"Hospital for the Poor"

By Mike Gomez

Res ipsa loquitor could very well be the motto of the newest hospital in Metro Manila that goes simply by the name "Hospital for the Poor." The men and women behind this hospital, however, are not wont to live by simple mottoes, but by guiding principles from a higher authority as they live their faith through this noteworthy effort.

    Nestled along the Coastal Road in San Dionisio, Parañaque, the Hospital for the Poor is the tangible embodiment of the dreams and struggles of the 12-year-old Foundation of Our Lady of Peace Mission-whose core group consists of Filipino physicians who have conducted countless medical mission and set up livelihood programs in various parts of the Philippines, engaged in feeding malnourished children in seven sites, and provided assistance to Aeta communities.

    For a number of years, the foundation operated a free clinic and outpatient service for the surrounding community at its single-story building in San Dionisio. It is within the same compound that they erected the hospital building to launch the ambitious project of an all-charity general hospital to provide a wide spectrum of tertiary medical services for Filipinos who would normally be unable to afford such care.

Reinventing the Wheel?

    What, one would ask, is so unique about the concept of a health care facility for the poor? Hasn't the state been engaged in such work? To top it all, the national government, through its Philippine Health Insurance Program is currently exploring new means of making quality health care accessible to more people with its current Medicare Para sa Masa initiative.

    The Hospital for the Poor aims to operate in a simple, straightforward way: it shall provide the best possible service it is capable of-absolutely free of charge-to any economically disadvantaged person seeking care. This means all its charity patients will receive only one kind of care, which is the best available.

    This approach may seem uncomplicated, but it is fraught with difficulties compared with other hospitals serving the indigent population. Although located in Parañaque, the hospital is not meant to cater to the residents of the municipality, despite an offer by the mayor to incorporate it in his local health program. At the same time, the management is presently not keen on the concept of socialized financing. It is, very explicitly a "Hospital for the Poor."

    Operating a hospital of any kind requires funds in staggering amounts; much more when it is a 100-bed facility with a fully-equipped surgical theater, delivery rooms, intensive care unit, neonatal ICU, emergency room, and outpatient department. Fortunately, various funding sources have pledged support for the Hospital for the Poor's operations for the first few years. There was also no serious shortage of well-meaning organizations willing to help turn a Catholic nun's dream into a living reality.

Outpouring of Grace

    Raising funds for constructing such a facility would seem daunting to anyone, unless the person happened to be Sister Eva Fidela Dimaano, the St. Paul nun who is an accomplished surgeon and regarded by many as the "Mother Teresa of the Philippines" (MEDICAL OBSERVER, October 1997). As president and founder of the Foundation and the moving spirit behind the Hospital for the Poor, Sister Eva succeeded in raising the necessary funding for construction and equipment from various sources.

    Topping the list of benefactors is the AY (Alfonso Yuchengco) Foundation, which put up PhP50 million of the PhP170 million construction cost. The main building has been named the Doña Maria H.T. Yuchengco Charity Ward in honor of Ambassador Alfonso Yuchengco's late mother. Another PhP30 million came from the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation through the President's Social Fund. PAGCOR also committed another PhP500,000 every month for the next 28 months to support hospital operations while the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office is giving PhP1 million monthly until 2004.

    The Presidential Management Staff gave a PhP20 million grant for the purchase of medical equipment. Through the efforts of Sister Eva and foundation chair Father James B. Reuter, foreign groups like the Philippine Medical Mission of St. Charles Borromeo Parish of Arlington, Crosslink International, St. Vincent de Paul Society of Virginia, and Our Lady of Peace Mission of Los Angeles, California also threw in their support.

    The site was offered for free by the Public Estates Authority. Adjacent to the toll plaza of the Coastal Road, it does have its disadvantages. The compound is accessible only via the north lane of the Coastal Road, meaning vehicles from Metro Manila need to traverse the entire length of the Coastal Road, make a U-turn, and travel the entire distance back. Another disadvantage is its proximity to the airport, which means jetliners taking off or landing hover less than two hundred feet directly above the building causing indescribable noise.

    The main hospital is a four-story building built with a series of wide ramps on the northern end allowing beds to be rolled up and down between floors instead of being moved to the large elevator at the middle of the building. Most of its 100 beds are distributed in simple but pristine wards that feature an intercom telephone unit above every bed.

    The top floor of the hospital building is split-level with a sprawling roof deck adjacent to a beautiful chapel. In all, the facility does not at all seem to be constructed for non-paying patients. This after all is the way Sister Eva wanted it to be.

Volunteers Wanted

    With a beautiful new building equipped with the usual niceties of a general hospital, plus a few more, one might be led to believe that it would be smooth sailing from here on. But a hospital is little more than a hotel if it is not staffed with qualified and dedicated health professionals. This is the immediate concern of Sister Eva and the hospital's assistant medical director, Dr. Rhoel C. Salvador.

    The foundation has operated successfully for years with its core group of volunteers linking up with other volunteer health workers for itinerant missions in different parts of the country. Running a full-fledged general hospital, however, requires a greater manpower complement with greater commitment than the foundation has ever enjoyed.

    This is not usually a problem for most hospitals since there are enough doctors who are eager to find places to practice their professions. This is a problem, though, when the hospital abides by principles of philanthropy and volunteerism even among the doctors who are expected to provide exceptional service to the poor.

    It is a bold-and definitely worthy-effort, but Dr. Salvador is presently recruiting doctors who are willing to regularly devote some of their time and render free service. Dr. Willy Ong, who heads the medical department, noted that most of the volunteer physicians hail from the Manila Doctors Hospital. Viewing the problem realistically, Dr. Ong considered offering allowances or stipends to volunteer doctors, but he held on to his faith that there would be enough physicians like himself who would be happy to serve the poor without expecting any remuneration for their work.

Guts and Glory

    The present infrastructure consists of the main hospital building connected by bridgeways to an adjacent building housing the emergency room, outpatient department, surgical theater, and delivery rooms and the auxiliary building that was the original home of the foundation. This early though, long-range plans are being considered for expansion of the present complex to include a pay-hospital that could subsidize the charity operations.

    The present facilities may be insufficient to run accredited residency training programs, but things are beginning to happen. Dr. Salvador looks forward to receiving an ambulance for the emergency room. What started as a nursery will actually function as the neonatal intensive care unit since Sister Eva is committed to running the facility as a baby-friendly hospital, which, by protocol should practice rooming-in and have no nursery.

Field of Dreams

    The Hospital for the Poor was formally inaugurated and blessed last March by a contingent of Catholic clerics headed by Archbishop Antonio Franco, Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines. Health Secretary Manuel M. Dayrit assisted hospital administrator Sister Mary Philip Galeno in cutting the ceremonial ribbon.

    Dr. Dayrit viewed the inauguration of the Hospital for the Poor as the "coming together" of the faith, dreams, ideals, vision, and sacrifice of the many people who made such an endeavor possible. Mindful of the unmet needs of countless Filipinos hoping to find a place where they can receive health care that is often beyond their economic means, Dr. Dayrit quoted from the Kevin Costner film in a scene where a voice tells the character: "If you build it, they will come."

    Now that the hospital is built, and the doctors are gearing up to extend their services, the patients will surely come.