力行植林慈善基金會

Reflection on Tung Shan Summer School 2015 (Lam Ka Wing Kevin)

This is the second year I participate in this service trip. On arrival, so delightfully, the children remembered me. I was pleased to meet those familiar faces again. 

The number of children participated in the Summer School program this year was less than that of last year. Regardless of the number, I adopted a refined method of teaching and attitude towards them, using my experience from last year.

I was responsible for teaching two elements, namely phonics and reading aloud. The former emphasizes the ability to pronounce words with similar vowels and is the element that I taught last year. The latter emphasizes the ability to read a passage within time limit and pronounce accurately.

On the second day, students were assessed on these elements. To my surprise, the students really showed improvement in phonics compared to last year, thus manifesting the effectiveness of teaching in the past year. As for reading aloud, the students' performance left much room for improvement, and was worse than expected. Therefore, the teaching curriculum had to be refined to match their progress. This was certainly a challenge for me, as I had to completely amend the teaching content and plan within one day. Under time pressure, I thought thoroughly at night to produce a more suitable teaching curriculum.

In the next few days, I encountered another problem. I suddenly found out that the teaching curriculum for a particular grade did not cater for every student well, due to the huge differences in level. After one night of careful consideration, I eventually came up with a solution, which was to teach all the contents suitable for the higher level students first, then tutor the lower level students individually. 

Throughout the course of the trip, my patient and caring character gradually developed. It is essential to show the children that we care about them, as this determines their willingness to obey our instructions. Occasionally, they became cantankerous and disobedient, and this is when patience needs to come into play. We had to try to put ourselves into their situations and think from their perspectives. After this, respond and remind them in a patient and amicable tone. We found that this is the most effective method to have them to obey.

Leadership skills as in the ability to gain control of a group of students are also involved in this trip. This has really been an obstacle for me since this is one of the qualities that I lack. At times I found myself over-indulgent, yet what was required is an authoritative leader mixed with some extent of generosity. I believe that this is what constitutes a charismatic leader in general.

We were also given the precious opportunity to visit a family of one student. During the visit, we looked around their home and chatted with the host about their living routines and conditions. This allowed us to take a glimpse into the lifestyles of a typical rural family. The lifestyles are relatively simple and basic, merely sufficient for one to sustain life. Through the discussion, I also gained a better understanding of the difficulty in migrating from rural to urban areas in the mainland, which largely accounts for the widening of the rural-urban gap, thus resulting in the increasing socioeconomic inequalities in mainland China. Nevertheless, what drew my admiration is that they are still leading a satisfying life without any complaints, despite all those unfavorable conditions. Contrasting this with our unending materialistic lust, I feel ashamed.

To conclude, I really enjoyed interacting and playing with the lively group of children. The teaching process has helped me sharpen my leadership and caring skills, and the ability to change plans immediately according to the situation under time pressure. Although the nature of this trip is non-medically related, the qualities required are medically relevant. Hence it is a great opportunity to explore our weaknesses, improve ourselves, simultaneously provide assistance to the children in need and understand more about the living standards in the rural areas of mainland.

Kevin Lam (CUHK Year 3)

2015年9月 陽山縣下鄉篩查白內障活動簡報(鄧月嫻)

2015年9月6 - 9日回到陽山下鄉篩查白內障活動，地點包括七拱衛生院（七拱鎮，杜步鎮），太平衛生院（太平鎮，楊梅鎮），嶺背衛生院（嶺背鎮，黃坌鎮，秤架鄉），青蓮衛生院（青蓮鎮，江英鎮），黎埠衛生院（黎埠鎮），縣殘聯（陽城鎮，小江鎮，大崀鎮）。

各合作單位包括縣殘聯，鎮政府，民政辦，各衛生院等的協助及鼎力支持，使這次活動一如以往順利完成。

今次由新會區人民醫院醫務科蘇永亮醫生帶領醫療隊下鄉義診，蘇醫生對各項目都親力親為，實值得表揚。而醫療隊林醫生，吳醫生及各位護士，都盡心盡力為病人檢查，專業的水平和純熟技巧，對前來應診的白內障患者精準地斷症，使這次下鄉篩查活動超額完成。

