Quang Tri General Hospital, Vietnam

This morning James and I accompanied CPI staff members, Phuong and Duc, to visit two beneficiaries hospitalized here in the hospital at Dong Ha Town. This was my first time to actually witness CPI's direct contact with patients. Each staff member in the office from the bookkeeper to the director is assigned beneficiaries to track for treatment both in the hospital setting and after-care when they return home.

The hospital setting is most different from those in the US. Here, a family member is responsible for the patient care including providing meals. Therefore the hardship of an accident impacts a family on many levels, not purely emotionally but also many times financially by removing a wage earner from the family unit as well as the patient.

On our visit today we saw two patients who are assigned to Phuong, the office bookkeeper. The first patient was a boy of nine. He met us at the door of the ward (which was locked from the inside resulting in an awkward delay outside the ward during which a newly admitted patient lying on a gurney was wheeled into the middle of the group swarming the entrance). His father has been living at the hospital with him as his mother is home with three other children. The nine year old turned out to be a "lucky" boy having sustained belly wounds when a friend of his threw a small bomb that exploded a few yards away spraying him with shrapnel to his abdomen.
This boy belongs to an ethnic minority. His family lives well-below the poverty level therefore his family could not afford his medical care. His assistance from CPI consists of hospital costs plus food for him and his family. While in the hospital a couple weeks ago a new friend of CPI's from Vermont (Suki Fredrickson) visited him and provided him with two new sets of clothes to wear. He'd only had rags before and was proudly wearing his new jacket. The rest of his belongings were in a large garbage bag to which he clung, making certain that the new clothes would remain his. This boy is well enough to go home to his family without any further assistance.
The second patient we visited was a 17-year-old boy. While walking along a path in his village, he spotted a UXO near by. Fearing that his younger brother or cousins might be injured, he picked up the ordnance to throw it further into the brush. As he attempted to throw the bomb, it exploded covering his hand and one foot with phosphorus that burned through the layers of his skin when oxygenated. He has been in the hospital one month and most likely will need to remain hospitalized for another month at least while his burns heal. His mother was by his side as Phuong interviewed him. My heart broke as I looked at the damaged skin on his hand and his wrapped blackened foot. He is in a ward of 8 or 10 beds with patients suffering from many different causes. The springs of the hospital bed are covered with a mat and I noticed that his family must have provided him with a blanket as well. The blanket appears to be a luxury item. The mother was so pleased to receive her payment of dong so that she can get the food for him today.
As a rule, the patient must provide proof of the expense before getting any funding. The CPI staff member assigned to their case will then continue to monitor expenses weekly or more often when needed. In dire circumstances, when the family can not even afford food for one day, the family will be given assistance in advance.
During our visit two women approached us with needs they would like to have addressed. One of the women has shrapnel in her arm and in one breast. We took photos of the patients and their names and CPI will see if there is a way to get this removed since the woman has pain in her breast where the shrapnel has lodged.
Today was another leap into this project for me. It is so enlightening for me to be here "on the ground". My appreciation for Clear Path grows by the second.