OFW with lupus dies after returning to Manila from Saipan
HAIDEE V. EUGENIO, GMANews.TV
GARAPAN, Saipan – An overseas Filipino worker diagnosed with a serious medical condition died at a hospital two days after returning to Manila from the US territory of Saipan where she worked for five years.
Geraldine Amor had been confined in the intensive care unit of the Commonwealth Health Center in Saipan since Jan. 19 and sought for the community’s help for her to return home.
She had been penniless after her contract was not renewed when it expired on Dec. 10, 2008 due to her medical condition, and had to take care of her two sons – a one–year-old and a 3-year-old.
When her employer and members of the Filipino community in Saipan were able to raise at least $8,500 for her airfare and that of her medical escorts, she was flown to the Philippines on Saturday.
From the airport, she was transported to Manila Doctors Hospital where she died two days later, Feb. 2, at 5:40 a.m., her aunt, Remy Amor, told GMANews.TV on Monday.
Remy said Geraldine was happy to be finally home but she died due to complications from lupus, an auto-immune disease that can affect various parts of the body, including the skin, joints, heart, lungs, blood, kidneys and brain.
“Nagpapasalamat po ako sa lahat ng tumulong na maiuwi ang pamangkin ko, gaya ni Mr. and Mrs. Rene Batallones (I thank all those who helped my niece return home, like Mr. and Mrs. Rene Batallones)," Remy said.
During a Jan. 21 interview at her hospital bed, Geraldine said all she wanted was to return home.
Geraldine’s last employer of record was Motion Auto Shop owned by the Batallones couple who paid for her airfare, as required by the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) labor law.
The Overseas Filipino Worker Support Group led by Carlito Marquez and the Marianas Association of Filipino Architects and Engineers led by Bong de Guzman spearheaded the fundraising for other expenses needed by the family of the patient.
Together with donations to designated “drop off" points, the groups were able to raise over $2,000 – about half of which was given to Geraldine when she returned home, while the remaining amount was given to her two minor sons in the care of Remy.
The CNMI is home to some 10,000 OFWs and Filipino-Americans. Most of them are on the island of Saipan which is about three hours away from Manila via direct flight. - GMANews.TV
GARAPAN, Saipan – An overseas Filipino worker diagnosed with a serious medical condition died at a hospital two days after returning to Manila from the US territory of Saipan where she worked for five years.
Geraldine Amor had been confined in the intensive care unit of the Commonwealth Health Center in Saipan since Jan. 19 and sought for the community’s help for her to return home.
She had been penniless after her contract was not renewed when it expired on Dec. 10, 2008 due to her medical condition, and had to take care of her two sons – a one–year-old and a 3-year-old.
When her employer and members of the Filipino community in Saipan were able to raise at least $8,500 for her airfare and that of her medical escorts, she was flown to the Philippines on Saturday.
From the airport, she was transported to Manila Doctors Hospital where she died two days later, Feb. 2, at 5:40 a.m., her aunt, Remy Amor, told GMANews.TV on Monday.
Remy said Geraldine was happy to be finally home but she died due to complications from lupus, an auto-immune disease that can affect various parts of the body, including the skin, joints, heart, lungs, blood, kidneys and brain.
“Nagpapasalamat po ako sa lahat ng tumulong na maiuwi ang pamangkin ko, gaya ni Mr. and Mrs. Rene Batallones (I thank all those who helped my niece return home, like Mr. and Mrs. Rene Batallones)," Remy said.
During a Jan. 21 interview at her hospital bed, Geraldine said all she wanted was to return home.
Geraldine’s last employer of record was Motion Auto Shop owned by the Batallones couple who paid for her airfare, as required by the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) labor law.
The Overseas Filipino Worker Support Group led by Carlito Marquez and the Marianas Association of Filipino Architects and Engineers led by Bong de Guzman spearheaded the fundraising for other expenses needed by the family of the patient.
Together with donations to designated “drop off" points, the groups were able to raise over $2,000 – about half of which was given to Geraldine when she returned home, while the remaining amount was given to her two minor sons in the care of Remy.
The CNMI is home to some 10,000 OFWs and Filipino-Americans. Most of them are on the island of Saipan which is about three hours away from Manila via direct flight. - GMANews.TV
Comments