March 06’ Trip to the Border, 3/2

After two days of training at the clinic, I'm very pleased at the way things are going. I have rued the fact that most of our prior trainees have either left Thailand for a third country or have been promoted to middle management at the clinic and are hardly available for a visit, let alone a training. However, the follow up to the November training is demonstrating that we seem to have tapped into a very talented pool of medics who seem to be at the top of the care delivery pyramid and are hungry for mental health training, both for direct service delivery and for dissemination into the community. We have a great translator in Khun Tee and Akiko Tanaka, PH.D., who is spending a year at the clinic, is collaborating in the training as well as finding a new career as a videographer. Dr May, a Burmese physician working at the clinic has attended most of the sessions. Khun Tee is also acting as our agent, having lined up a meeting for me with the Paloung Action Committee for a training next week for 20 people on Domestic Violence. I'm already booked, but there's a strong possibility that Akiko and our top trainee, Saw Than Lwin will be able to do it.

So, things are hot and good and we've got some footage to prove it.