#HAWMC Day 3: Good Samaritan

#HAWMC Day 3: Good Samaritan

Going through the Stations of the Cross, we relive Christ's passion and crucifixion:

• We hear about how Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus carry the cross despite his hesitation.  
• We remember how Veronica gently wiped away the blood and sweat with the towel she held despite the threats, jeers and derisions of the crowd.  
• We reflect on how the women of Jerusalem wept for Jesus. 

Somehow, one might think that these events occurred 2,000 years ago.  Truly, acts of kindness like these still happen today.  Big ways and small ways, random acts of kindness reflect the goodness of humankind.

Patients care for doctors too.

I was a senior OBGYN resident when I had one of my first patient mortalities - a newly married pregnant patient who was warmly anticipating their first child.  She had heart disease and a severe form of pneumonia that required intensive care.  I could never forget that Sunday afternoon when we did everything we could to save the mother, and still she died.  I took it hard. Although I know doctors are not supposed to show emotions, I could not help the tears from quietly flowing.  It was the patient's sister who tapped me on the shoulder and even hugged me tight to reassure me that I did everything I could for my patient.  I should have been the one to comfort them in their loss, but that show of understanding helped me to accept that I could only do so much.  Doctors can receive from their patients too.

Other patients care for total strangers.

We had a young patient who lost a bit of blood during pregnancy and delivery.  Her family members were nowhere to be found.  The patient needed to be intubated to help her to breathe. An ambu-bag is a rubber cylinder breathing machine connected to an plastic tube that goes down to the patient's lungs to help the patient breathe.  The problem was that someone had to pump the ambu-bag, otherwise the patient won't be able to breathe and die.  Unfortunately for this patient, the family members deserted her, and it was the watcher of the patient occupying the nearby bed who volunteered to ambu-bag. After that, several watchers took turns manually pumping just so this total stranger might live. Amazing modern-day Samaritans!

Those who are poor give from the little that they have.
We had a patient who had recently given birth and the family had utterly nothing.  Her husband was getting desperate to pay the hospital bill so that he could bring his family home.  We had appealed to the medical social service and they had given the family all the support they could give and yet they were left with a bill that they could not pay.  Short of stealing, the husband pleaded that he would do anything.  So we went around the hospital begging for lose change, thinking that each peso will eventually add up to the needed amount.  I had given my last money at that time.  Eyes round with surprise, fellow patients were more than willing to part with their pesos, saying they know what it is like to have nothing.  Nurses were giving voluntarily, and we came up with the exact amount for the hospital bill and spare change to pay for fare to Cavite for two persons.  Just because they were poor did not mean they had nothing to give.  This was surely a humbling experience for me, and I realize that I would gladly beg for these less fortunate.

Heroes in time of crisis.

Seeing the television pictures of how Typhoon Haiyan struck the Visayas, there was an outpouring of kindness and generosity from all sectors in society and from the global community.  As we prepare for another disaster in the form of Typhoon Maysak,  we pray that everyone be safe and secure.  That everyone will keep helping one another.