Mystery behind hookworms Chapter 2

1^st encounter

After a 2-hour flight we reached Haikou city where The Provincial Public Health Department settled. At the moment we stepped into the headquarter none of us 8 group members had any idea of what was going to happen next, in that except the several names in the reports we read we knew nothing else, including the official attitude, the specific locations of epidemic areas and the detailed situations there. We didn’t know where we should go, when we might be going, what else we might need——we have to first act then react.

Fortunately, the governor surnamed Hong was quite a kind person smiling friendly to us and showed no disfavor. Discreetly checking our introduction letter, he nodded and instantly gave a call to the chief of health department. Hearing our plan, Wen Feng, the chief, ardently told the current situation concerned hookworm in a frank manner.

Government in action

In 1986, a functionary named Lin Shaoxiong has conducted a survey that covered the whole province, which demonstrated 94.7% of residents had been infected by kinds of parasites, an amazing result topped the nation. But not until 2005 had parasite ever been a focus because paludism, a deadly disease, was the main deal. However, in 2005, a reporter wrote an article featuring hookworm’s lurking damage and the report got attention from senior officials who later ordered the local government to solve the problem. That’s how a new project aimed at supervising and controlling hookworm started in 2005. The project leader was exactly Lin Shaoxiong who was then a provincial officer. For his strong field experience, Lin led the project and set 5 experimental spots, the east, south, north, west, and middle, scattered all over the Hainan island.

Lin Shaoxiong, who was the most qualified person to clear all the mystery, was now staying in the middle spot, a small town called Mao Yang which is hidden in hinterland encircled by mountains and tropical jungles.

Wen’s narration stopped here, curiously gazing at us. The 8 of us had the same idea across our mind. We had found our destination tonight.

To be continued……