Have ‘Mercy’ on us

JOLO, SULU–I had the opportunity to be invited for an on-board tour of the visiting US Naval Ship Mercy last Wednesday. It arrived here in Manila on May 20 and it will be here until June 18. The USNS Mercy is currently anchored at the Sulu Sea while conducting a medical-humanitarian mission for the benefit of the people of Jolo.

President Arroyo is scheduled to fly to Jolo today for her own on-board visit of the USNS Mercy. Just don’t ask me why the President did not take the photo opportunity while the ship was docked at the Manila Bay when the ‘Mercy’ first arrived.

A nine-seater C-12 US Air Force military plane took us to Jolo, for a two-hour and 20-minute flight from Manila. But before we boarded our plane, Lt.Col.Mike Halbig, public affairs officer of the Joint Special Operations Task Force-Philippines, briefed us about our itinerary. He was our "handler" for the entire trip.

From the plane, we saw the USNS Mercy, a huge white-colored vessel, with several red crosses painted at the side of its hulls, lying afloat in the blue green waters of Sulu Sea. There were several military speedboats circling around it. No other vessels could approach it except the fast ferryboats that carry people on board the ship. The USNS Mercy remained mobile off Patah Island, some six nautical miles from mainland Jolo, obviously to keep it out from mortar range of possible armed enemies.

But officially, we were told that the pier was too shallow for the requirements of the ship as its huge frame needs 13 meters deep of water for clearance. It is a converted supertanker that was commissioned in 1986. It is one of two US Navy hospital ships in operation. USNS Mercy is based in San Diego, California while its sister ship, the USNS Comfort is based in Baltimore. The two hospital ships are part of the civilian-crewed vessels operated by the US Military Sealift Command whose primary mission is worldwide ocean transportation for the US Department of Defense.

Our American hosts were not taking chances on our security, especially in a place known to the outside world as the hotbed of the Abu Sayaff Group which is included in the US list of foreign terrorist organizations. Even if our plane has already landed, we were not allowed to disembark. The pilots kept its engine running while waiting at the runway until the security escorts arrived a few minutes later.

We were herded to board a Humvee driven by a woman US soldier. The runway, as we later found out, was located just outside the Gen.Teodulfo Bautista Camp, the headquarters of the 104th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army. The Southern Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) was deployed as the security force protection for the USNS Mercy while in Mindanao. I could only watch with depression the full battle-geared US soldiers, with flak jackets, other military equipment and protection gadgets, as they stood out while being accompanied by our own soldiers. But that is beside the point.

We saw that some of the medical-humanitarian services rendered were done on-shore inside Camp Bautista by American doctors and nurses, many of whom are actually civilian volunteers of Project Hope. Dr.Charles Thornsuard, a civilian volunteer internal medicine physician, is the head of the Project Hope helping the 40-man naval medical staff of the USNS Mercy for their mission in the Philippines.

The medical mission was also conducted at the Sulu Provincial Hospital where American and Filipino doctors, dentists, nurses and other care-givers attended to the patients. It is here where the patients were first screened and processed. Dr. Fahra Tan-Omar, the head of the Sulu Provincial Hospital, told us they determine who among the patients need to undergo major surgery and who would be taken on board the USNS Mercy. Minor surgery and other less serious medical and dental conditions were done at the provincial hospital by Lt.Commander Franklin Sechriest, a 38-year old doctor who is part of the USNS medical corps.

The patients were ferried two ways. The US Air Force HH-60 Seahawk helicopter can take as much as 10 people on board and unload them to the deck of the ‘Mercy’. Or, the bigger number of patients were ferried by speedboats and escorted by US and AFP Navy Seals.

We were formally welcomed on board the USNS Mercy by Capt.Bradley Martin, commander of the Amphibious Squadron Seven of the US 7th Fleet of the Hawaii-based US Pacific Command. He was assisted by Capt. Robert T.Wiley who fondly calls himself as "the driver" of the ship.

The amiable ship captain told me he is only too happy to see that the USNS Mercy is not serving its original purpose of providing medical services to casualties of war but is used instead to promote peace and the humanitarian spirit.

Since the USNS Mercy is all about medical-humanitarian mission, the top two Naval officials turned over the briefing to Capt.Joseph L.Moore, head of the USNS Mercy Medical Corps, and Dr.Thornsuard in behalf of Project Hope.

There were also seven Indian doctors on board the USNS Mercy as part of the US-Indian Naval cooperation agreement. The Indian medical team is led by Dr. Ashok Yadav, a pediatrician. "We’re able to relate with people here because we know what’s happening in Third World countries like ours," Dr.Yadav told me. Bangladesh is the next stop of the USNS Mercy after the Philippines.

We have seen that many of those being treated were Tausugs who, despite the language barrier, expressed their gratitude to the American doctors and nurses through interpreters on board the ship, some of whom were Filipino volunteers. The children were specially treated with care and affection and were given toys and medicines they needed for their medical woes.

We were told that the ‘Mercy’ had visited and had done similar medical missions in the Philippines two or three times in the past. But it was the first time that the hospital ship ever sailed to Sulu. After its arrival in Manila, the ship traveled to Zamboanga City. During the almost a week stay in Zamboanga, the USNS Mercy recorded some 18,600 patients who underwent major and minor surgeries while others were treated for various illnesses and medical problems.

Before we left Jolo, we were told that some 4,000 patients were processed since the USNS Mercy arrived there last Monday. On that day alone, we saw quite a number of patients having thyroid growths. We were told that while seafoods are part of their diets, the Tausogs don’t eat rice but eat cassava instead.

I was kidding Dr.Thornsuard they would face rallyists on shore by placard-bearing people asking them to have mercy and stay on to continue helping them.

* * *

Write to [email protected]