“Ang daming pasyente!”

Fred Cabling Jr. is a dear friend I met some 48 years ago.

Together, we were the only two in our batch of Filipino scholars of the Japanese Ministry of Education sent to Osaka, Japan, in October, 1976.

Fred has been to Cebu several times but this week, he was here as a volunteer of a medical mission from Michigan where he resides.

Together with local volunteer doctors, the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce, other partners, the Michigan Medical Mission offered free medical services/medicines to Metro Cebu residents, many from Mandaue City.

“Daming pasyente,” Fred messaged from the Mandaue Sports Center last Monday, their first day of medical mission. He said he was assisting an internal medicine doctor with the walk-in patients for that day.

Then, Fred started to send photos of several patients, a number with lumps (small or large ones) in their hands, at the back of their necks.

There were many cases of patients with such lumps or swelling. However, many ignored these swellings which started smaller and never consulted any doctor earlier about these.

One had a huge swelling at the right side of his neck that reached up to his lower right cheek. This patient had noticed the swelling in 1998 but ignored it. It was not cancerous, thankfully, but at this stage, it was already hard to operate, Fred reported.

Then Fred shared: “There are high cases of Pterygium.”

Huh, come again? I asked. This was my first time to learn about this condition.

“Excessive exposure to the ultraviolet radiation in sunlight is thought to be the cause. Dusty or sandy environments --long-term exposure in dry and windy locations is thought to contribute to the development of the condition. Age --risk increases with age,” Fred explained.

Wanting to know more and understand this, from Google search, this additional information about Pterygium:

“It is a fleshy overgrowth of the conjunctiva, which is the thin clear membrane on the surface of the eye. In most cases, a pterygium grows from the inner corner of the eye (nearest the nose).

“Grows on your eye’s conjunctiva, the clear covering over the white part of the eye.

“It can remain small or grow large enough to cover part of the cornea. When this happens, it can affect your vision.”

Why did an observable significant number of walk-in Cebuano patients have this condition? Perhaps our health department can investigate and explain this?

Fred continued to share: “Many patients mostly with high blood pressure and diabetes, because of the food they eat --mostly salty or sweet.”

“Sana people are also given information and education about nutrition so that they will not be hypertensive and diabetic,” Fred suggested.

He estimated that there were about 2,000 walk-in patients serviced by the Michigan Medical Mission team and their local partners.

“One patient told us he walked 10 kilometers just to avail of the free medical mission at the Mandaue Sports Center. He had tuberculosis, Fred sadly narrated.

Someone in the Medical Mission kindly shared ?5,000 and advised this patient to take a ride home so he would not get tired further.

February 1, on the last day of their medical mission, Fred again shared: “Dami pa ring pasyente!”

That is an apt and pathetic observation about our people and their lack of access to health personnel/services.

There are just not enough medical personnel/facilities/medicines/and services available to meet the health needs of our needy Filipinos.

And all the past and present executive, legislative officials, including national and local officials remain preoccupied with charter change and their own agenda!

Ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all at all ages --Goal 3 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals-- has yet to be seriously pursued and prioritized in our country and the rest of the world!