My recollection of the beginning of our 2nd week, we spent most of Monday riding on the bus than we did off of it. First, we attended a seminar at IMPECT and were introduced to the many groups of indigenous people that live in Thailand. It was interesting to know there are people who live in remote parts of the country and operate as their own “group”. After the presentation, we were able to observe an authentic Thai New Year’s celebration festival. I felt very fortunate, yet out of place at the same time. We were the only tourists there but it was something that not many foreigners are allowed to experience. We learned about a game that boys and girls play in order to meet potential partners by tossing a ball back and forth. I found it rather interesting and I am curious if it actually facilitates any new relationships or if the young people do it to make their parents happy for traditions sake.
Our last stop of the day was to a hill tribe. This was another experience where I felt extremely fortunate, yet out of place. It was amazing to know that the people opened up their villages to us, especially being foreigners, and allowing us to give their children gifts. It was very moving to see how happy these individuals are with what they have been given. Their family is the most important piece of their puzzle and everything that they do is for the betterment of the tribe. It was a rewarding to know that giving something as small (or insignificant to us) as a pencil would create so much happiness to a child. It brought a lot of perspective to my life as to what is truly important and what is excess. The importance of doing more for others than you do for yourself is rampant throughout the Thai culture; our society could take a few pointers and learn from a collectivist attitude.
On Tuesday the 3rd, we had another full day of interesting lectures and unforgettable experiences. In order to keep a blog rather than a novel I will highlight a few ideas from each event. The first lecture was at an organization called TRAFCORD, who works with human trafficking victims in Thailand. I didn’t know much about human trafficking other than the reasons for sexual exploitation but learned that a large part of it is also forced labor. Also, a major reason why individuals are being trafficked is due to being indebted to another. Our second lecture of the day was at the Chiang Mai medical school. Here we learned about how the school came to be and their accreditation process. The focus of the presentation was in the Trauma Center and their identified strategies for improvement. It was directly related to the work we did in Quality, a required class for Health care Management majors. Their basis for improvement lies within numerous education and re-education practices. Their data showed many routine procedures, such as CPR, were done incorrectly. We were also given the opportunity to tour the emergency room department, hello HIPPA? Not existent. I don’t feel as though it would have been nearly as easy to tour an ER department in the states. But I felt fortunate to be given the chance to see how their system works in Thailand.