Last weekend was special for us as we were given the opportunity to go to schools and provide the kids with their yearly immunization! Hehe. Together with Mbak Wiwik, Pak Nimrot and a few doctors we headed off to the school.
The whole trip in the ambulance was not a pleasant one. All i can say, Pak Nimrot is one experienced driver! The roads up the mountains (yep the SD is located at higher grounds than our PUSKESMAS, which is already at Gunung Kidul) are soooooo narrow and rocky it felt like the jeep going up to Mount Bromo all over again. Haha. Along the way, we can see women, mostly in their 60s 70s, digging the earth at the side of the road. To instill the new pipes, Pak Nimrot said. Mmmm my mind wandered back home. Thinking of my aging grandmother.
So we arrived at the school, neatly clad in our white coats, while carrying the cool box filled with vaccines and other "utilities". The kids saw us and scatter immediately. They were scared of course. I mean, who wouldn't? Ahh i can still remember back in the days when the nurses came to my school to give us the "jab of death", as the seniors would put it. Those good ol' days. :)
Pak Nimrot briefed us a bit on the procedure and we headed off to the classes. There were vaccinations for Measles, DPT and Tetanus. We filled in the auto-lock syringes with vaccine viles and began our work there. Some took the jab bravely, while some, mmm lets just say our eardrums weren't spared any mercy. One kid was so scared he hid under the table and would not budge. He was so afraid that the headmaster had to carry the table to get him. The funny part was, the kid, too was raised off the ground while clinging on tightly to the base of the table. That whole scene was so hilarious, his classmates laughed their heads off! Adoi kesian betul the kid.
Each of us handled quite a number of children, maybe 20 plus kids, each. They were too many of them and so little of us. Maybe the waiting made the kids even more scared that they already were.
We finished our work one and a half hours later and bid goodbye to the kids. They were friendlier this time, some shook our hands while some gave us the death glare. Haha. Sorry kids, It's for your own good! :) Hope to see you again next year. Hehe.
My day did not end just yet, we spent another 5 hours more at the clinic before heading home. The boys decided to hit the nearby beach while Dewin and I head home only to be greeted by stacks of untouched lecture notes. Sigh. But all in all, we went back with smiles on our faces.
What a great experience. I wonder what's in store for us next week?