New posts
February 17, 2013
I have been adding new posts to this blog, but putting them into date order. Most recently, 2010 has some new posts (edited from another site, written in 2010).
Saying Goodbye
January 24, 2013
It’s more than two years now, since this little man moved into my house as a foster placement. I had been saying no to possible placements (except the odd brief overnight/weekend respite) for over two years, when I came home from a holiday in New York and was full of life and energy at the … More Saying Goodbye
Cross Cultural Misperceptions
January 20, 2013
Writing about Linda earlier, reminded me of something else worth mentioning. On her first night here, I explained some house rules, including to turn off electrical appliances (lights, air conditioning) when she wasn’t using them, because it costs money. Later in the evening, she brought up the electricity issue with me, shyly saying “you gotta … More Cross Cultural Misperceptions
Second Stab of Pathos
January 20, 2013
A couple of weeks ago, 20yo Mary rang from her remote community. I have known her since she was 11yo and I looked after her now-18yo brother, Maxwell, for a year during a very tumultuous time in their (and consequently my) life. They and their family consider me a mother. Which makes me – a … More Second Stab of Pathos
Paint Me Black
January 18, 2013
In recent years I’ve read a lot about being “painted black”, also known as “splitting”. It means thinking in extremes, and has been described by such people as Anna Freud and Sigmund Freud. Splitting occurs naturally in childhood, as part of the developmental process where children learn about good vs bad, and how to integrate … More Paint Me Black
A Stab of Pathos at the Front Door
January 2, 2013
I came home this afternoon after a swim and some grocery shopping, and was about to get in the shower when a loud knock came at the door. I went to the door and Alice, Marcia’s “sister” (cousin), tried to come inside. She is a big drinker, so I stood my ground in the … More A Stab of Pathos at the Front Door
Judging Disadvantage
January 1, 2013
There’s an excellent book I recently finished reading, called “Mountains Beyond Mountains” by Tracy Kidder. It’s a biographical account of Dr Paul Farmer, an American doctor who became involved with a poor community in Haiti during his medical training at Harvard. Since then he has become a Professor at Harvard, a consultant at a Harvard … More Judging Disadvantage
Scabies Control in a Remote Aboriginal Community in the Northern Territory
January 1, 2013
I wrote this essay in 2001 as part of Master of Public Health & Tropical Medicine; subsequently published in online book: Rural and Remote Environmental Health. Keeping it here for posterity. Important factors in achieving and maintaining good health include adequate housing, access to clean water and the removal of refuse and human waste (ABS, … More Scabies Control in a Remote Aboriginal Community in the Northern Territory
Timor Tuberculosis Tales
November 16, 2012
In October 2012 I travelled to East Timor to volunteer at Bairo Pite Clinic (BPC) in Dili, for three weeks. BPC provides free health care to those in need, and is the most visited health clinic in East Timor, with over 530 people attending the clinic per day (with a single doctor reviewing patients, coordinating … More Timor Tuberculosis Tales
Another Limousine Adventure
November 14, 2012
Very funny morning today. Maria (nom de plume, as are all the other names herein) – Mathew’s aunty who I like but drives me nuts – knocked on the door at around 6am. WB (7yo foster child) woke me to tell me someone was knocking (I don’t let him answer the door). I opened the … More Another Limousine Adventure
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