Transcript
DEREK ALLEN: This whole province of Vanuatu, 24,000 people, they had a vacancy for a doctor here for six years, actually for several doctors, probably for four doctors, and no one's filled any of those vacancies.
SALLY ROUND: And what are the main health issues you're finding?
DA: The usual stuff we find in the west like coughs and colds, sore throats and bellyaches. I've had a couple of broken arms, probably seen a couple of cases of malaria, there's been one case of tuberculosis, lots of skin diseases, skin infections, people don't get to look after their skin and they get infected here. Lots of heart problems, high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, hypertension.
SR: Are you seeing cases of malnutrition?
DA: Malnutrition? Over-nutrition's what I see, people who eat too much perhaps. They have very good gardens and good rainfall therefore they have plenty of food but too many carbohydrates in terms of manioc and taro, corn and kumala and then they might go out and buy some white rice to add on top of that so not very high in the proper proteins or vegetables. Meat's a luxury for birthing days and funerals. So I always try and, every patient I see, try and give them some public health tidbits on how they can minimise their disease, the impact on them and how they can prevent it in their children and prevent it in their community. I used to work further north, a very small hospital for I think four or five years some years back and then I left trying to encourage them to get a local doctor but that hasn't actually happenend. It's quite a remote part of Vanuatu and doctors all want to go work in the major centres of Port Vila and Santo.
SR: In terms of the other countries that you've visited in the region, what would you say are the biggest health issues that you see in these poorest areas, are they different? Are they very diverse? Are you seeing a trend developing?
DA: Education's a big issue. Education about good nutrition is a big issue, also trying to find appropriate staff to go to remote parts, because although New Zealand has its remote areas in places like the West Coast I guess of the South Island and the far north, these places have far more remote areas and as you get people trained in professions like nursing or midwifery or doctors they tend to sit in urban areas so it doesn't populate the remote areas unfortunately, that's one of the problems getting staff out there to help people because everyone will get sick eventually, they have diseases and cancers and things like that and deliver babies of course and it's so useful to have professional staff there.
SR: So even in these remote areas you're seeing what is called lifestyle disease?
DA: Yes, I'm seeing lifestyle disease. I guess around here in Lamap being overweight is quite a common problem, stress - their blood pressure's too high, many people have diabetes because of being overweight. Some people have problems here because of an increasing amount of marijuana around at the moment that causes health issues. There's lots of domestic violence here as well. I've probably seen in the last two or three weeks four cases of domestic violence, women getting beaten by their husbands.