力行義工隊各成員，無私的奉獻，對前來篩查的公公婆婆關懷呵護，發揮了身體力行的精神，和你們合作愉快，多謝！

今次下鄉篩查活動義診總人數為907人，已發手術通知書人數是白內障160人，胬肉15人，合計共：175人。

基金會雖然已定時定點在陽山下鄉舉行“扶貧復明＂活動，但每次前來的患者的比例都是有增無減。如這次活動，經統計需動白內障手術的患者高達281人，奈何手術名額有限，這都是基金會主席謝太常遇到需處理輪候手術名單的頭痛問題。祝願各患者一切順利平安。

義工　鄧月嫻

2015年9月13日

2015年 廣東 梅縣“扶殘助學”活動簡報 (王德富)

活動日期： 2015年8月16至19日

合辦單位： 梅縣區殘疾人聯合會，力行植林慈善基金會

參加義工： 香港 17人 (包括港大/中大醫科學生7人)，國內1人

活動簡報 ：-

8月16日 -

香港義工17人於早上7時乘坐直通巴土， 大約中午1時20分抵達梅縣。於酒店安頓後，義工們前往雁洋鎮“力行”第一個植林基地“還趣山莊＂ 視察樹木生長情況，喜見樹木參天， 茁壯成長，造水流量穩定，為附近村民提供源源不絕清澈泉水！及後，義工們前往拜候兩位國內義工 -- 烈伯和鄧院長。他們多年默默耕耘，義務協助工作，近年因年事漸高，體力不繼，無奈留家休養。喜 見他倆精神氣色頗佳，義工倍感安慰！

是晚，梅縣區政府設宴款待義工團，享用豐富客家美食！飯後，義工為明天下郷家訪安排作最後準備。

8月17 日 -

義工18人，分為3人1組，在梅縣區殘聯協助下，於早上8時分別前往梅縣19個鄉鎮家訪，進行資料確認，家居環境視察及審閱學生成績報告。家訪過程順利，於下午6時許， 6組義工完成家訪。

8月18日 -

上午各組義工齊集決議及篩選受助學生名單，標準條件爲：殘疾家庭，家境貧 困，學生品學兼優。

受助學生分別就讀高中，職中，大專及本科，助學金額分別爲：高中/職中助學金1,000元，大專助學金1,500元及本科助學金2,500元。大家商議到中午，完成確認102位受助學生名單。

午飯後，全體義工應邀前往參觀新近落成的“粵東醫院”，實地了解國內醫療設施。相比以往，“粵東醫院”環境整潔，設備先進，管理完善，踏實地提升 醫療效益。

8月19日 -

早上9時，“助學金送贈”儀式於梅縣區委黨校禮堂舉行，由梅縣政府幹部和香港義工代表攜手主持，與會學生及家長一百多人。嘉賓及學生代表先後致辭，鼓勵同學們努力讀書，他日學業有成，服務社會，改善家庭生活，共享美好人生！

本次受助學生： 102人

助學金額 ：人民幣183,000元

感謝 永義(香港) 有限公司 贊助

午飯後，義工應邀前往新城中學，與60多位升高中三年級同學進行英語互動交流。

總結：-

是次活動能夠順利完成，有賴梅縣區各政府部門及香港、國内義工鼎力支持，

謹此致謝！ 2016再見！

義工 王德富

2015年8月24日

2015年 “梅港青年英語交流互動課堂”簡報（李寶燕）

地點 ： 梅縣新城中學

日期及時間： 2015年8月19日 上午10點至中午12點

                 2015年8月20日 上午8點至10點 (每節2小時)

參加學生 ： 19日 68位高二文科學生

　             20日 64位高二理科學生

協助人員 ： 力行義工10位，醫科學生7位

預備詳情

(a) 在香港已預先參考高二學生暑期作業，了解他們的英文水平。

(b) 選用面試形式以英語交流。

(c) 在面試前，已通報了十多條問題給學生參考及預備。

活動當日流程

₍₁₎ 先將學生分為五組和面試次序，並安排到五個課室。

(2) 每組有三位義工，其中兩位負責模擬英文面試。(每位學生大概三至五分鐘)

