Welcome to Brunei! Ladies Last, Please!

It first hit me that I was no longer in familiar territory while boarding the flight from Singapore to Brunei. I was in the pre-boarding area watching the final days of the Olympics when my row was called to board--so I got in line ready to hand over my boarding pass. I looked around thinking, "Wow, seems mostly men go to Brunei!" Apparently, I didn't hear the announcement that said, "Men may now board rows..." That's right, ladies last. The man collecting boarding passes was very polite. He smiled at me and said "Sorry, ladies go next." I think he felt bad, he then said, "you can go now if you'd like." I declined. The flights on Royal Brunei Airlines begin with a prayer to Allah. The pre-flight instructions included a reminder that the penalty for importing illegal drugs into Brunei is death. I was asked twice upon my arrival in customs if my bags contained alcohol.

Despite my airline introduction," Brunei feels like a modern, progressive country. The big difference being that EVERYONE drives everywhere in very nice cars (on the left side), no one walks, and tea is served often. There are several beautiful mosques and government buildings scattered throughout the city. Key word being "scattered." The city seems designed to encourage driving. I learned that the Brunei government will give almost anyone a very low-interest car loan. Did I mention Shell Oil employs a large percentage of the country's population?

I arrived on Monday, March 1st and was greeted at the airport by Dr. Balalla (my primary adviser) and the lone female doctor in the group, Dr. Yin. Both are wonderful! They took me to my room at the SEAMEO VOTECH house (see previous blog). It's a little more third-worldish then as photographed on their website--but perfectly acceptable!! It is pretty large with hot water, TV and wireless internet access. I have a view of an amazing mosque from my balcony. The guesthouse is across the street from a large shopping mall and many restaurants. During my first night in town Drs. Balalla, Yin and Khin took me to dinner. Dr. Yin brought her beautiful 11-year old daughter, Thin Kyi, who speaks perfect English and is the the Burmese version of my niece, Lexie! I wish they could meet.

My first day of clinic was anxiety provoking--I had to drive myself there! I had a nice rental car delivered to the guest house, but with Brunei being a formal British Colony, steering wheels are on the right and I was to drive like everyone else on the left. This was not the real issue. The issue for me was the 4 lane traffic circle I had to pass through to get to work. I learned it's easier then it looks--so far. Luckily the rental car includes insurance.

My first day of clinic included visiting the Ministry of Health (see photo left) to complete paperwork and interview with one of the deputy ministers. She was a lovely woman who insisted Dr. Balalla give me a Saturday off so I would have time to visit Mount Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia--the highest peak in SE Asia. Only private companies get Saturday off. Government worker "holidays" are Friday and Sunday.

After our visit to the Ministry, Dr. Balalla gave me a clinic tour and introduced me to the staff. They graciously provided me with my own office/exam room. The clinic is fairly large and filled with educational material on worker safety. I think the poster with the partially amputated limbs sends a clear message.

Occupational medicine has grown rather quickly in Brunei. Since 2002 the clinic staff has expanded from one physician to six. Their clinic performs pre-employment, periodic and foreign worker exams for the Ministry of Health. They provide consult to other services when an occupational exposure is in question, and they follow-up acute injuries. There are no certified industrial hygienists on staff, but the clinic performs work-site inspections led by one of the attending doctors. Except for Shell Oil, they serve the entire working population of Brunei.

The next two days of work were quite busy, but always interesting! I'll write more tomorrow. I feel so lucky to be here, but really miss talking to my friends and family--so I would love to hear from you!