An Emergency Physician And His Family In Cambodia
Cambodia is a place that will capture your heart, if you let it. To subsidize a very expensive private medical school tuition bill, I signed on with the U.S. Air Force, which paid for my medical education in return for 4 years of military service. My job as a flight surgeon meant a lot of travel, practising medicine in challenging situations. It was during that time that I was invited to serve for a month during the December 1996 start of the Sihanouk Hospital Center of HOPE in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The extreme needs of the poor in Cambodia and the opportunity to help, surrounded by a well-equipped hospital and capable colleagues, were inspiring.
The next 6 years brought marriage and the birth of 3 children. The thought of working in Phnom Penh was so exciting that we soon planned our return to Cambodia. After completing an Emergency Medicine residency and 2 years as a young faculty member, we felt that it was time to move our clan overseas for a couple of years. At that time, 9/11 and SARS were recent headlines and our family and friends questioned our judgment in seeking to live overseas.
We would not have come if not for our faith in God and a desire to help the
poor.
Cambodia
Cambodia
is a nation scarred by decades of tragedy and unrest. Freedom from French
rule was achieved in 1954. The relative peace was broken by the 1970 civil
war and regime of Lon Nol. From 1975-1979, the Khmer Rouge - a Maoist
uprising led by Pol Pot - devastated most of the nation’s infrastructure. It
is estimated that a quarter of the nation’s population (approximately 2
million people) died as a result of violence, starvation or illness during
that 4-year period.
Every family has stories about their loved ones who perished during the Pol
Pot Regime. Educated or wealthy people were preferentially executed and it
is estimated that by 1979 the number of doctors alive in the country could
be counted on your fingers. Cambodia was saved from that brutal regime by
their Vietnamese neighbors and remained occupied by them for the next
decade. The departure of the Vietnamese brought another decade of civil
unrest and political conflict until the rise of the current leadership under
Prime Minister Hun Sen in 1998.
Since that time, political instability and stifling corruption have continued to hinder relief efforts and development. The average per capita income is around $300 per year. Malnutrition is common, and so many of the illnesses that we see are actually preventable. I am often enraged by how some people profit at the expense of justice and the suffering of so many others. I truly believe that if this nation can successfully combat corruption and encourage business development, it can enjoy great prosperity. However, it still has a long way to go.
Medicine in Cambodia
Medicine
in Cambodia
is in need of serious development. Its medical school curriculum is
conducted in different languages such as French, English, Russian,
Vietnamese, etc. Imagine trying to learn and practise medicine in a foreign
language and you will begin to understand the difficulties that medical
professionals face in this nation. I have interviewed many doctors for
positions at our center, and most could not clinically diagnose and treat a
tension pneumothorax. Teaching is probably the most rewarding part of my job
here.
Our hospital initially had a single purpose of caring for lots of poor
patients free-of-charge. That was quickly expanded as we realized that
competent care would not be possible without first educating our staff. Our
mission was thus modified: provide 24-hour, high-quality medical care to the
poor and needy of Cambodia while educating Cambodian medical professionals.
After 8 years of training, our staff has become highly sophisticated and
many are now instructors at a national level. They are exceedingly bright
and eager, having mastered medicine in a foreign language, and never fail to
inspire me.
Our
Family
We found the transition to Cambodia relatively easy. The hospital had already taken care of so many details for us that we felt that we were “plug and play.” We were provided with modest but comfortable accommodation and led a streamlined existence that enabled us to focus on the important things in life.
My wife, Heather, is a rare woman. Extreme circumstances tend to display our weaknesses but her strength and love has never faltered. Her university training in broadcast journalism, plus 10 years of experience as a minister, also enabled her to contribute to the hospital in Public Relations.
We have
three children, Max (5), Corinne (3˝), and Madison (2). Max and Corinne have
learned well at a British Montessori pre-school near our home. Max literally
finished his toilet training while we were en route to Cambodia
and I’m happy to say that we will soon return to the States with all 3
children out of diapers. Madison
was 5 months old when we arrived in Phnom
Penh,
so she doesn’t remember anything else. All 3 of them have really prospered
under the guidance of Chan Ty, their wonderful full-time nanny.
Returning to America
Our original commitment was to serve for 2 years, since good advice recommended that this was about the longest time I could spend away from practising active Emergency Medicine without needing to undergo major retraining. The time has passed so quickly, and we are now preparing for our move back to the States in August, where I have accepted an academic position in the Emergency Department at the Pennsylvania State Hershey Medical Center. Many say that returning to the western world is the hardest part, telling us that the move from the simplicity of the Cambodian people to the commercialism, worldliness, obesity, 48-ounce sodas, and the pressure to “keep up with the Joneses” in the U.S. will undoubtedly be an extreme change.
But the chance to live and work under such amazing circumstances has already left me a changed man. I wish more privileged people can experience life in a developing nation, for we would certainly witness an unprecedented outpouring of benevolence. There is a good chance that the future may find us back in Cambodia.
Glenn
K. Geeting, MD, DABEM
Sihanouk
Hospital Center of HOPE
Phnom Penh,
Cambodia