Our Hearts Are With Students In Nepal 

A devastating earthquake shock Nepal on Saturday, the most powerful one in 80 years. I first learned about this from a student’s message on Facebook. Then I realized that we have 12 medical students taking part in their exchange program in hospitals in either Kathmandu or Pokhara, the epicenter of the quake. Within an hour, I got a call for help from a student’s mother and calls for help from students via Facebook.

“They reported that they are safe, but they are not going back to their hotel as the building is damaged. They said they are prepared to stay behind to help the wounded and I am very proud of them.” A student’s mother said. Yes, this is what we are trained for: to be there and to offer our help. I am also proud of our medical students. You may regret that you have not learned everything needed. You may blame yourself for skipping classes sometimes. But that is fine. Your medical “common sense” will be useful already. Don’t stitch dirty wounds. Don’t drink unclean water. Don’t under-estimate hygiene problems after the destruction of infrastructure.

“We were planning to hike in the mountains, but we postponed the trip for one day. Thanks God… otherwise we could have been buried in the avalanche” one student in Pokhara wrote to me. Life is full of surprises and unexpectedness. We have little control on what will happen to us. This minute we are enjoying our holiday and our party, the next minute,disaster hits. Incidents like this teaches us not to take things for granted. But more importantly, to face adversity with courage and faith. The rainy day will be gone and the cloud will open up soon. You will become a better person because you have learned important lessons in life.

“We were staying outside all night. We took turns in sleeping because we needed to stay awake for aftershocks”. Watching the back of your colleagues, helping each other in need, is the best way to survive. One student quoted Charles Dickens “This is the worst of times, this is the best of times”. Well said, this is exactly how I felt during the calamity of SARS. In the times of difficulties, you can see both sides of human nature. Bring out the good side of mankind, and ameliorate the bad side, this is how we can survive the critical moments. In front of self-interested people,give as much as you can. In the face of finger-pointing situations, forgive and forget.

“We need help to arrange flights for return”, our students in Kathmandu said. We saw on the news that roads are blocked and airport closed. There is shortage of water and power in Kathmandu.There is insufficient medicine in hospital. Things might get worse in the coming days. “I have contacted the Chinese Embassy and the HKSAR Government, asking them to be in contact with you” and I did try. We have found that all 12 students are safe. We will do everything to bring our kids back. Let us pray for their safety and prompt return.

P.S. While preparing this article, we are pleased to know that our first batch of students will be arriving at Hong Kongfrom Kathmandu this morning.