Crash Course in First Aid!

Molly and I went to a place called the Wildflower Home, about 1 hour outside Chiang Mai. This is a safe haven for women and children that had to leave their home for one reason or another. Many of the women were abused, while some were abandoned with no means to support themselves or their children. The Wildflower Home is situated on a nice piece of property with a small farm and receive many donations from outlying communities. The home is in the process of trying to make their farm into a small business. Our organization, MyProThailand, has a group of volunteers from a business school coming in January to help the Wildflower Home set up the program. This program will teach the women how to make enough produce to sell at markets, which will help make money for their families.

Our job for the day was to discuss health issues with the women. We had received a list of topics the woman would like to go over, so Molly and I decided which ones would be the most important to discuss. We only had three hours and didn't want to overwhelm them with too much information, so we picked topics we thought would be of interest to them.

We arrived at the Wildflower Home just in time, because all the children were being put down for their afternoon naps, so the mothers could give us their undivided attention:) The women were very friendly and eagerly awaiting our arrival. There was a little room in one of the houses that was all set up with tables, chairs, and even a white board. Molly and I had split up the issues, so I began with hygiene...HANDWASHING....the most important lesson of the day!! The ladies were great and asked tons of questions. Molly and I did a skit with colored paper showing them how easy it is to pass germs from person to person and even made them wash their hands! We also talked about brushing teeth and how important it is for them to make their children begin brushing at an early age. Molly then talked about the developmental stages and what milestones the women should be looking for in their children at each age. Once again they were raising hands and giving us scenarios about their own children and the growth process they observe. It was great to listen to them and help them problem solve issues. We also talked about first aid and how to help someone if they were choking. A couple of women in the class were pregnant and asked some personal questions about themselves and their unborn child. They were younger women and each seemed a little nervous about what to expect.

After the 3 hours (the children were crying now, because they were awake), we received a tour of the farm and it was fantastic to see the women so excited about making it "on their own." We also played with the children and answered more health questions before we went back to Chiang Mai. We left feeling like we helped out, even if it was only in a small way.