Divine Providence

If there's really a place on earth where i could say that i witness divine providence happening everyday, it's the hospital where i currently work...Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital. A tertiary government hospital that's supposed to be just a 400-bed capacity institution. Yet, being the catch basin of all medical and surgical cases from all over Negros Occidental, its alleys can accomodate even twice its expected capacity.

People from all walks of life especially the marginalized flock in our institution. Most of them were sent by district hospitals that couldnt handle their complicated cases (yep! a gastroenteritis with SOME dehydration is quite complicated isnt it?) What's worse however is that these people expect that everything's for free in our institution (better ask the government why things here arent for free). Thus, most of them come with nothing in their wallets, just an empty stomach and the sickness that they have.

As the "welcoming" doctor at the emergency room, i witnessed how hard it is not to have anything with you but sickness. Diagnosing and treating the sick is quite hard. What's harder however is to have nothing in your hand but the "idea" alone on how to treat him/her. When the patient have nothing but sickness, the orders that you make remain in the confines of the chart. Not even the Social Welfare could help much. A little discount in the laboratories is well, acceptable enough. The medications however that are vital in one's survival are so scarce. Much more if we are gifted with the pharmacy that has nothing but intravenous solutions and oral medications! Treating the sick here is like going to war with no arms. It's like everyday, we all have to depend on the miracles that might come down from heaven.

Amazing however how our patients could go home well and improved. Some were provided with intravenous fluids alone and a cold hospital bed yet they become well the next day. Our iv fluids might have some healing powers. Or maybe our beds were contaminated enough with bacteria that they are now capable of producing antibiotics that treats the patient lying on it through skin contact.

Seriously, what's heart warming is that it is in this institution where i witness the goodness of man. This is where divine providence is tangible. A fellow patient for example who's gifted with a little more finances extending help to the patient beside him/her. Or a nurse or a doctor getting something from his/her wallet buying the patient's medication. This is how most of our patients survive sickness. Those who go home improved and have spent nothing are the most blessed. I just hope that they felt how God moved through the people around them and made them well.

That is why no matter how toxic i am or no matter how burnt-out i become, seeing how people help each other is enough to give me the energy to move on and to keep on doing what i have started. I am one of the instruments that God is using in order to let other people feel, no matter how poor or sick they are, how special they are in His heart. I am one of the channels of His divine providence to the sick and less fortunate. I may be overworked, underpaid and restless, but knowing how big the role is that i'm playing in the survival of one patient and his/her family, all of these sacrifices are nothing compared to the fulfillment that i feel. Dont you think it's also divine providence?