awe, events like this are once in a lifetime.

The evening’s torchlight celebration made for a fitting “post-commencement” graduation party with the students. And so ended a successful week in Loi Tai Leng.

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Filed under: Burma, News, Photos, Proactive Missions by Marc Fiorito
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