WORKING TOGETHER ON A MISSION OF CARE

They may be from different backgrounds and organisations, but they have all come together in Indonesia with the same objective: to provide the best medical aid to the victims of the earthquake that struck off the island of Java on 27 May.

The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) medical team comprises members, not just from the military, but also from public and private practice, and the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF).

Whether they are deployed at the field hospital or attached to the mobile clinics travelling to remote villages around Yogyakarta, the non-SAF members of the medical contingent have found their experiences enriching and unforgettable.

Doctor Joanne Ngeow from the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) is in Indonesia with three other doctors and two staff nurses from SGH, as part of the SingHealth team. She said it had been exciting, particularly for her nurses who were on such a mission for the first time.

"When we arrived, it was raining heavily and the whole ground where we were to deploy the field hospital was flooded! But we managed to get the team operational and that was a big morale booster for everyone - that we could start work straight away!" Dr Ngeow (left) said.

Dr Ngeow has worked with the SAF previously - providing medical assistance to victims of the tsunami that hit the region in 2004.

She said: "I had a good experience working with the SAF in Meulaboh, Indonesia. I think we did a very good job there, not just in treating patients, but to win the hearts and minds of the people on the ground."

"Because of that experience, I wanted to come to Yogyakarta with the SAF again. Operationally, the SAF has the equipment and is able to deploy quickly."

And Dr Ngeow has not been disappointed so far. She said: "Morale is good, we work very well and closely with the SAF team, and things have been going on well."

For Staff Nurse Gayathiri (right) from SGH, this is the first time she is working with the SAF.

She admitted that initially, she thought the SAF personnel would all be very strict and regimental. She was pleasantly surprised to discover otherwise.

"They are actually very nice and friendly!" exclaimed the 21-year-old. "In the afternoons when the sun is very hot, they will come to me, pass me a bottle of water and remind me to drink more fluids!"

Sergeant (SGT) Jason Chia (left), a paramedic from the SCDF, is also working with the SAF medical personnel for the first time.

"I am here to help the SAF medical team provide medical care to villagers who may not have received that much help since the earthquake," said SGT Chia who was deployed to the remote village of Imogiri, high in the mountains around Yogyakarta, as part of the mobile clinic, on 3 Jun.

While managing nearly 50 patients kept him busy all day, SGT Chia found working with the SAF "enjoyable".

"The SAF and SCDF work closely together," he said. "Although we are from different organisations, on this mission, we have the same goal, and that is to help the villagers and victims of the earthquake."

Such unity in providing medical care is definitely benefiting the patients. Mr Suhadi, the village chief of Imogiri, said the SAF team was the first medical team, aside from the TNI, to visit his village after the earthquake.

Speaking through a translator, Mr Suhadi said: "I am very satisfied by the level of care provided by the medical team. Thank you very much!"

These words of gratitude were echoed by Ms Lasdiyah, 40, who had injured her right arm and her lips when debris fell on her as she was trying to run out of her house on the day of the earthquake.

Although she was admitted to a hospital, she was discharged a day later. Back home, she started vomiting blood. Worried, her 26-year-old son, Mr Yon Purnomo, decided to accompany her to the SAF field hospital to seek further consultation.

The SAF and the SCDF have the same goal of helping villagers and victims of the earthquake in Indonesia.

SCDF paramedic SGT Chia (right), seen here helping with the distribution of medicine, is working with the SAF medical team for the first time.

The medical team changed the stitches on her lips and dressing on her arm, provided antibiotics and gave her an injection to prevent infection.

Speaking through a translator, Ms Lasdiyah (left) said she was very satisfied with what the medical team had done for her. Her son added that, with the medication provided, he felt more confident of his mother s recovery.

In the last few days, the number of earthquake-related injuries has fallen. The SAF medical team are now treating more general health care-related cases like chronic arthritis and fever.