Medical Missions Foundation

Exploring Manila

On Friday morning, we flew from Tagbilaran for Manila. We made it  to our hotel in Manila early in the afternoon. While the majority of the group chose to go shopping, Ben Grin and I, being the young, adventurous souls that we are, hopped in the back of a jeepney, a long wheel-base jeep used as a bus. When we got on, we had no idea where it was going. Naturally, when we got off, we had no idea

where we were, yet we decided to explore. We knew we were in the slums by the looks of things—the streets were incredibly overcrowded with people and cars, homes and buildings were falling apart, and the air was so thick with exhaust and smog that it was hard to breathe. Such sights reminded me of how fortunate we are and how important it is that we continue helping those in need.

On Saturday, we visited a section of Manila known as Intramuros, where the Spanish ruling classes lived when the Philippines was a Spanish colony. Being in the Philippines for the past week, it was interesting to visit Intramuros, whose architecture and Romanesque cathedrals made it feel very much like a European city.

 

Later that evening, Phyllis Van Horn, Nancy Rhoades, and Sharon Townsend attended services at a church nearby. As they stood up to leave, they turned around and saw a woman and her son, who appeared to be in his late teens. They immediately noticed that the boy’s eyes were severely crossed and began telling him and his mother about the mission that was just completed. After they told the mother that there would be another mission in the Philippines the next year and gave her a card with the foundation’s information on it, she asked how much the surgery would cost. When they told her that it would be free, she began to cry with joy.

 

We left the Philippines proud of the work that we had accomplished and at having been able to touch so many peoples’ lives. Mayor Lim said at Thursday night’s farewell party that we’d always have a special place in the hearts of the people of Tagbilaran. The reverse is also true—they’ll always have a special place in ours.

- Tommy Bailey, MMF Team Philippines

The week winds down...

This morning in the hospital, Dr. Trudi Grin met with the two children from the orphanage and determined that surgery wasn’t necessary and that they could be treated with eyeglasses.

I had the chance to talk with one of Dr. Milton Grin’s patients after his surgery. Segundino Amoncio, a 61 year-old rice farmer from Lombog, a town about 60 kilometers away, could barely see light from his right eye because of the cataract clouding his vision. He even said that he had difficulty working because of his poor vision. Now, a day after his surgery, his vision has already improved dramatically. He says that he’s very grateful and happy now because he can see.

After finishing up at the hospital, about half of us went exploring and shopping in Tagbilaran, while the other half went back to the hotel for a well-deserved rest. It's hard to believe our time here will soon be wrapping up. Time has flown by quickly.

After finishing up at the hospital, about half of us went shopping in Tagbilaran while the other half went back to the hotel to rest. We enjoyed a going-away celebration that night put on by Mayor Lin. In addition to the mayor and his staff, joining us were the nurses and Dr. Oliver Yu from Ramiro Community Hospital. The mayor gave a very thoughtful speech thanking us for our work, in which he stated, “You could have found many reasons to stay home, but yet you came and chose to do what was right, even when it was inconvenient for you. And for that, you will always have a special place in our hearts.” Additionally, he thanked Nora White for her generosity and presented her with a banner, which read, “To a lady who deserves the gratitude of a city.” He also thanked Dr. Trudi Grin and Cora Zamora for their tireless work organizing this mission.

As if his wonderful speech and the gifts and plaques he presented us weren’t enough, the mayor led all of us outside for one last special surprise. He told us to look up in the sky while he counted down, and all of the sudden we heard a tiny thud as the first firework shot into the sky, followed by a big explosion of light and sound, which echoed several times over. We could all agree that our hosts had really outdone themselves in providing us with such a spectacular farewell party.

After a very long day, we all rested to prepare for the trip from Tagbilaran to Manila tomorrow morning. 

Connecting with the Community

Today, the lines at the clinic were enormous. We were glad to be able to help so many people and thankful that we had help from the mayor's wife, Sharleen as well as his staff: Randy Kim Nablo, Mae Angelie Tanudra, Michelle Porticos, Sharleen Amancio, Arlene Karaan, and Desiree Mardonio.

