SURIGAO CITY -- A total of 597 patients from Surigao, Dinagat, and Palawan provinces benefited from the nine-day medical-surgical mission of Nickel Asia Corp. (NAC) this month.
Conducted every year for the mining communities in and around Surigao del Norte, Dinagat Islands, and Rio Tuba in Palawan, NAC's medical-surgical mission marked its 20th this year.
For this year, the February 11-19 mission accomplished 229 major and 339 minor operations on cleft palate and lips, hernia, gall bladder stones, goiter, ovarian cyst, myoma, hemorrhoids, cysts, breast mass, and other lump removals.
One of the patients, Surigao City resident Mila Peralta, 60, had a lump as large as a volleyball under her arm that she had been carrying for the past 30 years.
After a major operation on February 12 that lasted almost six hours, her life changed. Her daughter Teresa, who accompanied her, smiled and cried when her mother had her first meal after the operation, sans the tumor.
Another patient, 42-year-old Reynald Salvador from Narra, Palawan, had a massive growth on his right chest that was estimated to weigh about 50 kg. The lump, diagnosed as Angiomyoma, started growing from Reynald’s chest when he was 15 years old and it was only after 27 years that it was finally removed.
Dr. Bimbo T. Almonte, medical director of the Rio Tuba Nickel Mining (RTN) leg of the mission, said that the bigger challenge was persuading members of the communities to come forward and avail of the free medical-surgical procedures.
“Some residents from far-flung barangays continue to dilly-dally in seeking medical help. They have various concerns ranging from financial and logistical issues. Our goal as a responsible member of these mining communities is to totally eliminate any unease the communities may have of these medical procedures,” Almonte explained.
The NAC missions began 20 years ago in RTN, the NAC subsidiary in Palawan. Eight years ago, the mission extended to Surigao del Norte and Dinagat Islands, where three other NAC subsidiaries are based – Cagdianao Mining, Hinatuan Mining, and Taganito Mining.
Dr. Archie LaMadrid, the head surgeon who has been with the mission from the very beginning, said the 297 surgical procedures completed in Rio Tuba this year alone is a record. Last year, the major and minor procedures done in RTN totaled 182.
“The medical team is proud of the number of accomplished operations. It keeps us going,” LaMadrid said.
Dr. Robinson Baron, the original proponent of the mission, said they are looking forward to coming back next year.
NAC president Martin Antonio G. Zamora noted that "the members of the communities that NAC serves acknowledge the impact of the mission. In the 20 years we have been doing this, eight years in Surigao and Dinagat, many lives have been changed for the better."
"After all, how often do you get the opportunity for a special surgical procedure free of any charges. We take care of the patients. We take care of our communities, that is our commitment,” Zamora said. (PR)