(3) 其他學生由另一位義工負責和學生交談以作面試熱身。

(4) 整個面試大概一小時十五分鐘。

(5) 每組由義工選出表現最優秀的一位學生，在最後團體集合時再面試一次。

(6) 在最後五組學生面試的時候，也安排了用手機拍下短片，會安排交回學校，希望可對其他學生有幫助。

總結

英語交流活動整體氣氛很好，也覺得學生對英語對話並不抗拒，只是欠缺勇氣去嘗試和機會去開始，兩小時過程中充實，促進港梅交流機會。

義工 李寶燕

2015年8月26日

Dong Shan Summer English Program Reflection ( Shing Kei Lok Louisa)

Throughout this brief but fruitful period of ten days, I felt an internal struggle to fulfil the role of a teacher. In the eyes of the children, I was not seen as a teacher. Instead, I was a sister to babysit and play with them. They yearned for my attention, constantly pulling my arms, yelling and jumping on to my back simply because they wanted to play with me. Early in the morning, even before our breakfast at seven am, they would yelp and even order me from the bottom of the staircase to hurry up and piggyback them. It was hard to reject them with those teary, puppy-eyes. I would even have to carry children like Pak Sing and Chau Lai, who were already ten in age, and run around the basketball court until they were finally satisfied and were willing to let go. Although I was slightly overwhelmed with physical exhaustion, I made efforts to attend to these energetic, loud and needy children, giving them love both physically and in time because I could see how desperate they were just for some attention to fill their inner insecurities resulting from lack of parental supervision and guidance. Through play and games, I not only became familiar with each child’s personalities, but more importantly their social and familial backgrounds.

Frankly, I was not entirely happy to be a babysitter or even a teacher, in which I was supposed to fulfil. As the saying ‘teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime’ entails, I frankly did not see much of a purpose of teaching the students dictionary and translation skills in a limited ten day duration especially if they were actually reluctant to learn. What I truly tried to achieve was to be a ‘fire starter’, to inspire change in their mentality: a determination not simply to study English, but to improve in their personal academic and moral development by establish a drive for learning, for self-discipline by setting and reaching goals, and finally for a better future for themselves and their family.

During my brief journey of ten days at Dong Shan, I was fortunate to have a glimpse of their improvement in both English and character. In particular, it was incredibly encourage to see the group 5 students blossom with more confidence to read English sentences out aloud and attempt to guess the meanings of the phrases to the degree that they began shouting and competing. Seeing how the introverted, shy only boy in the class open up himself and transform to be the class clown. Neither would I forget how an irreverent, temperamental 11 year old girl, who cried in my class after I scolded her for her reluctance to attempt at the set questions and focus in class, became so serious about her studies that she revised hard for the final test and teared up because she was disappointed in her test performance. There are too many indescribably memorable memories for me to note and I will never forget.

I believe there is a life plan for everyone set by a higher power in this universe and it is no coincidence for certain people to meet at specific time and plan. I feel very blessed to have been able to met and taught these classes of students, who I feel have great potential within themselves that have yet to be discovered. I have yet to fully understand the reason for why I was placed in their lives, but I know that they have at least humbled and opened my eyes to see the world in a new perspective.

Now that the trip has concluded, where do we go from here? The children have a heart to learn and a seed for maturity. However, like seeds on a hard, infertile soil, they are unable to establish proper foundation. Without proper guidance, they get lost easily in the weeds, yielding to adversity. They need a gardener to nurture them, shower love appropriately, prune them when they are growing the wrong way and fertilize them when their growth has stunted. The implications of our visit are limited by the short timeframe and whether or not the children were able to gain anything from our visit depends on them. I guess this is the harsh reality of this program because it is an annual project. Instead of giving them hope that a group of people like us will come and visit next year, I hope that I left an impression that there is a bigger world out there beyond that short, plain stretch of houses and cornfields waiting for them to discover. I hope that they will remember that thousands of miles, there are people who would be willing to ‘stand by them’ and these people will always carry a memory of them for the rest of their lives. Most importantly, I hope that they will never forget to strive and not yield because they are the future of Dong Shan.

