Curing sick children is a complex business in Cambodia

Telegraph.co.uk

by Ben Bland
Posted By: The Asia File
Mar 15, 2009

At the end of last year, I spent some time shadowing Beat Richner, the controversial Swiss doctor who has transformed children's healthcare in Cambodia while managing to alienate almost the entire NGO/international health community.

Playing cello concerts to raise money, he has funded and built five international-standard paediatric hospitals in Cambodia, that provide treatment free-of-charge. But his idiosyncratic approach has made him many enemies in the fractious world of international health (NGOs and inter-governmental organisations protect their patches just as aggressively as businesses).

You can read my full profile of Richner here.

He is a fascinating individual, who has demonstrated that one committed man can do more than many top-heavy NGOs. But his never-ending struggle to raise the $25m a year that his hpa foundation needs to survive shows there are limits to what one maverick humanitarian can do alone.

If you are in Siem Reap, I would strongly recommend attending one of his concerts and making up your own mind about him. If you are not entertained by his Bach cello suites, you can at least enjoy his fiery polemics.