By Flordeluna Z. Mesina, MD
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What is your Vocation as a Catholic Healthcare Professional during this Global Pandemic?
The Medicine Week was celebrated virtually through a solemn mass officiated by Fr Angel Aparicio, OP at the Santisimo Rosario Parish Church last September 25, 2020. This was followed with a talk by Fr Nicanor Austriaco, OP via Zoom platform. Fr Austriaco, a scholarly and truly an inspirational speaker, talked about the vocation of Catholic health professionals during the global pandemic. The whole UST-FMS community was looking forward to this motivational talk as a source of renewed strength and hope in these difficult times. Fr. Austriaco’s talk was broadcasted via Facebook Live through the official account of UST-FMS and generated over 7,500 views.
Fr Austriaco first updated the audience with the status of the COVID as a member of the UP-UST OCTA research team who is working on data analytics and pandemic management in the Philippines. He highlighted the numbers and showed the pandemic curve which influenced the policy making of the government.
More importantly, in the second part of the talk he defined and gave a deeper meaning to a word we use lightly every day and that is, “VOCATION”! Vocation came from the Latin word “vocare”, it is synonymous to the words calling, mission, and destiny. It is discovering the life that you have been called to live. He challenged us to discern our vocation through prayers and reflection. This is important for it will be our roadmap to a meaningful life. Father Austriaco, said it is understandable to be confused or unsure in the beginning as he related it to his life. He initially wanted and planned his life to be a scientist…science was his God! But through circumstances and meeting people in the faith, he discovered the true meaning of joy and deep happiness. Through these people, he met Jesus Christ and that encounter instantaneously changed his roadmap and he discovered his vocation. In the seminary, he was able to use his brilliance in science and math, and this was God’s providential work. He said you know you found your vocation when everything blends together. Your vocation organizes and makes sense of your gifts, strengths and weaknesses. Your vocation frames and orders your desires. He added that if you are faithful to your vocation, you will become the person that God is calling you to be and exactly the person you want to be. If you are faithful to your vocation, you will find peace and joy even in your suffering.
Now as catholic healthcare professional, what is our vocation? It is a vocation to follow and imitate Jesus Christ as the divine physician. He underscored that a catholic healthcare professional is called to provide holistic care for his or her patients. It is not about curing diseases but healing the sick, just as Christ did. Father pointed out that if we would reflect on the prayer composed by Pope John Paul II, it reveals the vocation we are called for. In his prayer, St. John Paul II called on healthcare professionals to model their conduct on “Christ who was the doctor of the soul and often of the body of those he met on the roads of his earthly pilgrimage.” During this pandemic, we are expected to exercise heroic charity, to be good Samaritans, preachers and witnesses to the gospel of life in the practice of our profession.
