MEDRIX BUSINESS TRIP TO VIETNAM
By Larelle Catherman

The noonday heat was not as intense and the evening fog had a slight bite to it.  What was so different?  It was the brief reprieve from the severity of the tropical norm.  It was winter in Vietnam.

But something else was different.  It was the intensity of the "business trip" to Vietnam.  The purpose of this trip was not to refurbish a village clinic, or drill another well for safe water, or even teach medical or nursing education.  Rather, this was to plan and to work with officials of Vietnam for the future work of Vietnam in Vietnam, and to assure a sustainable work in Southeast Asia.

On January 14, three members of MEDRIX and one business associate flew to Vietnam to meet with the leaders of the Ministry of Health, the Committee for Non-Governmental Organization Affairs (the licensing board MEDRIX must apply through), and others.

As a result of this trip, MEDRIX received an independent license to work in Vietnam.  Prior to this time, MEDRIX has worked under the umbrella of the Hue Hospital.  If we do any work outside of the Hospital, it complicates work for the Hospital, and also puts us in an uncomfortable position of possible non-compliance.  Therefore, MEDRIX applied for official status as a Non-Government Organization (NGO), giving us the rights, license, and protection to work in a variety of capacities in Vietnam.

In addition, we also made strides to secure a grant for Medical Education that involve Vietnam, the USA, and another Asian country.  And we visited Houng Van Village where the traveling team had the privilege of meeting the staff of this rural village and working with them to refurbish their clinic last year.  This clinic services about 8,000 villagers.  Their service include addressing daily health issues, delivering about 150 babies a year, as well as providing baby and infant immunizations.  We are very excited to report the good news from Houng Van Village.  Since MEDRIX refurbished their clinic, which includes providing a safe water source, the water remains safe to drink straight from the tap after one year.  In addition, there are no longer skin rashes on the babies and the infants.  This is truly praise!

2003 Travel Team Leaves April 10 for Vietnam and Returns May 4

What is in the immediate future?  On April 10, eight team members will be traveling to Hue, Vietnam to do what MEDRIX does best: develop relationships that bring hope to people from an emerging country.  To accomplish this, we will be doing several projects that are tangible and sustainable.  Among these are:

• Refurbish 3 village health clinics
• Teach at the Hue Central Hospital in the Nursing Conference
• Teach in the Hue Medical School
• And of course, visit with Dr. Oanh (the MEDRIX-sponsored physician from Vietnam who has sight restoration surgery last May in Seattle).  She is back in her hospital working as a medical doctor in the Triage Department.

(Website Editor Note: Since the publication of this newsletter in March, the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, SARS, occurred in Asia.  A decision was made to postpone to trip to May 28, 2003.  Additional details of this trip can be found in the Spring 2003 Newsletter and the May 2003 Update).

VIETNAM?  WHO, ME?
By Marcia Jones

When I assumed the role of MEDRIX Office Manager, I was really pleased for being involved in work that would make a difference. I smugly thought that I could take care of all the affairs here, while others went there to do the actual "hands on" work.  Little did I know that one year later, I would actually be traveling to Vietnam with Larelle Catherman and two others.  It was an experience that I would not trade, and I find myself continually thinking back to the events that would shape my story.

Growing up in South Texas and spending alot of time on border towns of Mexico prepared me well for this experience.  I loved the hustle and bustle of Saigon and quickly got caught up with the sights and sounds that surrounded me.  There were people everywhere, and I was amazed as I watched women balance cooking pots and food on the ends of a bamboo pole, pick a spot on the street, squat down, and start preparing dinner for anyone willing to purchase it from them.  My impression of Hanoi was that it came alive in the evening.  We finished our trip in Hue, in the central portion of the country, and I delighted in the rural atmosphere that allowed a more casual and laid-back lifestyle for its inhabitants.  I'll never forget riding on the back of a motorcycle to visit a village health clinic west of the city.  We drove along dirt roads that paralleled the river and I could see the mountains of Laos off in the distance.  My spirit was refreshed.

We had many business meeting in Saigon and Hanoi to attend, and I was pleased with how receptive the people were.  I found all the Vietnamese to be genuinely interested in us and in MEDRIX, with the only difference being that the people in Hanoi were more reserved.  Each meeting went well, had its own tone, and we were constantly astounded at how one meeting would lead to another.  At one point, I remember walking through the hotel lobby thinking, "This is great, and I don't even have a business in International Business..."

A month later, I find that the business meetings have all run together in my mind, but the people continue to stand out.  What a privilege to have met and visited with young pregnant women who are scared, young unmarried mothers who have chosen to raise their babies, a young physician who is so proud of the new computers in his hospital's Information Technology Department, the two daughters of Dr. Oanh who had the cornea transplant surgery in Seattle last summer, and a young female pediatrician who is excitedly telling me about her research in juvenile obesity.  Or what about the restaurant owner in Hue who is also a very gifted photographer, or the mother lying on the hospital bed with her sick child, or the physician chauffering me around on the back of her motorbike saying, "I drive very slow for you!"

I am thankful I made the trip.

During the past several months, Bob Catherman taught two Safe Water classes.  Eight students have now been trained on testing water to see if it is safe for drinking.  Many will take these skills with them as they serve in different locations around the world.

NEW WAREHOUSE

MEDRIX moved to a new warehouse in December 2002.  Medical equipment and supplies that were once housed in five different locations have now been relocated to one location in Woodinville, Washington state.  Our thanks to many volunteers who helped to make this possible!