A showcase of Pinoy heroism in the hot zone

Documentaries are essentially narratives, whose point of view could be one or many. They present slices of life with objectivity to primarily appeal to the viewer’s intellect more than the latter’s emotion.

Heroes in the Hot Zone was a recent TV special program that took the documentary format to capture the experience of medical workers, represented by select doctors as informants, in dealing with the novel coronavirus or COVID-19.

Broadcast on ABS-CBN last Sunday and premiered thereafter on YouTube, the ABS-CBN DocuCentral-produced show was told by Raphael Bosano as participant with the cameras recording images of what the public health crisis looks like. The hospitals have become the battlefield of medical frontliners as among today’s modern-day heroes.
Raphael’s narration identified the premise of the docu with pictures of people buying their essentials, some empty grocery store shelves, commuters leaving the city, vehicles lining up and uniformed men stationed at a community quarantine checkpoint area. The need to lockdown areas, particularly Luzon, was established.

The soundbites of President Rodrigo Duterte, saying, “The crisis is very, very clear. COVID-19 is spreading all throughout the country. Community quarantine is hereby imposed. It’s only the medical people who can help us,” echoed as background.

This segued to the part on how the lockdown, the government’s response to contain the contagion of the virus, was done in the ground, showing empty thoroughfares and streets and people like the police reminding young ones about the curfew. It put across the message that frontliners and the government need the cooperation of everyone to stay at home in flattening the curve and defeating the invisible enemy.

Dr. Vincent Moderes showed the nitty-gritty and the strict protocols medical frontliners do to protect themselves before entering the hot zone. Viewers got acquainted with images of disinfectants, masks, personal protective equipment and gloves as well as rooms with patients and medical equipment, and tents. This began to give viewers a survey of the seriousness of the landscape. It also captured the dedication of medical frontliners to give patients a fighting chance.

Along this line to serve people is the possibility of doctors getting infected by the virus. Stories of a fallen hero and survival came to the fore. This spoke about the frontliners’ heroism, their vulnerability (to break down and to get burned out) and their resilience in performing the duty to save lives. Doctors Relito Saquilayan, Tom-Louie Acosta and Lerma Iglesia shared gripping, inspiring and touching accounts.

“Laging nasa hukay yung isang paa namin every time na papasok kami, pero na-o-overcome yung fear na yun ng desire namin na matulungan yung mga pasyente,” said Dr. Lerma.

“There is no best time to die. But this is the best time to help your country,” said Dr. Vincent.

The documentary also provides viewers vital information about the human transmission of the virus (the host can infect three to four people), tell-tale signs of infection and the vulnerable group, and the importance of social distancing.

The ABS-CBN special program also tackled the Extended Enhanced Community Quarantine and the “new normal.” People will still follow social distancing and curfew, and consider online delivery and work from home. Producers and presenters of news and entertainment will tap technologies like Zoom and social media in their respective work. Schools will migrate from residential to open and distance learning or do blended learning.

More importantly, the documentary narrated the kind of kabayanihan (heroism) and bayanihan (a community working together) the men and women of medical and health industry do every day.

(Heroes in the Hot Zone is now available on iWant and YouTube.)