The Story of Rosario - Zuellig Family Foundation

Summary

The village of Tanong, situated along the Malabon Navotas River, struggles with inadequate infrastructure and services. With a population of 12,400, only 10% have toilets, and 90% rely on the polluted river for waste disposal. Access to clean water is limited, and most residents cannot afford to own their homes. The story of Haime and Lucy, who migrated for a better life, exemplifies the hardship faced by many. They live in chronic debt, struggle with malnutrition, and lack proper healthcare, leading to the tragic death of their youngest child, Rosario, due to untreated illness and lack of access to affordable medical care.

Takeaways

• 🏘️ The village of Tanong is situated along the Malabon Navotas River, covering a small area of 5 hectares and housing 12,400 individuals in 1,850 families.
• 🌉 Access to the Riverside houses in Tanong is precarious, relying on unsteady makeshift wooden bridges, posing a risk to children who often fall into the river.
• 🚽 Only 10% of households in Tanong have toilets, with the remaining 90% disposing of human waste into the river.
• 💧 Water scarcity is an issue, with only 10% of households receiving piped water, while the rest buy water from entrepreneurs at a cost of 15 to 30 pesos for five gallons.
• 🏡 No one in Tanong owns their home or the land they live on, with rent ranging from 500 to 2,000 pesos per month for rooms of varying sizes.
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Hame and his family, part of the 70% of the population who migrated to Metro Manila from the provinces, live in Tanong and struggle to make ends meet.
• 💼 Hame earns a modest income of 165 pesos a day working hard labor in construction, while his wife Lucy earns only 50 pesos a day, barely enough to feed their four children.
• 🍼 Lack of proper nutrition and knowledge about childcare is evident, as Lucy was advised against breastfeeding and instead used infant formula and condensed milk.
• 🤒 The children suffer from malnutrition and are frequently sick with respiratory infections, fever, and diarrhea, with Lucy mistakenly believing worms to be beneficial.
• 🏥 Limited access to healthcare is highlighted by the Bangai Health Center's lack of free vaccines and medicines, leading to high costs when private hospital care is needed.
• 💔 The tragic death of Rosario, the youngest child, due to continuous fever and diarrhea, underscores the dire living conditions and lack of healthcare in Tanong.

Q & A

What is the geographical location of the village of Tanong?

The village of Tanong is situated in the curve of the Malabon Navotas River.

What is the total land area of Tanong village?

The total land area of Tanong village is 5 hectares.

How many individuals and families reside in Tanong village?

Tanong village is home to a population of 12,400 individuals or 1,850 families.

What challenges do the residents of Tanong face in accessing their homes?

Residents have to cross unsteady, makeshift wooden bridges to reach their homes, and it is common for children to fall into the river.

What is the sanitation situation in Tanong village regarding toilets and waste disposal?

Only 10% of the households have toilets, while the remaining 90% use the river to dispose of human waste.

What percentage of Tanong's population has access to piped water?

Only 10% of the population has access to piped water, while 90% buy water from entrepreneurs who fetch it from two deep wells.

What is the cost of water for residents in Tanong village?

Five gallons of water cost between 15 and 30 pesos, depending on the distance of the consumer's dwelling from the wells.

What is the living situation in terms of housing and rent in Tanong village?

No one in Tanong owns their home or the land they live on. Rent ranges from 500 to 1,000 pesos a month for a small room, and up to 1,500 to 2,000 pesos for a bigger room.

What is the occupation and daily income of Haime, a resident of Tanong village?

Haime is a former peasant farmer who now earns 165 pesos a day working hard labor at a construction site in Quezon City.

What challenges do Haime and his wife Lucy face in feeding their children?

Lucy and Haime can afford only 50 pesos a day to feed themselves and their four children, often leading Lucy to skip meals to feed the children.

What health issues did Haime and Lucy's children face due to improper nutrition and lack of vaccinations?

The children were malnourished, sickly, prone to respiratory tract infections, frequently had fever and diarrhea, and passed worms with their feces. The two youngest children, Antonio and Rosario, did not receive vaccinations.

What happened when Lucy sought medical help for Rosario at the Bangai Health Center?

Lucy was told that the center had finished the year's budget allotment for free medicines and that the request for a larger budget had been turned down by the city council due to suspected misuse of funds.

What were the costs of the medicines Lucy bought for Rosario and what was the outcome?

Lucy bought a cough medicine for 109 pesos, a diarrhea medicine for 243 pesos, and an antibiotic for 50 pesos. Despite taking the medicines, Rosario's condition worsened, and she eventually died.

Why did Rosario's parents take her home from the private hospital against medical advice?

Haime and Lucy took Rosario home because they could not afford the mounting medical bills, which reached 4,125 pesos after just one night.

What was the final outcome for Rosario and what could have been the contributing factors to her death?

Rosario died after a week of continuous fever and diarrhea, suffering from severe dehydration and weakness. Contributing factors include lack of proper nutrition, no vaccinations, inadequate medical treatment, and financial constraints preventing access to healthcare.

Outlines

00:00

🏚️ Life in Tanong Village

The village of Tanong, situated along the Malabon Navotas River, is home to 12,400 individuals living in precarious conditions on just 5 hectares of land. Access to the riverside houses is fraught with danger due to unsteady makeshift wooden bridges, and children often fall into the polluted river. A shocking 90% of households lack toilets, resorting to disposing of human waste in the river. Clean water is scarce, with only 10% receiving piped water, while the rest rely on water fetched from two deep wells at a cost. The residents, none of whom own their homes or land, face high rents for small living spaces. The story of Haime and his family exemplifies the struggle for survival in Tanong, with Haime working hard labor for a meager daily wage and the family barely making ends meet. The lack of education and awareness about proper child care and nutrition has led to malnourishment and frequent illnesses among their children.

