Calapan City Government in Partnership with Physicians for Peace Philippines

CALAPAN CITY, Oriental Mindoro — In a city where the sea meets everyday resilience, the spirit of bayanihan was deeply felt as Physicians for Peace Philippines, joined by The Starkey Hearing Foundation, in partnership with the Calapan City Government, conducted a comprehensive community health mission aimed at delivering accessible and inclusive healthcare services to the residents of Calapan City.

The initiative was made possible through the generous support of PFP Ambassadors Mr. and Mrs. Romy and Mona Buerano, Dr. Leah C. Cueto, and friends from New Jersey, whose sponsorship helped bring critical medical services closer to the community. With the combined efforts of medical professionals, volunteers, and local partners, the mission sought not only to address immediate health concerns but also to restore hope amidst all circumstances.

A Day of Comprehensive Community Care

The health mission offered a wide range of essential services, including:

• Vision screening and error of refraction: Aiming to provide lenses and frames based on each patient’s individual prescription.

• Hearing health: Focused on providing beneficiaries with hearing aids.

• Women’s health services.

• Minor surgical procedures.

• Mobility care: Focused on assessing patients’ functional needs and providing prosthetic devices, wheelchairs, and other mobility devices to selected beneficiaries.

From early morning, the venue was filled with residents from different barangays across the 62 barangays in Calapan City who were all patiently waiting for consultation—some accompanied by family members, others arriving quietly on their own. Each patient brought with them a unique story, a long-standing concern, or a need that had often gone unmet due to limited access to specialized healthcare. In addition, the LGU unit of Calapan city has also arranged for the community transport services, especially for those who are in dire need of mobility care who cannot even stand or walk on their own.

Restoring Sound, Sight, and Mobility

Starkey Hearing Foundation, the longest-standing partner organization of PFPP who specializes in hearing health, delivered one of the most moving aspects of the mission: the hearing care service, where beneficiaries were fitted with hearing aids and experienced the powerful moment of reconnecting with sound. For many, it meant being able to hear conversations clearly again, respond to loved ones, and re-engage with their surroundings. Smiles and tears filled the room as patients reacted to voices they had not fully heard in years.

Equally impactful was the mobility care program, powered by the donations of numerous people and wheelchairs and mobility devices from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Charities, which provided assessments and distributed prosthetic devices to individuals with limb loss or mobility limitations. There were various patients with different cases, such as Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, and even Hypertensive patients, all rendering the person immobile or having difficulty performing daily movements. By restoring function and movement, the program offered more than physical support—it gave beneficiaries renewed independence and confidence. Mobility, after all, is closely tied to one’s ability to work, participate in community life, and live with dignity.

The longest and most well-known standing services offered by Physicians for Peace Philippines are the Seeing Clearly Program, which is the vision screening service that allows patients, particularly elderly residents and young children, to identify long-neglected visual impairments like presbyopia and lazy eye, while women’s health services provide a safe space for consultation, education, and preventive care.

But probably the most sought-after service was the minor surgery. Headed by PFPP’s board of trustee members Dr. Jorge Conception M.D., and Dr. Gerald Sy M.D., who also happen to be surgeons themselves. Alongside them is a small team of different kinds of surgeons, all tasked to conduct minor surgical procedures to address a multitude of diverse conditions that could have worsened without timely medical attention.

Collaboration at the Heart of the Mission

The success of the Calapan City health mission was rooted in strong collaboration. Through the partnership between Physicians for Peace Philippines and the Calapan City Government, community mobilization, logistics, and patient coordination were efficiently carried out. Local health workers and nurses played a vital role in assisting patients, managing flow, and ensuring that each individual was guided throughout the process with care and respect. The City Health Service facility served as the venue for this mission, which was ideal for the partners since it already has all the necessary equipment and rooms to conduct the health-related programs mentioned to the public.

Organizers emphasized that community health missions go beyond one-day medical interventions. They are about meeting people where they are—both physically and socially—and reinforcing the belief that healthcare is a right that should be accessible to all.

Stories That Leave an Impact

Beyond the medical services provided were stories that stayed with the volunteers and healthcare workers:

• A 36-year-old man who suffered from a stroke and an accident was finally given a wheelchair and proper referrals from a physician on how to manage his condition and the road to recovery.

• Another patient who stated that she had cysts in her leg was finally given the right medical attention and cleared of her cysts. The operation took a whopping hour and a half because the surgeon operating found a piled up cysts in her leg despite it appearing like nothing from the outside.

These quiet moments captured the true impact of the mission. For many beneficiaries, the experience was not just about treatment, but about being seen, heard, and valued.

Building Healthier Communities Together

As the day came to an end, the venue slowly returned to silence, but the effects of the mission sounded through the community. Both members of the organizations of PFPP and Starkey Hearing Foundation as well as the government officials, celebrated this win through spirited camaraderie and hopeful smiles, which is a symbol of success for everyone.

The Calapan City Community multi-health initiative stood as a testament to what can be achieved when medical organizations, local government units, sponsors, and communities come together with compassion and a shared purpose of feeling alright. Through initiatives like this, Physicians for Peace Philippines continues its commitment to inclusive and community-centered healthcare—strengthening lives, restoring mobility and connection, and building healthier communities, one mission at a time.

Article Contributor: Ralf Vincent Abanilla