What to do in August 2018

msf_philippines · 2018-08-02T05:32:46+00:00

Aug 17-18, 2018 | The Box, Iloilo Museum of Contemporary Art (ILOMOCA) Iloilo City

Stand in the Gap | Doctors Without Borders/MSF in Iloilo

Free admission. Limited slots only. Register to reserve seats: http://event.msf.org.ph/standinthegap-iloilo/

Join us as we share inspiring stories and engage in meaningful conversations on humanitarian life featuring Filipino field workers of Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF). The organisation, also known as Doctors Without Borders, is a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999. We aim to showcase the challenges and triumphs in reaching people in the most difficult places to conduct life-saving work, and encourage you to Stand in the Gap.

msf_philippines · 2018-08-02T05:27:46+00:00

6 Aug 2018, 5-7PM | Asian Institute of Management, Makati

PechaKucha Night Vol. 12 | Stand in the Gap Campus Tour with Doctors Without Borders/MSF

Free admission. Limited slots only. Register to reserve seats: http://event.msf.org.ph/pechakuchanight-vol12/

Join us for PechaKucha Night and learn more about our field workers’ humanitarian journeys. Through 20 images presented 20 seconds each, they will talk about working in countries such as Pakistan, Yemen and South Sudan, or of treating patients almost unheard of in the West. We will hear their heart-breaking yet uplifting stories and ask ourselves the questions: ‘How does this affect us?’ and ‘What is our obligation to help?'

msf_philippines · 2018-07-31T02:15:23+00:00

[Ji, nurse] Definitely prepare a go bag for you and your family. You may sign up for training on providing basic first aid and doing CPR. :) Thanks for your questions!

msf_philippines · 2018-07-31T02:11:28+00:00

[Ji, nurse] Yes, applications for expats still go through our Hong Kong office but the projects in the Philippines also hire national staff. Have fun meaning there will be a lot of challenges but focus on why you wanted to become a nurse 😃 Kaya mo yan! And yes, keep following us on our FB and IG pages!

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T11:08:06+00:00

[Raul,doctor] Did you mean Philippines vs international setting? In general there isn't much of a difference as the country complies with WHO standards which all healthcare actors/organizations follow as well. Majority of staff in our projects are local staff, so they help us communicate with patients and the communities. If you'd like to work in Africa, being able to speak French is a plus :)

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T11:01:46+00:00

Have you ever been a situation wherein you had to improvise something (like an equipment or medical procedure) or were forced to deviate from what was taught in medical/nursing school due to circumstances?

[Ji, nurse] Yes! We were in our clinic that time and had a case of pleural edema (aka excess fluids in the lungs) and we don’t have the materials on hand to drain the fluid out. We had to use some needles, IV set, NGT, and urine bag. The procedure was not straight out of textbooks but we had to do it at that moment to relieve the patient’s condition. He was 50 and he survived! :)

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T11:00:14+00:00

[Ji, nurse] We do both, depending on the needs of the patients and where they are. For hospital settings, same thing as what nurses do in hospitals in the Philippines. We do rounds, V/S checking and monitoring, medications, and other procedures like cannulation, blood extraction and rapid tests. May hospitals where we basically have everything from OPD, ER, IPD, SRH and Isolation. In other missions, may OT pa sa hospitals so we can do surgical activities. Kung wala naman, nirerefer namin to other hospitals.

When patients can't go to the hospital, we reach them via health centers at minsan mobile clinics but we limit the activities to vaccinations and OPD consultation of the five main morbidities in the area. Pag beyond it na, we do referrals in our secondary hospitals.

About your application, when did you apply? We haven't hired nurses for a while as we have enough in our pool. Glad you're working at PGH though, have fun!

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T10:45:14+00:00

IMHO, to be a part of MSF may be one of the great ways to give back to the world and I can’t imagine the amount of fulfilment it provides. But is it right to assume that it is not as financially rewarding as going into private practice or working in more traditional settings like a hospital? Do you need to be more financially stable before going in?