For those who missed the point, I sighed endlessly in my class whenever I noticed this particular child in my class who was unwilling to learn and only saw me as a playmate. In a brief period of ten days, there is only so much that we can do for them –we can give them books in the library, but these books are meaningless because no one reads them. It is up to them to step up for themselves. Fundamental and sustainable change can only be derived from themselves.

Shing Kei Lok Louisa

(HKU Year1)

2015年5月 陽山縣「扶貧復明」活動 義工感想 （何穎琳）

能夠看見光明，是上天賜予我們珍貴的禮物。憑著雙眼，我們得以看見世界的美，家人的臉容。可是，世間上一部份人卻因患上眼疾被奪去了這份幸福。參與是次清遠市陽山縣「扶貧復明」活動，我看到了接受手術前的患者們的仿徨、無助，與他們在術後雀耀、感激的模樣。這個改變只需短短十數分鐘。身為醫學生，能夠有幸親身經歷手術治療對病患人生帶來的改變及幫助，實在感到十分震撼與激昂，使我對學醫及將來行醫的決心更加堅定；看到醫療團隊及義工們大家齊心為了幫助在陽山縣的150位白內障及19位胬肉患者，無懼風雨而努力，使我對醫療義務工作有了深刻的感動與體會，提醒我應身體力行去服務他人。我會將是次經驗學習銘記於心，在往後行醫的日子裹為病人們的健康幸福努力。

大家專注留神地聆聽義工黎姑娘對活動及各單位工序的簡介

義工團隊與術後重見光明的患者合影

護士義工專注謹慎地為術後重見光明的患者注射藥物

護士義工與我為將要進行手術的伯伯清洗眼睛

眼科醫生義工全神貫注地為病患施手術

義工 何穎琳 (香港中文大學 醫科三年級)

2015年6月25日

2015年5月陽山縣“扶貧復明”活動義工分享

雖然從陽山回來已有一段日子，但老人們因重獲光明而笑逐顏開的臉龐依然是歷歷在目。

短短數天的義工服務不僅讓我接觸到不少新鮮的事物，更為我帶來不少的感動。當中讓我感受最深的是病人及他們家人對我們的信任。對著我這個二十出頭的學生，他們不僅沒有一絲的懷疑，反而安心的把他們的家人交給我纔扶，讓我幫他們量度心電圖。其他義工對病人的關心亦讓我因能成為這支團隊的一份子而感到驕傲。猶記得有一名患有嚴重白內障的婆婆因為血壓太高而未能做手術。面對這情況，義工們都感到十分無奈，但亦有些建議婆婆的兒子帶她去看醫生，進食降血壓的藥物。翌日，當婆婆的血壓恢復正常的水平，所有的義工也為此而感到歡欣，讓我感受到義工們對病人真誠的關心。

在最後一天，病人都能出院了。當看到他們拆下紗布，拿著剛收到的術後須知測試視力，繼而面露微笑，心中確實感到無比溫暖，盼望他們能從此走出眼疾的陰霾。

義工 孫文遠 (香港中文大學 醫科二年級)

2015年6月25日

2015年6月 連山壯族瑤族自治縣“扶貧復明”活動義工分享 (陳耀華)

是次連山服務之旅轉眼即逝，雖然只有短短數天，卻令我有很深刻的體會。

相比起連山既居民，香港人非常幸福富裕。內地山區醫療設備簡陃，醫療人才凋零，令很多身受病魔煎熬的人得不到合適的治療。令我印象最深刻既莫過於一個患有先天性白內障既小孩，因醫療服務既不足和人民對醫療知識既貧乏，令他自小不見天日，活在一個漆黑的世界裡，直至我們義工隊既醫生診斷出這個小朋友患有白內障，才能幫他安排白內障手術，給予他重見光明既機會。望著這些小朋友，想到將來他們能夠看見這個美麗既世界時，頓時使我令我充實動力去克服習醫這條艱辛且漫長既路，因為我看見終點既美好，我看見將來病人因自己醫治後面上既笑容。

