Preventative Health is an exploration of promoting the workshop about health to kids in rural areas, especially on the islands. It was an exploration during the second round of the fifth year. There were 14 students joining this exploration, and leading by the learning facilitator, Karen. One the first week, we’re starting with big research as one team in the whole class. The main research was about the Cambodian main health issues. After did the research, all of us found out that Cambodia actually had a lot of health issues. The diseases were typhoid, HIV or AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, dengue fever, influenza, intestinal worm, polio, Hepatitis A&B, Japanese encephalitis, diarrhea, dysentery, and rabies. For the issues, there were traditional medicines, religion beliefs, and medicines.
In details of Cambodia relating to the issue, it was actually happening a lot of times when family members didn’t take the patient to the hospital. Instead, they kept the patient in the house and pray to the ancestors or spirits to help. It may sounded nonsense, but it’s really difficult to change this issue. The purpose of doing this research was that we were trying to find one main health issue that we can share to kids and adults.The main health issue we found was dental issues. As a student, I realized that it’s really challenging for those villagers or kids to receive all the information we were trying to deliver. There were budget problem, lack of transportation, and education issue that they are facing. Therefore, it was our duty to travel and visit those people who were living in our selected destination and share all the research we had been preparing.
It was this year we decided to travel to the islands that are located really far away from the mainland. The islands were Koh Song-Sa, Koh Rong, and Koh Rong Sanlem. There were many acceptable reason of why we choose to go there. One was there were a lot of students and kids who were lack of knowledge about their health, especially teeth. As a result, we prepare a skit where everyone in my team was acting in different roles and characters. Teeth, bacteria, vegetables, cookies, soft drinks, toothpaste, toothbrush, little sister, main brother, and the mother were included as the characters in the skit. I was taking the role of a tooth. I was the tooth of the main brother who liked to eat and of sweet. Therefore, there were many bacteria besieging me. The students and kids were enjoying to learn and understand about it. Additionally, in order to keep them in touch with our provided information, we handed the school directors and teachers posters about the all health information, we prepared.
The second reason was we can learn about the marine environment over there including coral reef, sea grass, mangroves, and organisms. We got to put on our snorkels and swam around the private coral reef. I was feeling special of how amazing Cambodia is because we have a lot of remarkable and interesting environment and animals. Moreover, we also got to dive for the first time. I was feeling nervous because I never dive before in my life since I’m really young, but guess what? I did it, and everybody was in my team did it. The cool and mind blowing experience always absorbed by our brain and body. As a summary, it was great that Song-Sa organization prepared us with a small workshop and provided us this phenomenon opportunity.
Last, I felt like I just make a positive impact to my beloved country. I felt proud of myself and my team who worked really hard, they were being resilience all of the time. I hope that this exploration will continue again through the future in the hope of making more positive impact to the country. Updating the information, finding more health issues, and raising an awareness of the problems to more students, kids, and adults will help to improve the community. Obviously, there will be no more serious health issues in Cambodia, if people show their awareness.