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Description
During my trip to SE Asia, I met a missionary from Australia to Cambodia. She was a physical therapist for leprosy patients. Her clinic was trying to make posters on leprosy and how to treat it for the various, illiterate, small town Khmar.
(Khmar are Cambodians, to those of us not from Cambodia [Kampuchea ~ kom'-poo-chee"-ah])

When this missionary lady heard one of the short-termers from Canada could draw, she drafted me off to the leprosy clinic one day.

I learned a lot about leprosy that day. You can't catch it from touching a leper. Leprosy is a bacteria that must be breathed in and given time to grow. It can take years to develope. The first sign is a patch of pale discoloured skin that can't feel anything. I'd heard that lepers tend to lose body parts, and that's true, but usually it's because they can't feel it when they've injured themselves so they don't treat their infections. A leper's hands and feet also curl up like a gorilla's--though I didn't catch why. I'll look it up later.

I was there for a demostation on how a leper ought to care for and inspect their skin. These images are my notes.

Soak your skin for 20 mins every day. Then, while still wet, scrape away any hard, thick skin built up and check out any cuts, nicks or cracks (treat accordingly). Finally, still wet, rub an oil or lotion on to keep your skin moisturized and soft to avoid dryness and crackling which could lead to open wounds and infection.

I gave the Dr. a copy and she's copied it and given it to other Khmar leprosy clinics to hand out.

Down with leprosy stigmas!

Description
During my trip to SE Asia, I met a missionary from Australia to Cambodia. She was a physical therapist for leprosy patients. Her clinic was trying to make posters on leprosy and how to treat it for the various, illiterate, small town Khmar.
(Khmar are Cambodians, to those of us not from Cambodia [Kampuchea ~ kom'-poo-chee"-ah])

When this missionary lady heard one of the short-termers from Canada could draw, she drafted me off to the leprosy clinic one day.

I learned a lot about leprosy that day. You can't catch it from touching a leper. Leprosy is a bacteria that must be breathed in and given time to grow. It can take years to develope. The first sign is a patch of pale discoloured skin that can't feel anything. I'd heard that lepers tend to lose body parts, and that's true, but usually it's because they can't feel it when they've injured themselves so they don't treat their infections. A leper's hands and feet also curl up like a gorilla's--though I didn't catch why. I'll look it up later.

I was there for a demostation on how a leper ought to care for and inspect their skin. These images are my notes.

Soak your skin for 20 mins every day. Then, while still wet, scrape away any hard, thick skin built up and check out any cuts, nicks or cracks (treat accordingly). Finally, still wet, rub an oil or lotion on to keep your skin moisturized and soft to avoid dryness and crackling which could lead to open wounds and infection.

I gave the Dr. a copy and she's copied it and given it to other Khmar leprosy clinics to hand out.

Down with leprosy stigmas!