Crossing the Border
—Médecins Sans Frontières —
Dr. Kanto Tomoko joined MSF/in 1993.// She was the first Japanese/to work in the field/with this international volunteer group.// Here,/she gives a speech/to a group of high school students/about her experience.//
　　After working for about eight years/as a doctor in Japan,/I went to Switzerland/for further study.// It was there/that I joined Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF),/“Doctors Without Borders,”/an NGO established in France/in 1971.// MSF helps people all over the world/who are sick or injured/as a result of war and disaster,/regardless of race,/religion,/or politics.//
　　I had been thinking about/how I might be of some help to others/as a doctor.// I wanted to see different cultures and places.// I had read about MSF/and I had friends who had donated money.// I sent a letter to an MSF office in Paris/saying that I wished to join the organization.// They said yes/and I was sent to the Madhu refugee camp in Sri Lanka,/where fighting was going on.//

　　At Madhu/there were 28,000 refugees,/and yet/there was only one small hospital,/where we had only two nurses,/two Tamil doctors,/interpreters,/and health workers.// We had only the simplest medical equipment to work with.// There were times/when we felt sad/because we had to treat so many patients/with old equipment.//
　　We started at 9 a.m./and treated about 150 people each day.// They spoke Tamil.// We asked them simple questions/and decided what to do.// In the afternoon,/we treated people in our eight beds,/usually pregnant women and babies.// Sometimes/we went to a small camp/eight kilometers away from Madhu.// We worked from morning till night.//
　　Malaria,/asthma,/pneumonia/—these diseases were the most common.// Poor food and water were also serious problems.// When the rainy season came in October,/diarrhea increased/and we lost some of our children.// We treated everyone who came to us,/even soldiers carrying weapons,/but only after they put their weapons away.//
　　We were told we would be safe.// However,/there were times/when we were ordered not to go out at night.// We listened to the radio/to find out whether it was safe to go outside or not.//

　　The most difficult thing/about our work at Madhu/was making decisions.// We had to think about the local situation,/because looking at the situation/through Western or Japanese eyes/could lead us to make wrong decisions.// Since our medicine/as well as our medical equipment/was very limited,/we had to look at each situation/as it happened/and choose the best thing to do.//
　　I clearly remember the day/when a woman brought her five-year-old boy/to our hospital.// I saw immediately/that he was beyond help.// We gave him oxygen,/but he was pale,/his breathing was difficult,/and the oxygen mask made him uncomfortable.// He was not improving.// We were using our last tank of oxygen.// We didn’t know/when the next tank was coming.// If another person needing oxygen arrived,/maybe this tank could save his or her life.// I made my decision/and made a sign to the nurse/who was working with me/to turn off the oxygen.// The nurse simply couldn’t do it.// I waited five seconds/and then turned it off myself.// I did it/because I thought it best/to leave the child in the hands of God.// Was that the right decision?// I still don’t know.//

　　My six months at Madhu passed quickly,/but they were very important to me/as they gave true meaning/to my life and work.//
　　The work of NGOs like MSF/is helping solve many of the world’s problems,/but there is so much more to do.// It is my hope/that many more Japanese will volunteer for such work,/go and see more of the world,/and begin to have a sense of compassion/for people who need help.// Such volunteers will find/that they get as much as they give.// In my own case,/the experience not only gave direction to my life/but also gave me an opportunity/to think about what it is/to live as a human being.// I plan to join MSF again/and continue working with them/until MSF is no longer necessary.// There are still countless sick and injured people/all over the world.//
　　Crossing the border takes courage/—your family and friends may object—/but if it seems to you the right thing to do,/follow your heart.// You might find yourself in the minority,/but have confidence in yourself/and have the courage/to put your beliefs into action.//