I've never had to think much about health risks, the ability to find health care, or quality of health care.
When I was young, single, and childless I would have loved the adventure of being so far from civilization. Now I'm older and some might say, smarter.
Yes, the U.S. health care system is a mess, but this isn't about U.S. politics. It's about living in Myanmar right now.
I went to a talk put on by doctors at the International SOS clinic in Yangon. I didn't realize the risks were as serious as they are. First of all there's plenty of mosquito borne illnesses, dengue (DENV), chikungunya (CHIKV), Zika (ZIKV), yellow fever (YFV), Rift Valley fever (RVFV), West-Nile (WNV) and Japanese encephalitis (JEV) viruses.
DEET is your friend.
Rabies is a big deal. There are so many feral dogs. Some are friendly, some will run across an empty lot to bite you. None of them have seen any vaccinations. Hepatitis A and B are an issue as well and can be contracted through food and water. (See my previous post about street food)
Air Quality is very poor here. In the rainy season it gets a bit better, but in the dryer seasons it can get really bad. Some people are not the least bit affected by it. My husband has very very mild asthma and the air quality did a real number on him that required medical attention.
I can taste it and feel it in my chest and also had issues with terrible sinus headaches. Health care is cheap in Yangon and there are plenty of hospitals, a few have international clinics. They are limited to the medicines and equipment available. Also the blood supply is not safe in Myanmar. Anything serious, you should go to Bangkok for medical treatment.
We have used the clinics here for vaccines and basic medical needs without issue.
I knew about the some of the risks before moving here. It is easily google-able. What I didn't realize was the seriousness of it all.
We had planned to go to the beaches here in Myanmar over break. After the talk on health risks, I was too scared. There are 2 popular beaches on the west coast of Myanmar. Ngwe Saung and Ngapali. Ngwe Saung is a 6 hour bus ride on very poor roads, Ngapali is a much longer bus ride or a 1 hour flight. The flight to Ngapali is really expensive! We were going to go to Ngwe Saung on bus. This means we would be a minimum of 6 hours away from the nearest medical services. It just scared me too much. I have a very active 6 year old boy that makes poor decisions and gets hurt a lot in a location that has no health regulations, garbage everywhere, poorly maintained roads, and no traffic laws or seat belts. This is why we haven't explored outside the city. Not only do I not want to entertain a 6 year old on a 6 hour bus ride, I don't want to be that from from emergency services.
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