Masters recipient turns attention to improving Myanmar health system
By Geoffrey Goddard
Volume 31, No. 611
January 23 - 29, 2012
Volume 31, No. 611
January 23 - 29, 2012
Ma Noreen Phillip Myan Mon at her graduation ceremony in Australia on December 17.
Pic: Supplied
AUSAID scholarship recipient Ma Noreen Phillip Myan Mon Yee says the Masters degree in Health Services Management she received from Griffith University in Brisbane last year will enable her to realise a long-held ambition.
“I have a big picture in my mind,” she said in an email interview with The Myanmar Times last week. “I’d like to raise the standard of the healthcare system in Myanmar,” she said, acknowledging that it would “definitely take some time”.
“I’ve learned about health care systems throughout the world and what is good and bad about them; as a consequence I can now evaluate our healthcare system in Myanmar and what needs to be done,” she said.
Ma Noreen Phillip Myan Mon Yee, 31, plans to initially make a contribution towards raising the standard of care in dentistry, the discipline in which she received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Dental Medicine in Yangon in 2006.
To make her contribution in that discipline more effective, she wanted an internationally recognised qualification in dentistry.
“That is why I sat an examination conducted by the Australian Dental Council while simultaneously studying for the master’s degree,” she said.
“I also worked as a dental assistant during my first semester at Griffith University to acquire more practical experience and to judge myself against Australian dentists.”
Ma Noreen Phillip Myan Mon Yee said the knowledge she acquired of the dental healthcare system and trends in dentistry in Australia will be invaluable.
She plans to combine her knowledge of healthcare management and of dental knowledge to get a start towards realising her ambition.
Ma Noreen Phillip Myan Mon Yee arrived in Brisbane to begin studying for her master’s degree in January 2011 and returned to Myanmar on December 29, 12 days after her graduation.
It was her second visit to Australia: she had sat a dentistry examination there in 2009.
Ma Noreen Phillip Myan Mon Yee relished the opportunity of post-graduate study in Australia.
After graduating in dentistry from the University of Dental Medicine she had worked in Myanmar as dentist for about three years with a non-government organisation and at private clinics.
“I found out that it is not enough to have only knowledge of dentistry and healthcare management in Myanmar to be able to go forward successfully; I’ve always wanted to know how healthcare systems are managed in other countries,” she said.
“I couldn’t afford to study overseas and then I heard about the AusAID scholarship program from one of my friends in Australia and decided to apply.”
In September 2010 she learned that her application was successful. “I was overjoyed,” she said.
The previous visit to Australia meant that adjusting to life there was fairly smooth.
“I have some friends there and they helped me when I arrived and the international student officer at the university was very helpful: she arranged everything for the first few weeks, such as opening a bank account and helping with short-stay accommodation. And she was there to help us all the time during the semesters,” Ma Noreen Phillip Myan Mon Yee said.
But adjusting to academic life in Australia did involve challenges “because the teaching method is totally different from here”.
Ma Noreen Phillip Myan Mon Yee said after becoming a student at Griffith University she felt depressed about not being able to participate in class discussions.
“But after the first semester I became more confident and started to participate. One thing I learned is that while we need to respect our tutors and lecturers we should not be afraid to speak up and even argue if we have sound reasons for doing so,” she said.
An achievement involving her studies was one of her happiest memories of her time in Australia.
“I had my first experience on working on a research paper, which I did together with other students. Our paper was one of the best in class and was offered to be published,” she said.
Ma Noreen Phillip Myan Mon Yee’s determination to acquire as much knowledge as possible while in Australia meant that studying for both the master’s degree and for the Australian Dental Council examination was quite tiring.
“I wanted to make the most of the scholarship while I was there,” she said.
In April, Ma Noreen Phillip Myan Mon Yee will return to Australia to sit a supplementary examination in one of the nine subjects she studied for Australian Dental Council qualifications. She will then have to wait in Australia for five weeks to be registered to practice in Australia as a dentist. “After that, I hope I can begin to realise my ambition for the healthcare system in my country,” she said.
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