By LACHLAN MOORHEAD
SINCE joining the Red Cross in 2006, Jessie Kanhutu has dedicated her time to helping those abroad.
This year is no different, with the Endeavour Hills aid worker flying out to Myanmar on Monday to assist the local communities in improving their health and wellbeing.
Jessie will spend 12 months in Myanmar, a country with one of the highest rates of HIV in South East Asia, and where the rate of drug resistant malaria and tuberculosis is among the highest in the world.
Working with Red Cross representatives in Myanmar, Jessie will draw on information gathered by local community networks in order to ascertain the aid priorities for her 12-month stint in the country.
Speaking last week before flying out, Jessie emphasised that the people of Myanmar had a significant problem with the spreading of the AIDS virus, as well as maintaining water sanitation.
“When we get there, we will have a briefing with the Myanmar Red Cross team, we get to see where we can help them,” Jessie said.
“I feel I almost have a global view of the world and these humanitarian issues and that’s why I have been re-selected to travel internationally.”
Jessie is certainly no stranger to providing aid throughout the globe. In 2006, she helped the under-privileged living in Darfur, Sudan, gain access to health services, while from 2008 to 2011 she has spent time in other parts of Africa involved in humanitarian projects.
Jessie, who has a PhD in public health, was also based in Fiji for the Red Cross from 2011-2013.
Previously having worked for the Department of Human Services, specialising in Aboriginal Health, Jessie decided to take a risk and put her hand up for Red Cross humanitarian work seven years ago.
She admitted that she had no long-term plans with the Red Cross at the time, but soon found herself immersed in her work abroad, helping others gain a higher standard of living.
“When I started with the Red Cross in Sudan, I thought I would just do it for six months and see how countries in other parts of the world do things differently when it comes to health. I wanted to see what the world was like in a different context,” Jessie said.
“I thought I didn’t have the capacity to do this kind of work but after my first stint, I realised I could do a lot, I could see how much I was contributing.
“I knew I was making a difference and thought I’d stay a bit longer.”
