CATARMAN, Northern Samar– Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) also known as Doctors Without Borders, an international medical humanitarian organization reached out to selected barangays of Northern Samar to extend medical assistance to residents affected by flooding caused by shearline.
Dr. Evangeline Cua, MSF volunteer and project coordinator, said they were able to provide medical consultations and medicines, hygiene kits, jerry cans and cleaning supplies to some 1,000 residents of Catarman and Lope de Vega covering 24 barangays.
The team from MSF includes four doctors, two nurses, two logisticians, and a mental health specialist, joined by a doctor from Northern Samar Provincial Hospital and the municipal health officers of Lope de Vega and Catarman.
The team trekked mountains and crossed rivers going to barangays Liberty, Bocsol, and Salvacion of Catarman and other villages in Lope de Vega to provide relief to communities in distress.
On behalf of the recipients, the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Officers of Catarman and Lope de Vega expressed gratitude for the goods distributed as well as the medical services provided, such as consultations and psychological first aid, helping the affected residents deal with the trauma.
“Doctors Without Borders seek to alleviate human suffering, protect life, and promote health and well-being. We also provide mental health care to patients and providers as well. Thus, we initiate a psychological first-aid orientation for frontliners attended by the Bureau of Fire Protection, Catarman DRRM personnel, and DRRM coordinators of different schools,” Cua said.
According to Cua, MSF is an international, independent, medical humanitarian organization founded in 1971 that delivers medical care to people affected by armed conflict, natural disasters, epidemics, and pandemics, among others.
It is a global movement composed of tens of thousands of health professionals, and logistic and administrative staff. It runs projects in more than 70 countries, including the Philippines.
“In 1999, MSF received the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of its pioneering humanitarian work on several continents, Cua said.
(ADiaz/PIA Northern Samar)
