Nurse Applied Expert Care To Bali Bomb Victims

Illawarra Mercury

Monday June 14, 2004

By COURTNEY TRENWITH

WHEN Christine Min was in primary school, she helped sick kids in the playground but never expected she would one day be helping victims of a terrorist attack.

When a car bomb exploded outside the Sari nightclub in Bali on Saturday, October 13, 2002, Ms Min had been holidaying in nearby Denpasar with her youngest son.

Ms Min, who married an Indonesian and speaks the language, was shocked at the attack, which killed nearly 200 people, including 88 Australians, and injured hundreds more. The Wollongong Hospital clinical manager rushed to Sanglah Hospital in Denpasar to offer her expertise as soon as she heard about the blasts.

Ms Min will receive a Medal of the Order of Australia today for spending 22 consecutive hours supporting more than 50 injured people.

The award comes after an investigation by the Federal Government into why Ms Min was overlooked in last year's Bali honours list.

Ms Min said working in Sanglah Hospital was difficult.

``It was chaotic at first," she said.

``Initially it was hard because you couldn't do much because you had to get permission (from Indonesian doctors before you could help)."

Ms Min said most of the patients had received initial treatment by the time she got to the hospital and the Australian Army was trying to fly Australian patients home.

She mainly comforted the patients. Some had missing limbs and most had severe burns.

``The burns were very different burns, they were more dry because of the effect of the explosion," Ms Min said.

``I talked (to the patients) because there were some people on their own. I did some counselling and reassured them the plane was coming, it wouldn't be long and they would go home to Australia."

Ms Min said she ran on adrenaline.

``Being an emergency nurse, you ... don't stop to think of anything, all you think of is putting the patients first.

``Retrospectively, you think, `I wish I could have done more for more people', but at the time you just give what you can to people, a little bit to each person, and you don't stop and think about yourself."

Ms Min visited Bali for the first time since the attack last month and said she was glad tourists were returning to the island.