The heavy rains and strong winds that Tropical Typhoon Ondoy brought the country especially Metro Manila and the whole of Luzon can well be one of the country’s most ‘surprising’ and devastating bad weather conditions of 2009. According to a PAGASA report, the normal amount of rainfall that we should have received in a month’s time has been terribly ‘poured’ into our country in just a matter of six hours. This large amount of rainfall is the cause of the flash floods that besieged major roads and thoroughfares and has left hundreds of thousands of people evacuate their homes. Even prime subdivisions and villages in Metro Manila were not saved from Ondoy’s fury; calls were made by several actresses asking for rubber boats and coast guard help to rescue them from floods as high as the second floor of their houses. Just a look at aerial reports of the havoc that Ondoy has caused and anyone will say it is such a disaster of immense proportions: raging water, totally submerged houses, cars, buses, and trucks, people crying out for help atop their roofs, impassable roads, landslides, uprooted trees, collapsed structures, overcrowded evacuation centers, etc.

Dr. Nataniel Cruz of PAGASA told news reporters that despite of this weekend’s heavy downpour, we can expect better weather at the start of this week as Ondoy leaves the Philippine Area of Responsibility and heads towards the South China Sea. Filipinos, being perennial amnesiacs, will most likely forget about this calamity as soon as the sky clears. We’ll probably shrug what has happened as just another normal typhoon and that there’s nothing to worry about. Besides, we have already weathered tougher storms and have always managed to get through them.

But this is no ordinary typhoon. Nor is this the normal time that storms come and go into our country. The several typhoons that have entered our country just this September is but a chilling testament to the distressing and disturbing phenomenon of climate change. Many people have already spoken but only a few heard… and fewer actually heeded the warning. What we are experiencing now is a consequence of our careless and apathetic ways that has caused nature to behave in a destructive manner. Even with so much buzz about this phenomenon, those who are in the position to take giant steps in stopping climate change is still lending a deaf ear to environmental advocates for economic reasons.

Countries all over the world have also experienced weird and severe weather pattern changes. In Switzerland, there had been reports that for the first time in decades, there was no snowfall during Christmastime. Coastal countries like the Maldives have already declared that their land may soon be underwater if the sea level continues to rise. This country and other archipelagos have all been experiencing dangerously increasing high tides. Many countries in Africa undergo prolonged drought causing decreased farm produce that has led to malnutrition, famine, and deaths. The Greenland Icecaps, Antarctica, and the North Pole have also shown a rise in the melting of their icecaps causing the increase in sea levels. Extreme weather conditions have also brought fiercer storms (remember Hurricane Katrina), hotter and drier summers, and colder winters.

The events that have transpired over the past weekend are but a taste of things to come if we do not do something about the climate change phenomenon. This is a moral and ethical issue that should be instilled deep into our minds and hearts so we can consciously act towards our own safety and perpetuation. We should radically change our ways of thinking and living if we are to seriously fight global warming. We should quit shrugging our heads thinking that this is something that we can live with and should try to get used to because the truth is, we really can’t live with it… and we’re going to die by it if we don’t do something NOW.

For whatever purpose this article might serve, I wish to inform and remind people that while international and national policies are among the best and fastest means to convey the message to everyone, we can also do our part in battling climate change, little as it may seem. Start by conserving electricity. Unplug all appliances that are not in use especially cellphone and laptop chargers. Learn to reuse and recycle your things at home and avoid using plastics as much as possible. Bring your own bags to the grocery or mall when shopping. Walk farther and take the stairs. It’s good for you and Mother Nature too. Use more green products. Spread the word. Educate other people about what’s happening and see them take part and be responsible in saving the environment. Let them be part of something that will revolutionize our ways of thinking and living so that there would be more left for future generations. If we all combine our efforts, this ‘little thing’ that we’re doing will inevitably turn into something big.

REMEMBER ONDOY. LET US WORK HAND IN HAND IN PREVENTING ANOTHER “ONDOY” TRAGEDY.

According to the National Kidney Foundation, there has been a steady increase in the number of chronic kidney disease patients diagnosed every year. It is estimated that about 13% of people (26 million) in the United States have chronic kidney disease and about 67,000 of people die of kidney failure annually.

Chronic kidney disease or end stage renal disease is an irreversible condition that occurs when the kidneys can no longer functioning at a level that is necessary for daily life. Some functions of the kidneys include filtration of wastes from the bloodstream, maintaining electrolyte balance, elimination of wastes, aiding of the production of red blood cells, and control of blood pressure. Abnormal kidney functioning is harmful because the substances and toxins that are normally removed from the body build-up inside causing uremia, acidosis, anemia, impaired hormone production, etc.

There are only two treatment options available for chronic kidney disease: dialysis treatment and kidney transplant. While more people opt to choose dialysis instead of surgery, the life expectancy rate of people undergoing dialysis as compared to those who opted for kidney transplant is undeniably longer: 2-3 years for dialysis versus the 8-10 years of kidney transplant. The quality of life of those who underwent kidney transplant are also better; most can return to employment after about a year’s rest and they also enjoy almost the same lifestyle as that of a normal and healthy person. Recent studies have also shown that dialysis is even more expensive than kidney transplant: the cost that a person pays for dialysis in a year ranges from $44,000-70,000.

One of the main reasons why kidney patients do not want to undergo transplant aside from anxiety of surgical procedures is the high cost of the procedure. The average cost of kidney transplant in the US ranges from $25,000-70,000 excluding other hospital fees and medications.

As part of medical tourism programs, many countries around the world are now offering similar sensitive and major operations like kidney transplant at the fraction of a cost that hospitals in the United States can offer. The only worry about travelling overseas for surgical procedures is that whether hospitals especially in developing countries can provide competent and quality care that medical institutions in first-world countries like Canada, US, and Europe give their clients. While some surgical procedures that have gone wrong in other countries may be true, the fact is that these incidents have decreased yearly as a result of strict standards and rigorous accreditation policies set by their own governments.

Even the bigger tertiary hospitals in these developing countries have also done their share in keeping medical tourism alive. Most offer competitive packages and services of surgical procedures at lower costs as compared to their first-world counterparts without sacrificing the quality and integrity of the whole medical tourism experience. These hospitals have also invested a lot in terms of keeping up with state-of-the-art medical equipments and meticulous training and education of the healthcare team including doctors, nurses, therapists, laboratory personnel, and other assistants. These measures are all undertaken to ensure that they meet international standards to equal hospitals in developed countries and may even exceed the patient’s home country’s healthcare services.

In choosing the best hospital to cater to patient’s surgical needs, it is significant to note its accreditation (preferably JCIA accredited), experience (the number of times they perform the procedure you wish to have in a year, and its success/ mortality rate), value (the total cost of the procedure including travel fees), and location.

The booming of medical tourism and the competent and competitive services it provides is a blessing to those who wish to undertake surgical procedures. For many patients especially those with chronic kidney disease, it is the best way to obtain increased longevity of life and a normal lifestyle. Not only does the medical tourism trend save them money, but also their lives as well.