In early August 2026, Dr. James Ham (RC Honolulu Sunset) and Murray Visser (RC Windward Oahu) joined a five-person medical team in Papua New Guinea. In nine days near Mt. Hagen they delivered a water tank, filters, paint, Stop-the-Bleed training, prostheses, a Rotary Peace Pole, and triage for about 500 patients.
Dr. James Ham's (RC Honolulu Sunset) team did a medical project in Papua New Guinea (PNG) in early August 2026. The team was working in a country that has 700 tribes with each tribe speaking a different language. Dr. James and Murray Visser (RC Windward Oahu) were the two Rotarians on the team of five people, who worked under difficult conditions to complete the following projects in nine days. The other three volunteers were colleagues and friends of Dr. James. The vast majority of the funding came from RC Honolulu Sunset and some came from RC Windward Oahu.
- We provided a 9,000-liter water tank at the Kelua (medical) Aid Post that is near Mt. Hagen. We coordinated installation of the tank by local workers.
- The team also provided (with training) Sawyer bucket water filters for individual usage.
- We provided paint so that the Aid Post could be repainted on the outside.
- We provided Stop-the-Bleed tourniquets and taught local personnel how to use the tourniquets.
- We also provided prostheses (with training) for people who had lost their hands due to accidents or to acts of violence.
- We planted a 2nd Rotary Peace Pole; we had planted the very first Rotary Peace Pole in all of PNG in 2024.
- The team managed to check in a large crowd of patients into the Aid Post, so that our medical personnel could provide triage. The estimated size of patients triaged was around 500.
Murray Visser, International Service Chair (28 Aug 2026)
Photos
View the full photo album: Murray Vissar Papua New Guinea 2026-08