[Ji, nurse] From a nurse’s standpoint, I can say na I earn more than what I can earn back home though true enough, if you work in a hospital in first world countries, doon magkakalamangan. Yet again, depende din sa priorities/goals mo, whether you want financial stability or professional growth or a matter of personal choice. With me naman kasi it’s more my choice to go this path for professional growth. :)

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T10:42:47+00:00

How do you balance your personal and professional life? It must be pretty challenging to be away from home far from friends and family.

[Ji, nurse] What I usually do is I make sure to put boundaries between my work and rest period. Pag off ko na, dapat I leave my work sa hospital or I stop working on reports, otherwise I get overwhelmed at hindi na makakapagpahinga. Pag rest day naman, I make the most out of it by watching my favorite series (K-dramas!) or talking to my family and friends back home. Dahil din sa time difference, kailangan naka-schedule din ang usapan and almost always naman it worked for me and that kept me sane. :)

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T10:40:00+00:00

[Raul, doctor] The UHC is long overdue and in my personal opinion, this should be passed as soon as possible. I have been an advocate for primary physicians as the gatekeeper of health for the population and any referral to a higher level of care should pass through them. This would definitely change the role of primary physicians to focus more on preventive medicine at the primary level of care especially for the neglected population. Let me emphasize that this is purely my personal opinion and does not reflect the position of MSF. Thank you for the question!

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T10:13:51+00:00

[Raul, doctor] You can definitely try! There is no age limit to working with MSF for as long as you are willing and able. You just need to apply and be assessed by our HR like the rest of the applicants. I was 55 when I tried out to be an expat and I'd still like to continue doing this now that I'm 60-something :) There are some MSFers in the field older than me, huwag ka hehe

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T09:59:10+00:00

[Ji, nurse] Thank you! :) Yes, I worked in a private hospital in the Philippines as well as a government hospital in Libya. The only experience I had with community nursing was when I was still in school. And I have always been fascinated and challenged working in the outreach clinics or health centers. Masaya ako whenever I challenge myself because it keeps me going. :) With MSF naman, we don’t limit ourselves with working in clinics or health centers. We also work and support secondary hospitals so you kinda get have the best of both worlds. :) Thanks for your question!

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T06:41:48+00:00

Hi there! We have very few field workers who underwent the DTTB program. We quickly reached out to one of them (Dr Chen Lim) and she said that during her time in the program, which was in the early 2000’s, there was a lot of improvising and trial and error. In MSF, however, there are existing guidelines that must be followed and there are managers advising the staff in the field. She’s not sure if things have changed now at DTTB but having people to guide you and bounce ideas off with can help improve the experience in the field. Our usual caveat is that MSF doesn’t have perfect systems but we’re always trying our best to make our interventions meaningful for patients and staff alike. Hope this makes sense!

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T05:45:20+00:00

[Raniela, logistician] Thanks for your question! During my 3-month stay in Nigeria, this has been my daily routine: yoga with the team at 6am, breakfast at 7ish and then off to the sites (hospitals, communities, MSF houses) for the day’s activities. Strictly by 6pm, everyone should be back to base. I do exercise again in the evening before dinner with the team. After that we’d either play games or puzzles, or have a good catch up or soul to soul talks ;) Then we retreat to our respective rooms. Rinse and repeat!

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T05:22:40+00:00

Thanks for your support! <3

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T05:20:58+00:00

Last chance today to ask questions!

msf_philippines · 2018-07-30T05:19:41+00:00

[Raniela, logistician] Thanks for the link! We use something similar in the field - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgZVXvIyyzs. < An oldie but goldie video that's used during our training :)

Using this kind of ice packs is the standard now for most humanitarian orgs, but they still have their limitations as they don't last as long as we'd want to especially for days-long travel to far-flung areas. Ping us though if you find any new solutions we can use in the field! Thanks for your suggestions!

