She would have been 38 years old this August 28 and given birth to her third baby this October.
Dr. Anne Mimay-Magkasi, an OB-Gyne Diosdado P. Macapagal Memorial Hospital in Pampanga, and was pregnant with her baby boy when COVID-19 took her life. This 37-year-old doctor was working round the clock, prioritizing other lives before hers and her unborn baby. This is how much our healthworkers value their job and the lives of their patients.
She was already on leave last month, because she was preparing to give birth. Since her tummy was already big, she had difficulty working already," her colleague, anesthesiolgist Dr. Donald de los Santos Reluya tells Manila Bulletin Lifestyle.
Dr. Reluya recounted what happened in a span of a a few days. Dr. Magkasi was admitted on July 27. "Symptoms started on the first day with chronic cough and difficulty of breathing. She txted me that day 'Daki, nahihirapan ako huminga, huhuhu... naka-face mask na ako. Hindi ko na keri na wala ako oxygen (I'm having a hard time breathing. I'm wearing a face mask. I can't breathe without oxygen).' when she was first admitted in our hospital."
Dr. Reluya opened up, "Mahirap sa isang kasmahan mo, lalo't doctor din, kaibigan, at ka-trabaho na maka-receive ka ng chat na ganito. Ramdam mo ang nararamdaman niya, nahihirapan pero kinakaya para s pamilya. Binibigay namin lahat ang serbisyo para sa mga kababayan natin maging kumportable lang sila at mapagaling namin bilang isang doctor sa pampublikong ospital (It's so hard to receive a chat like this from a co-worker, especially if she's a doctor, friend, and colleague. You can feel what she's going through and how hard it is for her but she's trying her best for her family. As doctors working in a public hospital, we gave everything we could for our countrymen so that they can be comfortable and can help them get better)."
She was confirmed to be positive for COVID-19 on July 28. That's when she was transferred to Ace Baypointe where her tita (aunt) works as a doctor and an affiliate of that hospital. By August 1, she passed away. "Ang asawa niya at pamilya niya ay hindi pa din makapaniwala na wala na siya. Pilit kinakaya pero mahirap (Her husband and family still couldn't believe she's gone. They are trying but it's been hard)," says Dr. Reluya.
With the ongoing vaccine program, Dr. Reluya reveals that not all the healthworkers are still vaccinated. Dr. Magkasi wasn't able to get one because it wasn't allowed during her first trimester at that time. She was planning on getting vaccinated but it was too late already.
"Ang hiling ko lang o namin mga health workers, sumunod tyo kung ano inuutos ng gobyerno. At higit sa lahat, pabakuna tayo. Ito lang ang solusyon ngayon nasa pandemic tayo. At sana, tuluy-tuloy ang pagbigay ng benipisyo para sa aming mga healthcare workers. Dalawang taon na tayo sa pandemyang ito. Kinakaya namin mga manggagamot/health workers, pero sana naman suportahan ng gobyerno ang ginagawa nmin sakripisyo. Ibigay ang nararapat para sa amin (My request, or our request as health workers, follow what the government orders. Most of all, get vaccinated. This is the solution now that we're in this pandemic. And I hope that the health workers' benefits keep coming in. It's been two years since this pandemic happened. We are trying our best as health workers, but I hope that the government can support the sacrifices that we've been doing. Give what is due for us)."