Yaung Chi Oo Mobile Clinic

There are about 400 individuals living at the rubbish-dump collecting plastics. They sell the plastics to the recycling companies in the area and earn about 25-70 bath per day and per family. Their health situation is bad since they are living close to the garbage where there are a lot of harmful fumes, glass and other sharp objects. Many of the children in the community are malnourished and their eyes are read and infected from the garbage fumes. There is a migrant school in the area, Sky Blue, which is supported by BMWEC and Children on the Edge. Many of the children attend the school but still there are some that has to stay with their family and collect plastics for their survival. The school health team (Mae Tao clinic) provides the children with basic medical help. They visit the school every sixth month and give the children de-worm treatment and vaccinations. But the children have no continually medical care. The community, consisting of many women with small children, gets no medical help. They are welcome to the Mae Tao clinic but are afraid of getting arrested since they have no legal status in Thailand.

The work at the dump is dangerous and they have no means to protect themselves. Since they have no employment they have no legal protection if something would happen.

After a few visits to the Rubbish-dump community close to Mae Sot YCOWA and a few private persons decided to start up a project to help the people living and working at the rubbish-dump.

YCOWA has been running the mobile medical team, consisting of two medics, at the garbage dump site since October 2009 with the support of the Association Minorites et Development, Geneva, Switzerland. The medical team worked two days a week during October and November 2009. 

On October 2011, our chief medic resigned from the mobile medical team because of his personal matter. As the result, we have to halt our mobile medical team for one month (in October) 2011. However, we could hire one Doctor and reopen the mobile clinic on November, 2011. At the moment, the medical team worked two days a week (Wednesday, Saturday) by one doctor and one assistant.

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Yaung Chi Oo Outreach Clinic

In 2000, due to frequent factory raids and arrests by the Thai police workers often hid in nearby farm fields and forests. The arrests would sometimes last three days to a week. Since workers would become ill in the forests, Ko Moe Swe collected donated medicine and provided free medical treatment to the workers who were in hiding. Medical treatment was especially provided frequently in the forest near Ban Song Kwin Factory. Later, since workers repeatedly requested the opening of a medical clinic near their factory, a small clinic was opened in October 2001 with Doctor Khin Sein and medic Saw Than Myint near Ban Song Kwin. From October 2001 until July 2002 that clinic was operated on a shoestring budget with funds provided by workers, political groups and independent friends. From July 2002 to December 2004 the clinic was operated by Doctor Khin Sein, medic Myint Soe Naing, Comrade Phaw Shaw, and assistant medic Ma Khaing with support from the International Rescue Committee (IRC). At the start of 2004 a branch clinic was opened near the ACR factory. Between October 2001 and December 2004 an estimated five thousand plus patients were treated at the clinic, and over 2000 patients were visited and treated at factories and areas from which it was difficult to come and go.

                       

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