Operation Blessing (OB) Thailand held an emergency Medical Mission in Nan Province, Northern Thailand on the 1st and 2nd of September, 2006. This was in response to a request from leaders of the local church after flash floods devastated their local community, leaving many of the residents in need of medical attention. A team of OB staff and volunteers left Chiang Mai at 4am on Friday the 1st of September, arriving in Nong Bua village six hours later.

Debris left behind after the
flood near Nong Bua village

Dr. Kamjohn consults with
one of his many patients

Doctor Kamjohn of Phrae Christian Hospital saw 194 patients on the first day of the Medical Mission. The main complaints included back and shoulder pain, stress and anxiety, and fungal problems with feet that had been standing in water for long periods of time. Operation Blessing provided free consultation, treatment and medicine. They also distributed Christian booklets “How to Know God” and “Way to God” with each prescription.

On the second day of the Medical Mission, the OB team went to Dawn Dtun Village which was also badly affected by the flash flood. Doctor Niran of Van Sant Voord Hospital joined the team on this day and consulted 157 patients. Minor surgery was performed on one patient who required stitches to a finger she had deeply sliced on a fish can.

Dr. Nirun inspects the eye of a patient

Mrs. Kham Dtun tells how she escaped
the floods through the window of her house

One of the elderly patients from Dawn Dtun village, Mrs. Kham Dtun, told OB how she thought she was going to die when flood waters rose to over 3 meters in the centre of her village. She was rescued when a boat arrived, helping her to escape the floods through a window on the second floor of her house. She was very grateful for the medical assistance OB provided to her and the people of her village.

In partnership with Phrae Christian Hospital, Van Sant Voord Hospital, McCormick Hospital and the local church, Operation Blessing was able to provide free medical consultation, treatment and medicine, sharing the love of God through word and action, to more than 350 needy people in flood affected areas of Northern Thailand.

Operation Blessing staff and volunteers
in the flood stricken province of Nan