Christians help stem cholera outbreak in Cambodia

From an upcoming short blog I wrote for HalogenTV.com:

Cholera-afflicted patients in early July overwhelmed a health center in Taveng, Cambodia, after an outbreak of the disease that was part of a wider epidemic in the Northeastern Ratanakiri province. Since April, the outbreak has killed 36, but could have become much worse had it not been for the efforts of some groups of Christians in the area.

After the July influx of patients, the Taveng clinic on the first Sunday of July expressed a need for volunteers to provide basic health education to prevent further spread of the disease. Churches in the Ban Lung and Ta Aung districts heard the plea and by Monday had their young people trained. By Monday afternoon, the volunteers were conducting community education courses with 300 people in attendance.

Volunteers were then trained from Phaw and a neighboring village. The volunteers received materials with which they could facilitate cholera education in outlying fields and hamlets.

The Christians took control to save people who might otherwise have died, as was the case with one woman. She was about to die, and local taboos prevented villagers from lending a motorized canoe to take her to the health center. The village leader appealed to his Christian villagers. One of them lent his boat. The woman lived.

Within three days, the team covered seven villages in the Taveng district. Thanks to the cooperation between the Ban Lung Church, a Christian development non-government organization and district health authorities, the Taveng outbreak was brought under control.

My source article goes on to say:

The cooperation between Christians and the local authorities encouraged other Christian groups elsewhere. One group, inactive due to persecution, was emboldened after seeing the troupe working with authorities. Its members immediately resumed worship meetings.

Christians in the village of Sek were encouraged to see that they are part of a wider, caring community of faith. The close cooperation between Christians and authorities left a good impression on community leaders and parents of young Christians in that village.

This is an important episode to note. Many non-Christians like to point to the loony things Christians sometimes do and say and on those flaws build their anti-God/anti-Christianity platform. I’ve read blog posts and articles and op-ed pieces (more than I really should have, probably) wherein the writers rip Christians who let their children die for refusing to get medical treatment, and Christians who go into poverty-stricken, disease-ridden countries, saying that they’re only there to “further their agenda” and “win souls.”

Such instances are, depending on who the writer is, ripe for mockery, satire, or flat-out degradation of the religion. This story is important because it’s all about everything that Christians are really about. Working hard to help others. Fighting cultural taboos to save lives. Doing things that really help people.

Glad I got this assignment from my editor at HalogenTV.com. This story encouraged me, and it reminded me once again that for all the things that the anti-Christians in the world like to bring up, there are probably just as many Christians out there quietly living life right.

Oh, one more thing. This Cambodia team not only saved lives, but taught the locals how to prevent future outbreaks, teaching in entertaining fashion with what sounds like an enthralling fusion of science and art:

The church even used creative arts in its efforts to promote health education within village communities. Young volunteers were trained to conduct educational skits and community theater. On invitation, they performed at the provincial hospital for relatives of cholera patients.

At the hospital, volunteers noticed that there were too many patients living in unsanitary conditions. Many people who came to care for their sick relatives ended up contracting the disease due to a lack of knowledge concerning hygiene. Meeting the need, the team set out to disinfect the wards with chlorox.

After a successful debut in the hospital, the community drama troupe was invited to provide cholera education in the villages around Ta Aung commune, where outbreaks were still happening. The church also cooperated with officials from Kon Mum district to educate its villagers.

Villagers loved the slapstick performances in their own language. One lady, rolling over with laughter, exclaimed, “This is too real!” The performances showed how cholera is transmitted at funerals and through lack of personal hygiene.