Friday, May 09, 2008 RP health delegates to Myanmar named
THE Department of Health (DOH) identified the members of the medical team bound for Myanmar to help assist the victims of cyclone which devastated the country over the weekend.
In a letter from the DOH-Health Emergency Management Services (HEMS) office, the health department said the formation of the 15-man team is in response to the order of Malacañang to send medical experts.
Members of the team, led by HEMS’ Dr. Arnel Rivera, are Dr. Rodrigo Hao of the Las Piñas General Hospital, Dr. Alfonso Nuñez of the East Avenue Medical Center, Dr. Alexis Dimapilis of the San Lazaro Hospital, Dr. Jose Evan Pagunsan and Dr. Maela Palisoc of the National Children’s Hospital, Dr. David Mendoza of the Center for Health Development, and Dr. Nimrod Villanueva of the Center for Health Development (Region 4-A).
Also are Harold Mercado of the Center for Health Development (Region 4-A), William Sabater of the Center for Health Development (Region 5), Celia Pangan of the National Children’s Hospital, Willy Veloria of the Philippine Orthopedic Center, Elmer Collong of the Philippine Heart Center, and Wilfredo Reyes and Remedios Guerrero of the DOH–Mental Health Program.
According to HEMS, members of the team are all trained to do multi-tasking jobs as well as the necessary administrative works.
Specific tasks of the team include medical and surgical treatment, psychosocial processing and debriefing, environmental and water sanitation, establishment of disease surveillance and monitoring and health education and advocacy.
The letter added that the Department of Foreign Affairs is already coordinating with the Myanmar Embassy regarding the arrangement for the Philippine medical team.
On Saturday, cyclone Nargis slammed into the military-governed South East Asian nation killing over 22,000 persons and almost 40,000 declared to be missing.
About 100 Myanmar priests, nuns and lay people who are in the Philippines offered prayers for the immediate recovery of the people and their country after it was hit by a powerful cyclone over the weekend.
“We are praying earnestly for our mother land since our country was hit by the cyclone last Saturday,” said Sr. Euphrasia Sandar Aye of the Religious of the
Good Shepherded (RGS) congregation.
Aye is in the country for a three-month course on Clinical Pastoral Education at the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Hospital in Manila.
Ignacious Moe Kalayar of RGS, another student who is taking up the same course, is likewise worried on the situation of their loved ones as they have not received any news from them.
She said what they can offer right now to their families and their fellow countrymen are prayers and their faith in God.
“Since we are far from our motherland, our only hope is prayer and faith in God,” said Kalayar, who has been in the country for more than a year.
Both students are from Yangon, which is the capital of Myanmar, formerly Burma. The Mother House of the RGS congregation is based in Yangon.
Most of the Myanmar nationals in the country are either studying in different educational institutions or employed in several private companies. (FP/JMR/Sunnex)
