American Doctor in Indonesia
Speaks on Health Care Needs

Dr. Kinari Webb, the founder and lead physician of Health in Harmony, will give a presentation to the public at Bethany Church in Randolph on Tuesday, June 5 at 7 p.m.

Health in Harmony is a project based in Gunung Palung in West Kalimatan, Borneo that seeks to provide medical care and training while preserving the natural environment.

Dr. Webb first developed the vision for this work while studying orangutans in 1993 in the Gunung Palung National Park in Indonesia, one of the world’s most beautiful and threatened rain forests. There, she also saw the dire health needs of the people living in the areas surrounding the park and decided to become a physician and return to Indonesia.

Kinari graduated from Yale University School of Medicine with honors and completed her residency in family medicine at Contra Costa Regional Medical Center in Martinez, Cal.

Since 1993, Dr. Webb has returned to Indonesia numerous times to do research on child mortality and malnutrition and to work as a physician.

Health in Harmony’s program is unique in connecting human and environmental health. Local residents will be allowed to pay for their health care with labor on projects ranging from reforesting logged areas in the protected Gulung Palung Park to working on an organic community farm. Environmentally friendly community development projects are also being developed to provide income generation for local residents.

Dr. Webb is working in cooperation with a foundation and local officials to develop health care facilities for the region following a health survey of 72 villages. Since that time a clinic building has been procured and is being readied for patient care.

A third and final goal of the project is to build a hospital that will allow for additional patient care.

There are a number of ways to assist Health in Harmony’s work. Close to 400 pairs of used eyeglasses have been distributed to people of all ages who needed corrective eyewear and many more pairs are needed. Monetary donations of any amount are also appreciated as even small amounts go a long way in the developing world.

For information about Dr. Webb’s presentation on June 5 contact Regina Beidler at:

bbeidler@verizon.net or call 728-5601.

For more information about Health in Harmony visit their website at:

www.healthinharmony.org. Photos of Health in Harmony’s work can be found at:

www.erickdanzer.com/galleries/healthinharmony.