此外，此次既旅程令我深深體會到這世上，在地球既某些地方，存在著很多人需要我們既幫助。很多地方既病人因落後而得不到合適既醫療，致使明明可以得以治癒的人，長期生活在病痛的煎熬中。將來，我一定要成為無國界醫生，用自己微薄既力量去幫助這些人。

這幾天，我亦有幸認識得多愛心爆棚，和藹可親既朋友。全程大家不但同心協力地服務當地人民，休息時有講有笑，全無悶場，令連山之行錦上添花。

義工 陳耀華 (香港中文大學 醫科三年級)

2015年6月25日

2015年6月 連山“扶貧復明”活動義工感想 ( 陳祉萱)

一個身軀細小的女孩子獨自坐在樓梯，等待外婆完成內障手術。女孩只有五六歲左右，更患有地中海貧血，卻因父母要出省工作，而要陪同老邁的婆婆到醫院接受白內障手術。親身聽到這些故事，難免會感到驚訝和難過。出生於香港的我，可能一生亦不會體驗到農村貧窮生活帶來的不公與絕望。

這一連五日的義工服務讓我體驗到真心幫助他人的滿足感。儘管我只是替護士拿洗眼盆，過程中學習以不同的溝通方法對待病人確實使我獲益良多。面對有些對洗眼不抗拒的老人家，護士當然能輕松地完成程序。但當遇上一些因恐懼而不願意合作的病人，醫護人員亦會耐心地鼓勵他們。每天都重復一樣的程序，很容易便會失去對工作的熱誠。但這裏的義工卻把每個老人家都看待成自己的家人，工作之餘都不忙說笑，使乏味的工作添上一份趣味。雖然每天都要彎著腰替病人洗眼，難免會感到疲累，但當我看見婆婆因重見光明而面露笑容，我頓時認為所有的辛勞都是值得的。

在香港和內地進行的義工服務分別的確很大。正正因為生於農村的居民資源非常缺乏，我們微不足道的幫助都能為他們的生活質素帶來極大的改善。

上：護士和義工替病人洗眼，於整個早上維持這個彎腰的勢是挺累的。

右：白內障手術後的複檢。

下：婆婆在醫院裏遇見老朋友，開心地聊天。

義工 陳祉萱 (香港大學 醫科一年級)

2015年6月22日

Reflection on Cataract Service Trip in Lianshan Zhuang and Yao Autonomous County, China (11^th – 15^th, June, 2015) (Lam Pak Lun)

The cataract service trip to Lianshan was both thought-provoking and educational. As volunteer for the surgical part of the service trip, I had the chance to appreciate at first-hand the complete run-down of a cataract camp for more than a hundred elderly. The surgical camp was particularly organized – the elderly was first classified according to the surgical treatment that they require (as some of them had pterygium instead of cataract), then they would undergo a series of eye examinations including ultrasound scan and lacrimo-nasal duct cleanse and finally given anesthesia injection in preparation for the surgery. Each step of the procedure is simple yet demands great patience as the patients were often challenged in hearing and communication. Yet, both the local physicians and the volunteers were accommodating and caring. Everyone was determined to serve. From guiding the patients to the waiting room to helping the elderly remove their shoes, my fellow volunteers elicited humanistic compassion which was both infectious and heart-warming. The ambience of kindness and kinship was reciprocal as both the volunteers and the patients wore huge smiles on their faces throughout my week-long trip.

As a medical student, I had the opportunity to witness several cataract surgeries. The surgeons were excellently skilled and very willing to teach. Despite following a tight schedule (around 15 minutes per cataract surgery), the doctors and nurses maintain a professional demeanor which I thought was very comforting to the patients. One could only imagine the joy of being able to see again after several years in encroaching darkness due to cataract of both eyes. This service trip was particularly meaningful to myself because my grandmother was also inflicted with the same disease. The suffering of a person who is gradually going blind is unbearable to the patient himself or herself, as well as to their loved ones. Being able to play a role, albeit a small part, in this cataract service trip fulfills me immensely.

To conclude, I would highly encourage and recommend all people to partake in this meaningful trip. As my favorite author Charles Dickens once said “no one is useless in this world who lightens the burden of another.”

Lam Pak Lun (HKU Year 3)