Support to Angkor Hospital for Children in Siem Reap
"...it is essential that volunteers
are 'neither saints, nor sinners', but combine saintly and selfish
characteristics at the same time"
- Jon Morgan, Director Angkor Children's Hospital, Siem Reap
Kazumi Akao (Japan) and David Shoemaker (Canada) are two
UNV Nurse Specialists who have been working with Angkor Hospital
for Children for the last two years. Since its inception in
1999, the hospital has had two goals: first, to operate a
facility that maintains high standards of health care for
children from the surrounding area; and second, to use the
facility as a training ground for other health professionals
working further away. Kazumi and David are working with the
Cambodian nurses in the hospital to help attain these goals.
When they first arrived most of their time was dedicated solely
to teaching basic nursing skills to the hospital nurses. As
the Cambodian staff has developed more confidence and competency
in providing child health care as well as assuming increased
responsibilities, the function of these UN Volunteers has
also evolved. Now, they work closely with small groups of
Cambodian nurses within the hospital, helping them design,
facilitate, and implement training programs for other Cambodian
nurses.
David has been working with the hospital’s Nursing Education
Coordinator in developing a “Teacher’s Group”
of hospital nurses who conduct the majority of the training
sessions for nurses from both inside and outside of Angkor
Hospital for Children. Kazumi devotes much of her time on
continuing to develop the hospital’s visiting Home Care
Program as well as an HIV/AIDS counseling team.
On average, more than 135 children are seen at the hospital
every day, with some days the number exceeding 200. This volume
is tremendously advantageous for conducting child healthcare
training projects. By assisting Angkor Hospital for Children
to become an effective training site for child healthcare
education, the work of these UN Volunteers goes far beyond
the walls of this one hospital. Already the hospital has provided
training programs for nurses from selected government Health
Centers, District Hospitals, Nursing Schools, and various
NGOs. UNV support to the hospital has been successful in increasing
the knowledge of healthcare workers in Siem Reap, allowing
them to provide higher quality healthcare to the children
in their communities.
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