Highlights
- Medical technician noon si Madel Lucena bago siya naging flight attendant para sa Cebu Pacific.
- Pagkatapos niyang matanggal bilang flight attendant, bumalik siya sa pagiging medtech. Bahagi na siya ng grupong responsable sa pag-swab at pag-test para sa virus.
- Aminado siya na bilang frontliner, natatakot din siya sa pandemya; ngunit, ang nagtutulak sa kanyang magpatuloy ay ang pagmamahal niya sa kanyang trabaho at ang responsibilidad niya sa iba.
Sa Australya, may panawagan sa mga flight attendants na mag-apply bilang hospital workers dahil sa kanilang basic first aid training.
Sa kabilang dako, ang Philippine-based na si Madel Lucena naman ay natanggap bilang flight attendant noon dahil sa kanyang healthcare background.
"Nurses and healthcare workers have an edge when they apply as flight attendants because they know what to do during an emergency. Because of COVID, a good number of out-of-work flight attendants who were once in healthcare are now frontliners," aniya.
Isa si Madel sa libo-libong mga flight attendants sa buong mundo na nawalan ng trabaho sahil sa pandemya. Isa rin siya sa ilang nagdesisyong sumali bilang frontliner sa laban sa COVID-19.
Di inakala
"When I was studying to be a medical technician, there were so many chemistry subjects. I didn't think I was smart enough for all that science stuff. But as time went on, I began really loving what I was studying."
Pagkatapos ng kanyang pag-aaral, nagtrabaho si Madel sa medical field hanggang nagbago ang kanyang landas ng matanggap siya bilang flight attendant para sa Cebu Pacific.
"I applied and trained to be a flight attendant for Cebu Pacific, which was funny because I have a fear of heights and motion sickness, so I never imagined myself flying; but my friends egged me on, so I tried and I got in."
Naging masaya si Madel maging bahagi ng industriya ng aviation ng isang taon, ngunit natanggal siya sa trabaho ng biglaan sa trabaho dahil sa pandemya.
"During my time, there was mass hiring. 500-600 cabin crew members were taken in and then laid off because there were much less flights."
Flight attendant, ngayo'y frontliner
Pagkatapos matanggal sa trabaho, nagpahinga ng ilang buwan si Madel hanggang mabalitaan niya na nangangailangan ng mga medical technicians ang mga ospital sa Palawan. Ang mga kinakailangan nilang medical technicians ay magiging responsable sa pag-swab at pag-test para sa COVID-19.
"Not trying to sound holier-than-thou or anything like that...but I went to mass and during the homily of the priest, he asked 'What is the meaning of your life?' The question stuck with me."
Nanatili ang tanong na ito sa kanyang pag-iisip at ito rin ang nag-udyok sa kanyang gumalaw laban sa kagustuhan ng kanyang ama na hindi siya maging frontliner.
"Honestly, my dad didn't want me to work as a frontliner. He told me, 'Why push your luck?' But the work is too important for me to refuse."
Nagtatrabaho ngayon si Madel bilang first line of defence sa Palawan laban sa virus.
"We wear our PPEs. Sometimes, we have so much on that we can't see clearly due to fogging. We wear masks so tight that our cheeks hurt; but we need to be careful. After each person that we test, we remove our PPEs, take a shower and prepare for the next one. It's a hassle. It's challenging, but it's what we have to do."
"The fear is always there because the virus is invisible to the naked eye. Just one mistake and you can get sick."
Maliban sa takot na magkasakit, nakakaramdam si Madel ng lungkot kapag nakikita ang pinagdadaanan ng kanilang mga pasyente.
"I feel so bad for those we swab and test, especially those who are symptomatic. You see the worry and the fear in their faces."
"As for us frontliners, we have to be ready for anything to happen. We have to work as a team. For the 12-hour shifts I workeveryday, I need to tell myself that this is what I want to do. I have to do my best, knowing that the lives of others are in our hands. I need to do this right."
BASAHIN / PAKINGGAN DIN
Listen to SBS Filipino 10am-11am daily
