Kathleen Guy introduced us to long-time colleague/friend and Interlochen Public Radio Essayist
Karen Anderson. Karen shared about her journey to becoming an essayist and a number of her essays to our delight. Karen read from her most recent collection of essays, “Gradual Clearing: Weather Reports from the Heart,” illustrated by artist, Joyce Koskenmaki. As a local Traverse City resident, we enjoyed hearing her path from NMC administrator to a mainstay of IPR.
Described by others as authentic and vulnerable, Karen shared that she believes people “read my work to learn about themselves,” so she does not mind being vulnerable. “They share a connection to my work.” She writes about the ‘everyday.’
We enjoyed Karen’s reading of her title essay, and three others entitled: “Togetherness,” “Rental,” and “Forecast.” Her books are available in local regional bookstores including, Horizon Books as well as Amazon.
Dr. Glen MacPhersen, Project Peanut Butter: Dr. MacPhersen, a flight surgeon, has a passionate focus on eliminating malnutrition in Malawi. A country where over half the children suffer from chronic malnutrition and 4% from severe acute malnutrition. He has been witness to a profound level of misery and mortality due to the effects of malnutrition on families.
Dr. MacPhersen gave us a clear picture of this tragic situation, bringing to life through words and photos the current state of malnutrition in Malawi. The term “thousand yard stare” gave us all an accurate image in our minds of what he encounters in his work. We learned the visual symptoms which often mean a child is five to ten days from death.
Dr. MacPhersen and two of his children are traveling to Malawi this month to lend and hand at the mobile clinic outside Blantyre, but they recognize that the on the biggest takeaway from the experience will be their own education. Glen’s daughter, Emma MacPhersen, joined him for the presentation and shared how she will participate in one way at the clinic by helping to measure children. She shared that when weighed on a scale the extra fluid in the children’s malnourished tummies does not allow for an accurate body weight. However, measuring their upper arms circumference, which is not affected by bloating, allows the team to mark progress over the eight weeks in treatment.
Children 6 months to 5 years are in the most vulnerable window. Nutrition-poor foods, competing with siblings for food, and not until after five years will they really start foraging on their own. The malnutrition clinic is 8-weeks, and the recovery has shown to be permanent.
Standard therapy prior to Dr. Manary’s work was mostly crowded, allowing for the concentration of infectious disease; milk-based imprecise macronutrients were served; high demands were made on the entire family to be near hospital; and recovery rate 25-40%. As a result, parents made heart-wrenching decisions to stay home and not travel to hospital.
Dr. Manary’s innovation focused on food, setting, and sourcing. After his own 10 months of village life living, he was led to the current solution that has seen an amazing 75-95% recovery rate results.
Criteria for improved food: Treatment not require dilution with water (possible contamination), not require heating, treatment in home, local staff.
The food is a prepackaged energy dense, peanut butter-like packet. After five minutes, one can see how a child’s body recognizes the benefits and tastiness since the brain is beginning to register with the added nutrition in his/her body.
The mobile clinic the MacPhersen’s are going to experience is run by Malawians, which really adds to team’s education. In terms of teaching the locals, the tool of song is used. An example of a song shared tells of an adult taking the therapeutic food intended for a child’s regimen and working through dealing with that issue appropriately in the community. Many of the songs focus on the nutrition information.
In closing, Glen shared a pictorial progress of 8 weeks of treatment. This program is changing the health and economics of the country. 1M kids have been treated so far.
The current challenge is helping the factory to meet UN requirements for sustainability so that can help even more, and more of those malnourished outside of their country.
As a special treat, Dr. MacPhersen’s parents were present to hear his presentation and he shared that his parents built a malnutrition clinic and dedicated to Dr. MacPhersen on upon his graduation from medical school at Washington University in St. Louis.
