Another Country, Another Healthcare System

Bob had a bit of a sore throat starting before we left Turkey.  After our two days of endurance travel, Bob woke up on our first day in Myanmar with a throat that felt ‘like someone had poured acid down it’.  So it looked like our first activity of the day was to find a doctor for Bob.  Over the breakfast provided by hotel, we searched the internet for clinics and hospitals.  Of course it was a Sunday of a holiday weekend (these medical problems never seem to happen at a convenient time).  The medical clinic run by the Australian embassy located just 500 m from the hotel (the perfect solution) was closed.  There was the International SOS clinic about 8 km away but one had to be a member.  The hotel staff suggested the nearby hospital so off we went.

The Yangon General Hospital did not fill us with confidence.  The outside was packed with the locals camping out on mats.  Inside the one door we found, the clinics were locked up and deserted.  This was fortunate for us as we otherwise might have been tempted to seek help there. (PS. We returned the next day for some photos and found the main entrance and conditions inside the ER were a bit better.)

The Yangon General Hospital

View of the wards

Another wing of the hospital in a grand colonial building now in disrepair and garbage everywhere

The radiology department

Out on the street we found a pharmacy.  We have found that pharmacies, in all the countries we have been to, are the ‘go to’ place for help on anything.  They always speak good English and are very knowledgeable and friendly.  The pharmacist pointed out a medical clinic on the opposite street corner.  There Bob was seen by a very nice doctor who gave him a 5 day course of Amoxicillin and advised to gargle with salt water.  Sound advice and hopefully we have nipped it in the bud.  Neither of us want a repeat of the pneumonia Bob experienced in 2014 just after we moved onto Songster or the horrible Gandhi’s revenge Bob had in India.  We are being extra cautious now.

The Royal Dragon Clinic

Back to the hotel for a gargle and some rest.  Perhaps there will be no sightseeing today but there are still some amazing scenes to be had from the hotel window. The one advantage of the sore throat was that Bob lost his voice for two whole days!!!   

Buddhist monks going down the street chanting and collecting alms