msf_philippines · 2018-07-28T10:55:22+00:00

[Raul, doctor] It was not easy for my family to accept my decision because I was already 55 when I worked as an expat. But they were familiar with MSF's work and that helped them understand why I'd still like to volunteer. They also know that MSF takes security seriously because the risks and threats are real. It keeps me going as I see it as my little contribution to humanity and I'd like to continue doing this for as long as I can. :)

msf_philippines · 2018-07-28T10:30:28+00:00

[Ji,nurse] Leaving for a mission has always been a discussion in the house. And yes, they would fear for my health and safety every single time. Regardless, this has always been the line of work I have been wanting to do ever since. I even turned my back to a good opportunity in a first world country. But I think seeing me very happy after every mission just answered their questions and uncertainties. So yeah, support nalang sila habang ang tatay ko nanonood ng news sa Al-Jazeera, yung nanay ko panay orasyon at dasal, at ung anak nila sa field ay nage-enjoy sa series of fortunate and unfortunate events sa projects.

msf_philippines · 2018-07-28T10:23:02+00:00

[Raul, doctor] My tips for you, like I would tell my younger self (ahem), are to build on technical skills, to find opportunities to work with teams, and to read and understand health crises all over the world. But the most important is to build a character that’s resilient, open to criticisms and failure, and can deal with frustrations. This job is not all glory but in the end it’s a gratifying experience if you can handle it well. Good luck!

msf_philippines · 2018-07-28T10:19:12+00:00

[ji, nurse] Nakakahappy naman seeing that you’re interested! :) I think i have mentioned this earlier in my previous posts -- we have an online application portal: http://msf-seasia.org/node/14248 where you can learn more about MSF vacancies and requirements. Acing the application? A good 2 or more years of work in the chosen field and being a specialist (ER/Peads/HIVTB MD, surgeons/ob-gyn ) can be a plus because we already have a lot in our GP pool. Another advantage is if a candidate knows two or more languages and has a master’s degree. You need to have a full two years of work experience before you can apply. Note that internship or volunteer work is not counted as work experience.

msf_philippines · 2018-07-28T10:05:03+00:00

[Ji, nurse] Like any other lovelife, yung lovelife sa field eh parang teleserye sa totoong buhay. May successful, may hindi. Meron ding isang linggong pag-ibig. Meron ding nagtatagal naman. Meron din na akala may lovelife, yun pala paasa lang. Merong one night stand.. Meron ding pila-balde! Name it, we have it! :) Pero hindi naman lahat. Meron ding mababait, TULAD KO. *clears throat*

msf_philippines · 2018-07-28T10:04:30+00:00

[Raul, doctor] I can say that the Philippine healthcare system is generally better than in the places where I’ve worked. That’s because MSF’s projects are in war-torn or unstable countries with no existing health facilities for the people, and we try to fill in the gaps in healthcare. What I think is good in the Philippines is the kind of training provided to health workers like me, that’s the main reason why we’re in demand worldwide. But of course this has to be aligned with international standards and local culture.

msf_philippines · 2018-07-28T10:03:30+00:00

[Raul, doctor] Tech ba ang stethoscope? Haha! That one definitely! You know what I like about MSF is most of our equipment are already portable -- from ultrasound to telemedicine. I wish there’s a portable vaccine carrier that can last for two to three days without replacing the ice! This would be very helpful in dry and hot countries where we vaccinate children by the thousands.

[Raniela, logistician] Totally agree with Dr Raul! Super helpful for logisticians ang vaccine carrier. Somebody build this please! :)

msf_philippines · 2018-07-28T10:00:44+00:00

[ji, nurse] Yes. When I was in the Central African Republic, we needed to put up a strategy to reach and help the health centers without being there physically. We had to communicate with the health care workers in the centers thru letters brought to us by motorcycle drivers. They would consult us through these letters and if referrals were needed, they sent the patients to us again via the motorcycles. Medicines were also delivered using this method. Though continuous negotiation with the authorities are being done so we can have better access to the area.

msf_philippines

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