Leading on the Frontline

19Be prepared

How lack of preparation nearly killed me in Tibet

How could I help with the health problems in Tibet that His Holiness was so concerned about? After our meeting at Mindrolling Monastery in late 2002, I turned the challenge around in my head as I bounced along in the crowded bus back to Delhi.

Tibet was a notoriously harsh environment, especially in the High Himalayas where the worst of the problems were found. Many of the remote areas in greatest need were almost inaccessible, far from towns or villages with even the most basic resources. Food supplies, medical backup and communications were limited to nonexistent.

I knew what I wanted: medically skilled and adventurous young people who would be sensitive to the Tibetan culture and the complexities of the Chinese occupation. By the end of my bus trip I had it. Second-year medical students from training hospitals who were looking for overseas placements for their final year would be perfect. There would have to be a careful selection process. I’d need to find individuals who were tough, resilient and resourceful.

I was keyed up with excitement and could hardly wait to start organising things. When a cow ambled into the road and the bus swerved violently to avoid it, I was jolted back into the present. Catching the eye of the lady sitting next to me, dressed in a colourful sari and lovingly nursing a chicken in her lap, I smiled. Over the next few weeks it became clear to me that thorough planning would be needed before ...