Being the first MAF staff member to attend the SIL POC course in Madang has left some people envious since I’m coming to a location that is normally a holiday spot for missionaries. But funny enough we are not living in luxury and are not on a holiday. But like anything, there are pros and cons with being in the tropics. Besides the heat and humidity, there is always a health problem with the tropics. Because of the heat, things are able to live and grow that wouldn’t be able to survive anywhere else. And your body takes more time to recover from injury or sickness. There are several tropical diseases here that are not pleasant; most which are transmitted through mosquito’s (known as Natnat in Tok Pisin). One of these diseases is Malaria, which kills 1.5 – 2.7 million people per year and infects between 300 – 500 million people per year worldwide. Malaria continues to be a major problem in Papua New Guinea and about 40% of the world’s population, most which are living in developing nations. But interesting enough it can only be spread by one type of mosquito, the Anopheles mosquito. But I won’t go into a science lesson, enough with that; malaria is a problem here in Madang. There are several things we have to do to protect ourselves from it. The first one is to be on some sort of medication, which is an anti-malarial to prevent the disease to develop if you get infected. Different strains of the disease have built up immunity to different medications for Malaria. The second is sleeping in a mosquito net where ever you go, as above. At first it was weird to be sleeping in something that was restricting especially for me. But I am use to it now and stretch fully out now, even though you are prone to be bitten while up against the net. The last step is wearing plenty of Rid or anything that has DEET in it. So prevention from mosquito bites is the best way to deal with the problem and reduces the chances greatly. And like with anything, awareness is very important. My dislike for mosquito’s has grown while being here, but thankfully I haven’t had any problems. But despite any of this, I am grateful that I can be a guest here. It is such a beautiful and unique place.
June 15th, 2008 at 7:35 pm
Is that a mo that I see??
June 15th, 2008 at 9:14 pm
wow. Must be very interesting up there. Hope your having a great time.
June 15th, 2008 at 10:56 pm
Wow, Dude.. Im liking this beard thingy..
June 15th, 2008 at 10:57 pm
Thanks for the science lesson also..
June 15th, 2008 at 11:24 pm
I like ya new (facial) look man…oh yeah!