A far-flung community finally gets its own health clinic

After years of struggle, the village of Kasapa II in La Paz, Agusan del Sur, now has its own clinic where residents can seek medical care without delay and without having to travel to other destinations.

Local midwife Mariel Havana was particularly concerned about the lack of access to quality health-care services that the villagers — many of them displaced by armed conflict — had suffered over the years. Those who needed to see a doctor would have to take an hour-long motorcycle ride through mucky roads to the nearest health center, located 40 kilometres away in the center of La Paz municipality.

Recognizing the need, the International Committee of the Red Cross built a health station in the village that was officially handed over in October 2022.

"When the ICRC came here, I immediately requested for a barangay (village) health station because it was a basic necessity for us," Havana said.

The absence of a nearby health-care facility has had dire consequences on the community members, said Dormito Manlangit, the village chief. "One time, a pregnant woman — who was bleeding profusely was taken to the hospital in La Paz on a motorcycle. Unfortunately, she died before reaching the facility," he recalled.

Traveling to La Paz can be expensive too, costing as much as P1,500 from Kasapa II. "Those who were ill would usually wait and self-medicate using herbal medicines, because a trip to the hospital was both difficult and expensive. Often, by the time they arrived at the hospital in La Paz, their condition had worsened," Manlangit added.

Villagers of Kasapa II can now receive medical services such as immunization, pre- and postnatal care, and consultations at the new three-room health facility, where medicines and medical kits are also stored. The 15 health-care workers in the village are able to serve the 1,500 residents more efficiently. "Those who are sick will no longer have to worry or wait because the station will always have health workers," Havana said.

Health worker Raya Cogit recalled that before the health station opened, patients used to visit her house for consultations, thus exposing her six-year-old son to the risk of various diseases. Cogit can now meet her patients at the health-care facility. "Our patients will also feel more comfortable now when we attend to their medical needs," she said.

Pregnant with her second child, Cogit is at peace knowing that there is a clinic nearby where she can safely deliver her baby in December.

"I would definitely prefer giving birth in a health facility. It is risky to deliver my baby at home without proper medical equipment, especially if there are any complications during delivery. I am relieved that the midwife can now assist me in giving birth at the health facility directly," she said.

Opening the barangay health station was just one step in improving health-care services in Kasapa II. The Philippine Red Cross, the ICRC's primary humanitarian partner, conducted a first aid and basic life support training program for Cogit, Havana and other health-care workers in the village. These training sessions helped the workers become better equipped to respond to health emergencies.

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Melrick Lucero is an International Committee of the Red Cross communication field officer based in Butuan City, Agusan del Norte.