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The First and Last Trip to Vietnam
In July of 2004, Linda traveled to Vietnam to study abroad and to
examine the health care situation in a developing country. She was one of
only 16 students selected from The Johns Hopkins University to receive the
Vredenburg Scholarship, which funded her mission. Even though Linda was born
in the United States, she wanted to visit and help the people of her native
country. She had never ventured to Vietnam before so her parents decided
to travel along side her, to protect and look after her.
When she arrived in Vietnam, Linda spent her first two weeks in Hanoi at
the "K"
Hospital which specialized in treating patients with cancer. Linda's main
task was to assist in assembling and installing a GE bone densitometer.
Professor Joseph Gitlin was her mentor on the project. After the installation
process, she provided translation of instructions and training for the
proper operation of the device. Linda also surveyed and interviewed patients
using
the equipment
to collect
their feedback.
After two weeks in Hanoi, Linda traveled south to Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)
to volunteer at an AIDS hospice. There she met up with a doctor from Connecticut
who
had introduced her to the place. The children there were ranged from 5 to
10 years old. Many of the orphans had AIDS and one little girl had lung ailment
and AIDS.
Linda wanted to get a first hand account of the health state of affairs in
her country; plus, she loved children.
The children were sad and depressed. Most of the children were infected with
AIDS at birth and their parents had died, leaving them with relatives, many
of whom had
abandoned the children. Linda was upset because she knew there was nothing
much she could do for them. The only thing she could do was bring as much
love and
happiness to their short lives as she could before they die. It is a tragic
irony that all the children there have outlived her.
Linda played with the children, took care of them, took them to the beach,
treated them to lunch, and taught them English. When she had some free time,
she also
visited her relatives and stopped by her grandparent's graves. After four
weeks of volunteering at the AIDS hospice, Linda and her parents returned
to the States.
Before she left Vietnam, she said farewell to the orphans in the form of
a presentation. She wrote, "Please don't be sad. When I leave... I will miss you all a lot" We
now sadly know that her words applied to us all: her families, her friends,
her
fellow classmates, her co-workers, and her professors.
In the States, Linda had a change of heart and decided she no longer wanted
to be a medical doctor. Her reason is simple: a doctor can only help a handful
of people but a researcher can help millions. Linda wanted to go to graduate
school to earn a PHD degree and become a researcher. She was working hard on
her thesis titled, "The Effects of Functionalized of Nanofiber Scaffolds
on Adult Neural Stem Cell Proliferation and Differentiation," and was nearly
done. Linda Trinh was murdered on January 22, 2005.
 AIDS Hospice Gallery
Vung Tau Gallery
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