In the afternoon, the volunteers from the clinic went to a local elementary school in Tagbilaran armed with pens, pencils, notebooks, toothbrushes, and toothpaste to give to all the students. "Good morning, VIS-A-TOR," the children would say in unison as we walked into each classroom. While Babette emphasized the importance of dental hygiene, Nora White, dressed in a clown costume, used her toothless doll to show them what would happen if they didn't brush their teeth. After, we handed out the toothbrushes, toothpaste, and school supplies, the children sang, "Thank you, thank you, thank you very much, thank you.

Later in the afternoon, we all visited the Sunshine Home Orphanage. In  addition to shoes, clothes, and notebooks, we brought hamburgers, fries, and pizza for the children to enjoy. As we walked into the orphanage, all the children rushed to the front gate and grabbed our hands, placing them on their foreheads. "They want to bless us," explained a member of the mayor's staff. "It's a sign of respect in the Philippines." 

One of the social workers running the orphanage explained to us that these children were from all over Bohol and had either been abandoned or abused by their parents. Despite such trauma and having so little, they were incredibly vivacious and joyous. They even sang several songs for us, bringing some of the mission volunteers to tears. Among the children, two appeared to have lazy eyes. Dr. Trudi Grin, after taking a look at them, decided to examine them further at the hospital tomorrow morning.

That evening, we enjoyed a lovely dinner compliments of Luther and Dina Ramiro, the owners of Ramiro Community Hospital in Tagbilaran.

 

Making friends...changing lives

Patients are coming from all over Bohol to be seen. They are all so appreciative and friendly. In the hospital this morning, I was taking pictures of patients as they prepared to go into surgery when I came across one girl who was unusually warm and friendly – even by Filipino standards. She spoke English very well and I talked to her until she went to the OR.

AnnaFe Datahan, who was born with strabismus (crossed eyes), is 15 years-old from Candijay, a town of 21 barangays, or villages, on the eastern side of Bohol. After her family learned that there was going to be a medical mission in Tagbilaran, AnnaFe and her family drove 3 hours to get here. After she told me that she likes school and reading short stories, I asked her if she wanted to go to college. She paused and smiled, replying, "Yes…maybe in the United States." Arvin Figueroa, RN also asked her how she was going to feel after the surgery and added, "You can have lots of boyfriends," which made AnnaFe laugh.


While Dr. Trudi Grin and her team were operating on AnnaFe, team members were working to find assistance for John, a 3 year-old who was born with part of his intestines externalized. Currently, only a plastic bag on the outside of his body supports them.  His mother explained that despite her earnest efforts, nothing had been done to help her son because she could not afford the operation.  After meeting with a local social worker, MMF volunteers have made arrangements for John and his mother to travel to the city of Cebu where a pediatric surgeon will assess him and surgery will be scheduled.

In total today, Dr. Milton Grin and Dr. Oliver Yu and their team performed 25 cataract surgeries. Dr. Trudi Grin with the help of Dr. Lizbeth Regnier, a medical student doing his residency at Cebu University, performed 5 surgeries. At the clinic today, 297 patients were seen.

A Team Effort

When we all woke up a 6:30 this morning to prepare for the long day ahead of us, we were a little disappointed to find out that the water wasn't working in our hotel rooms. While we couldn't shower, we did manage to at least brush our teeth by using bottled water. But, as they say here in the Philippines, bahala na, meaning "whatever will be will be."

Despite this minor inconvenience, the first day went well. The volunteers at the clinic saw 215 patients. While RN's Babette Orlich and Irma Labre dispensed medicine, volunteer Ben Grin tested patients blood glucose levels and volunteer Nora White gave toys to all the kids who came into the clinic. Also, Sharon Townsend, a volunteer, logged in all 215 patients. "It was a team effort. All the Filipinos have been very welcoming," remarked Sharon, "How many people have the opportunity to do something like this? It's an honor to be a part of it."

