Life-saving help for Saw Eh
Isolated in the rainforest amidst mountain ranges with little prospect of returning to their homeland: around 100,000 refugees, mostly members of ethnic minorities from Myanmar, have been living in camps on the Thai side of the border to Myanmar for more than 30 years. Since the camps were set up, refugees have been provided with healthcare services by INGOs, with Malteser International managing most of these services. However, the services are limited due to the remoteness of the location and the lack of proper electricity. When refugees become seriously ill, they must be referred to Thai hospitals in the nearby district or even in other provinces in Thailand.
Naw Pree, a 23-year-old mother who lives with her family of six in the Mae La Oon camp, has experienced exactly that. Her one-year-old son, Saw Eh, has thalassemia, a serious blood disorder that needs regular blood transfusions. The problem is that the remote camp does not have enough electricity to store blood supplies at the health centers.
But Saw Eh is helped: every month, Malteser International arranges for him to go to Mae Sariang Hospital to get a blood transfusion. The Thai hospital is 50 miles from Mae La Oo. He also gets treatment and care once a month at MI's basic health station.
People in Mae La Oon regularly donate their own blood to save the lives of others. Naw Than Yai, a 35-year-old midwife at the Malteser International health station, is one of them. She decided to donate blood after seeing the difficult situation Naw Prees and Saw Eh were in: “I see other children being happy and playing, but Naw Pree’s child is not happy. His mother always carries him on her back and Saw Eh doesn’t look happy. I want to see him happy like other children. Therefore, I volunteer for blood donation.”
Engagement, love, harmony and life-saving medical assistance
Naw Than Yai believes that if people in their community help each other, it will make the community stronger. “As a camp resident it is important to help each other. It creates engagement, love and harmony in our community.” Saw Kwah Toe, who has been living in Mae La Oon since 2011, is also proud to witness the great solidarity among the refugees. “I am very happy to see camp residents donate blood to save lives and help each other. This action makes me very happy.”
The 49-year-old is involved in a Community Health Advisory Group (CHAG). This group organises blood donation campaigns and encourages people to participate. “As the Community Health Advisory Group, we come together and arrange blood donation campaigns at schools and bible schools. I found that this is a very important and useful activity for our community to help and support each other.”
The commitment of the community at Mae La Oon Camp shows what a difference seemingly small acts can make in a person's life. Thanks to people like Naw Than Yai and Saw Kwah Toe, the financial support of the European Union and the efforts of the Malteser International basic health station staff, Saw Eh can continue to live and grow up like other children. Naw Pree says: “I can see that the camp community is willing to help each other. It means a lot to me. If there was no support from Malteser International hospital and from people in the camp, my child would not have been with me this long. Because of their support, my child is still alive. I am so grateful for their support. I want to thank all of them very much. There are no words that can describe my feelings.”
