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Panel Discussion and Opening Exhibition “In Our Voices: Health & Resilience along the Thailand-Myanmar Border”
15 October, 2019 @ 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Despite Thailand having one of the best national healthcare systems in the region, not everyone can access it. Cross-border populations often live in underprivileged conditions and are exposed to infectious diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis. Limitations to health care access, due to geographical, financial, socio-cultural, language or security concerns, preclude effective prevention and treatment of diseases. Women and children are particularly at risk due to inadequate maternal and child services.
To highlight cross-border health concerns, Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit (MORU) and Shoklo Malaria Research Unit (SMRU) in collaboration with SEA Junction will hold a multimedia exhibition “In Our Voices: Health & Resilience along the Thailand-Myanmar Border” on 15-27 October, from 11 am to 7 pm in the corner space of BACC. The opening of the exhibition which will marked by a short video screening followed by panel discussion on 15 October at 6 pm.
The exhibition and the panel discussion reveal the living environment of cross-border populations, their exposure to malaria and other tropical diseases and the vulnerability of women and children among them. It also shows their resilience in confronting these difficulties and the importance of involving them in efforts to improve their health conditions. The relevance of participatory health research processes that take into account community’s insights and strengthen their capacity and social support mechanisms is here stressed.
The exhibition combines photos, drawings, and other visual material produced by frontline health workers and public engagement team members, showing the communities’ daily risks, burdens and hardships. The artworks are made by the community members themselves and show their experiences and ability to overcome daily challenges.
These activities were undertaken under the project *REACH = Resilience, Empowerment and Advocacy in Women’s and Children’s Health Research (https://www.ethox.ox.ac.uk/Our-research/major-programmes/reach) and benefited from the insights of +T-CAB = Tak Province Community Ethics Advisory Board members with the financial support of Wellcome Trust and UK Medical Research Council Newton Fund.
Exhibition Opening Agenda on 15 October 2019
| Time | Description |
| 5.30 pm | Registration at SEA Junction, Room 408, 4th floor BACC |
| 6 pm to
8 pm
|
Welcoming Remarks
· Rosalia Sciortino, Director SEA Junction and Associate Professor IPSR, Mahidol University · Phaik Yeong Cheah, Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit, and Associate Professor, University of Oxford |
| Video Screening – In Our Voices (a video on health research participation by +T-CAB members and health workers on the Thai-Myanmar border) | |
| Panel discussion
Panelists: · Suphak Nosten, Photographer and SMRU Designated Media Person, Shoklo-Malaria Research Unit (SMRU) · Francois Nosten, Director, Shoklo Malaria Research Unit · Rose McGready, Deputy Director, Shoklo Malaria Research Unit · Cynthia Maung, Director and Founder of Mae Tao Clinic Moderator: Phaik Yeong Cheah, Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit |
|
| Closing remarks –Rosalia Sciortino, Director SEA Junction and Associate Professor IPSR, Mahidol University | |
| Opening of the photo exhibition by Cynthia Maung (Fl.1) |
Speakers’ Short Bios
Suphak Nosten
Suphak is a Senior Advisor, SMRU, based in Maesot, Tak province, Thailand and a member the of Malaria Elimination Task Force program (METF). She is an official photographer of SMRU who has taken the photographs for the “Our Voices” exhibition. She is also a researcher of the *REACH project.
Francois Nosten
Francois is the Director and founder of SMRU. Since 1986, he has overseen the conduct of numerous clinical studies on the burden, the treatment and the control of malaria and other infectious diseases affecting refugees and migrants living along the Thai-Myanmar border. A professor of tropical medicine at Oxford since 2006, he was awarded Chevalier dans l’ordre de la Legion d’Honneur in July 2015.
Rose McGready
Rose is currently a Professor of Tropical Maternal and Child Health, University of Oxford and Deputy Director of SMRU. Her work focuses on the treatment and epidemiology of uncomplicated malaria in pregnancy. Rose’s work concentrates on the treatment and epidemiology of uncomplicated malaria in pregnancy. This has involved the prospective follow-up of women at antenatal clinics treated for multidrug resistant P.falciparum and/or P.vivax malaria.
Cynthia Muang
Cynthia, herself a displaced person forced to flee her homeland Myanmar, is a founder and director of Mae Tao clinic. Established in , 1988 the clinic aims to provides free health care for refugees, migrant workers, and other individuals who cross the border from Burma to Thailand. People of all ethnicities and religions are welcome at the clinic. In recognition of her tireless humanitarian work she has received the Ramon Magsaysay Award for community leadership and many other international awards.
About the REACH Project
*REACH or Resilience, Empowerment and Advocacy in Women’s and Children’s Health Research is a research project funded by the Wellcome Trust, with partners in Kenya, South Africa, Thailand and the United Kingdom. It is a interdisciplinary, mixed-methods study with researchers in bioethics, maternal-child health, infectious disease and social science. In Thailand, the REACH project focuses on health research and community efforts in combatting malaria and other diseases on the Thailand-Myanmar borderland.
Photo courtesy of Suphak Nosten and her team: Child care along the Thai-Myanmar border area
For Information/reservation for our events please email southeastasiajunction@gmail.com or phone/wa +66970024140
NB: Events are free, but donation most welcome!
Organizers
SEA-Junction, OUR Venue on Southeast Asia
SEA Junction aims to foster understanding and appreciation of Southeast Asia in all its socio-cultural dimensions – from arts and lifestyles to economy and development. Conveniently located at Room 408 of the Bangkok Arts and Culture Center or BACC (across MBK, BTS National Stadium), SEA Junction facilitates public access to knowledge resources and exchanges among students, practitioners and Southeast Asia lovers. For more information see www.seajunction.org and joint the Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/groups/1693055870976440/
Mahidol-Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit (MORU)
The Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit (MORU) develops effective and practical means of diagnosing and treating malaria and other neglected diseases such as typhus, TB and leptospirosis. Established in1979 as a research collaboration between Mahidol University, Oxford University and the UK’s Wellcome Trust. For more information see http://www.tropmedres.ac/home
Shoklo Malaria Research Unit (SMRU)
The Shoklo Malaria Research Unit (SMRU) is part of the MORU supported by the Wellcome Trust. Its main objective is to provide quality healthcare to the marginalized populations living on both sides of the Thai-Myanmar border in Mae Sot, Tak province. This is achieved by the dual activities of research and humanitarian services, with an emphasis on maternal-child health and infectious diseases. For more information see https://www.shoklo-unit.com/