Crucial to this effort has been the mayor and his staff. While the mayor, Dan Neri Lim, was at the clinic talking to all the patients, his staff came to help us even on their days off. The mayor's wife, Dr. Sharleen Lin, also came to volunteer her time. "This is one place where the politicians—like the mayor and his wife—really care about their people," Irma commented.

Meanwhile, at the Ramiro Community Hospital, the Medical Missions team was hard at work during the first day of surgeries. RN's Nancy Rhoades and Phyllis VanHorn and CRNA Cindy Hubbard worked with Dr. Trudi Grin to correct children's strabismus while RN's Mona Warren and Sue Dahn, as well as CRNA Marlene Bailey and nurse tech Missy Creed, helped Dr. Milton Grin remove cataracts from his adult patients. While Dr. John Hubbard oversaw the anesthesia, RN's Arvin Figueroa, Marilyn Dizon, and Cora Zamora were in charge of pre-op and post-op. In total, the team completed 27 surgeries!

After a long day's work, we decided to take it easy tonight, opting to just eat dinner in the hotel. We look forward to another great and productive day tomorrow.

Ready, Set, Prep!

Let the following be a testament to how long and exhausting the journey here was: Ben Grin, hitting the sack at 8 pm and not waking up until 9:30 the next morning, managed to rack up a total of 13.5 hours of z's, barely edging out CRNA Marlene Bailey, who retired to her room at 4 in the afternoon on Saturday and was not seen or heard from until 5 o'clock Sunday morning. 

Rejuvenated and refreshed, we all ate breakfast at 9:30 am and then headed for the hospital to unpack and set up our equipment. Ben and I helped Sharon and Nora sort through the toys and school supplies we brought to give to the children in the clinic and orphanage. The rest of the team concentrated on setting up operating rooms for eye surgeries the next day. Sue Dahn, RN remarked, "The hospital was very clean and the staff was very hospitable and helpful. I'm excited for a good week." 

Meanwhile, Drs. Trudi and Milton Grin worked with Dr. Oliver Yu, the Filipino ophthalmologist hosting our mission, to screen patients to diagnose them in order to determine whether surgery was a viable option. Later that night, Babette Orlich, RN, who helped Dr. Trudi Grin with the screenings, explained to me how gratifying it was to see all the patients lined up to see Trudi. "When they were told that a miracle will happen in their lives by straightening their eyes, they began to cry tears of joy." 

For lunch, we went to a bee farm where we were served all organic foods, including salad with flower petals, honey glazed chicken, and lemon grass water. Afterwards, we went back to continue preparing the rooms and screening patients. Nora White, upon visiting the orphanage, realized that none of the children had any shoes to wear. So she found a mall in Tagbilaran and generously bought shoes for all 31 of the children. 

For dinner tonight, we went to the Bohol Tropics Resort where we celebrated Phyllis Van Horn's birthday. Happy birthday Phyllis! The band was impressive, especially when they played "What a Wonderful World." Their pianist sang just like Louis Armstrong! 

The Long Journey

Blobg and photos by Tommy Bailey, MMF Volunteer

We arrived in Manila late Friday night, rounded up our luggage, and then made our way through customs. When we stepped outside, we immediately noticed the hot and humid weather. By the time we arrived at the hotel, it was already past midnight and we had to be ready to leave by 5:30am the next morning for the airport again, to make our way to our final destination--Tagbilaran, a city of about 90,000 on the southwest coast of the island of Bohol. When we descended from the plane onto the tarmac, a marching band was playing just for us. What a welcome it was!

We made it to the hotel in time to unload our bags in our rooms and eat lunch. After that, about half the group took a bus to the Chocolate Hills in the interior of Bohol, while the other half, understandably jet-lagged from the approximately 18 hours onboard an airplane, decided to stay at the hotel to recover from the long trip.

From Chocolate Hills, we left for Luboc, a small town east of Tagbilaron along the Luboc River. We enjoyed a concert put on by the incredibly talented Luboc Children's Choir, which sang for us several songs in Tagalog (the language of the Philippines) and English.  Believe me when I say that even though they all appeared to be younger than 10, they would put most high school choirs in the U.S. to shame.