CARING for others is not just Emily Vagg’s job, it’s a passion. The 31-year-old Peninsula Health nurse is heading off to Papua New Guinea next month to spread the word about health education to isolated villagers along the Kokoda Track.
The trip, part of a No Roads Kokoda expedition, will see a team of health professionals visit remote villages along the Kokoda Track to dispense health advice and treatment if needed.
It will certainly be a change of scene from Ms Vagg’s day job as a nurse at the Intensive Care Unit at Frankston Hospital.
“I’ve always wanted to branch out and use those skills elsewhere for the less fortunate,” Ms Vagg, a 10-year-veteran at the hospital, said.
“It never seemed to be the right time to do volunteer work overseas but this is a wonderful opportunity to trek the Kokoda Track and experience that as well.”
Ms Vagg says maternal and child health will be a focus for the team of about ten visiting the villages since mortality rates for women in childbirth and children under the age of five in PNG are high compared to western countries.
The lifetime risk of dying in pregnancy for a PNG mother is 1 in 20 and 1 in 12 children die before 5 years of age, according to the No Roads Kokoda organisation.
“The idea of the trek is to provide a lot of health education as well as trying to strengthen the relationships between the Kokoda villages and the health provider that is there to help teach them,” Ms Vagg said.
“There’s no point us giving them a machine they can’t use three weeks after we’ve left – it needs to be sustainable.”
The expedition will be flown in to the middle of the Kokoda Track to give help to the most isolated villages along the trail and the volunteers will trek through tough jungle terrain for about five to six hours per day between villages.
Ms Vagg said she is “really excited” about the trip and the chance to help Kokoda villagers along the way.
The team will hire guides from the villages to ensure money also goes to those most in need.
- The No Roads Kokoda expedition will begin on 11 March until 18 March. Donations to help fund Emily’s journey including flights, insurance and guide fees can be made online at mycause.com.au or by depositing money at ANZ Bank, BSB 013 483, account no: 490227661, reference: 3063. See noroads.com.au for further details about the expedition.
