The world of Tzu Chi October 2020 (Vol.127)

2020 • 10 16 eature their turn. Karmen recently encountered a cervical cancer patient who missed her golden time for treatment due to the long wait and lost her life. Although medical care is free in Mozambique, and medications are affordable, many poor people still chose not to seek treatment because they cannot afford the transport fares. In one home visit, a patient’s wounds had been covered with dried grass for two weeks, and the scabs had become as hard as stone. To clean the wounds, Karmen had to debride the wounds, but the ulceration was so severe that it took her more than an hour to clean them up. Afterwards, she left some iodine and gauze and instructed the patient to clean the wounds once every two days. When she returned two weeks later, she found both wounds had healed reasonably well. She said, “I believe so long as we educate the Mozambique community about medical care and hygiene, and instil in them the right mindset, they will be able to take good care of themselves even without visiting the hospital. This is the exact role of family medicine.” On March 7, 2020, Karmen went to Mozambique for the third time. She has not returned to Malaysia since due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In Mozambique, she witnessed many local volunteers who had never been to Karmen visited the family of a student who was found to have conjunctivitis after her examination and explained to them how to use the medication and take care of hygiene to prevent being infected again.