Peace Winds Japan wrote to thank JCIE for its support. They promised, “The donation will be put to the best use possible as we make sure that the goodwill entrusted in us by so many people from around the world will be rewarded. We will strengthen our commitment to support the recovery efforts of the disaster-stricken regions and bring hope to their lives.”
Association of Medical Doctors of Asia (AMDA)‘s medical teams have been working in the Tohoku region since March 12, the day after the earthquake struck. Now, in mid-April, schools are starting to reopen for classes and the people and towns are shifting their focus to “recovery.” Accordingly, AMDA has decided to shift its approach from “sending direct medical teams” to “supporting recovery on the medical and educational fronts.” It will be handing over its medical efforts to local medical institutions and will instead support systems that enable the local doctors to provide healthcare as they did before the earthquake.
AMDA’s “Nutrition Program” delivered multivitamins to evacuation centers along with pamphlets that explained some of the symptoms of vitamin deficiencies. The evacuees were happy to receive them, saying, “Ah, that explains why I haven’t had much energy!” AMDA also hired a local doctor to provide acupuncture treatments.
