The repeated closure of universities in Burma has left the country without much-needed medical expertise. How much can NGOs do to make up for lost time?..." "Now that Burma had had no doctors graduating for two years (except possibly military doctors from their own school) the government encouraged training of lay village health workers. Because we had done similar teaching in rural Thailand for another group, the organization had invited my wife and me to join the team. We came once in 1996 when they began their project, and again in 1998 to see how well the students could remember and use such teaching. By that time there were 500 who had taken the three-week training course; some of them were quite competent as far as their training went, each working with about thirty families in her home village. Others were woefully inadequate at making decisions, even though they could remember facts." ... "In Burma, elementary school itself is free, but many can?t afford all the fees the teachers must charge. Children have to buy textbooks, uniforms, paper and pencils; they must often pay athletic fees, examination fees, buy cleaning supplies for the classroom - the expenses can go on and on. The government has invested very little in the education system. Most children drop out before middle school." He shrugged. "If you want an education, join the army."