05:03

🤒 Tragic Outcome for Rosario

Rosario, the youngest child of Haime and Lucy, falls ill and is initially treated with medicines bought at a high cost the family can barely afford. Despite the treatment, Rosario's condition deteriorates, leading to a visit to a health center that advises a transfer to a private hospital. The hospital stay is financially unmanageable, resulting in the family taking Rosario home against medical advice. A week later, Rosario succumbs to her illness due to continuous fever and diarrhea, highlighting the tragic consequences of inadequate healthcare access and financial constraints in Tanong Village. The death of Rosario underscores the systemic issues of poverty, lack of education, and poor healthcare infrastructure that plague the community.

Keywords

💡Tanong

Tanong is the name of the village in the Malabon Navotas River area, which serves as the setting for the video. It is characterized by its precarious living conditions and lack of basic amenities, which is central to the video's theme of poverty and living challenges in rural areas. The village's situation is depicted through the description of its land area, population, and the makeshift wooden bridges that connect the houses to the river.

💡Riverside houses

Riverside houses refer to the dwellings located along the banks of the river in Tanong. These houses are typically unstable and unsafe, as indicated by the unsteady makeshift wooden bridges that residents must cross to reach them. The term 'Riverside houses' is used to illustrate the precarious living conditions of the villagers and their vulnerability to environmental hazards.

💡Sanitation

Sanitation in the context of the video refers to the lack of proper waste disposal and toilet facilities in Tanong. The script reveals that only 10% of households have toilets, with the remaining 90% disposing of human waste into the river, which highlights the poor sanitation conditions and its implications for public health.

💡Water scarcity

Water scarcity is a significant issue in Tanong, where only 10% of the households have access to piped water, while the rest rely on water fetched from two deep wells by entrepreneurs. The cost of water and the distance from the wells are factors that exacerbate the water scarcity problem, affecting the villagers' daily lives and well-being.

💡Migration

Migration is a key concept in the video, as it describes the movement of people like Haime from rural areas to Metro Manila in search of better opportunities. Haime's migration is indicative of the broader trend of people moving to urban areas for work, which is often driven by the lack of economic prospects in their home regions.

💡Poverty

Poverty is a central theme in the video, as it affects every aspect of life in Tanong. The villagers live in extreme conditions, with high rent relative to their income, limited access to clean water, and inadequate sanitation. The story of Haime and his family exemplifies the struggle to afford basic necessities and the cycle of poverty that many villagers face.

💡Malnutrition

Malnutrition is a critical issue affecting the children in Tanong, as depicted in the video. The lack of proper nutrition knowledge among parents like Lucy leads to children being raised on condensed milk instead of formula, resulting in malnourishment. This has severe health implications, making the children more susceptible to diseases.

💡Healthcare

Healthcare in the video is portrayed as inadequate and inaccessible for the villagers of Tanong. The Bangai Health Center's limited budget for medicines and the city council's refusal to increase it illustrate the systemic challenges in providing healthcare services to impoverished communities. The story of Rosario's illness and the family's inability to afford treatment underscore the dire healthcare situation.

💡Education

Education is highlighted in the video as a factor that influences the villagers' ability to improve their living conditions. The difference in educational attainment between Lucy, who graduated high school, and Haime, who only completed three years of elementary education, is indicative of the broader issue of limited access to education in impoverished areas, which can perpetuate cycles of poverty.

💡Debt

Debt is a recurring issue for Haime and Lucy, who are chronically in debt despite their efforts to earn a living. Their inability to afford necessities and medical care for their sick child, Rosario, is a direct consequence of their financial struggles, which are a common feature of poverty in the village.

💡Child mortality

Child mortality is a tragic outcome depicted in the video, with the death of Rosario due to illness and lack of access to proper medical care. This underscores the severe consequences of poverty, inadequate healthcare, and poor living conditions on the lives of children in Tanong.

Highlights

The village of Tanyong is located on a 5-hectare area along the Malabon Navotas River.

Tanyong has a population of 12,400 individuals or 1,850 families.

Only 10% of households in Tanyong have toilets; the remaining 90% use the river for human waste disposal.

Only 10% of households have piped water; 90% buy water from entrepreneurs who fetch it from two deep wells in the village.

Five gallons of water cost between 15 and 30 pesos, depending on the distance from the well.

No one in Tanyong owns their home or the land they live on; rent ranges from 500 to 2,000 pesos per month.

Haime, a former peasant farmer, migrated to Metro Manila and now earns 165 pesos a day working in construction.

Haime and his wife, Lucy, can only afford 50 pesos a day to feed themselves and their four children.

Lucy often skips meals to provide three meals a day for her children.

All four children are malnourished, frequently sick with respiratory infections, fever, and diarrhea.

Lucy believed that worms in her children's feces were beneficial for digestion.

The two youngest children did not receive vaccinations due to lack of free vaccines at the local health center.

The Bangai Health Center's request for a larger budget for medicines was turned down due to suspected misuse of funds.

Lucy struggled to afford prescribed medicines for her sick child, Rosario, who eventually died from severe dehydration and illness.

Despite visiting the health center and a private hospital, Haime and Lucy could not afford the medical expenses to save Rosario.

Transcripts

[Music]

the village of tanong lies in the curve

of the malabon navotas river on a total

land area of 5 hectares lives a

population of

12,400 individuals or

1,850

families to reach the Riverside houses

of tanyong one has to cross unsteady

makeshift wooden bridges it is not

uncommon to hear of children falling

into the murky black Waters of the

river a survey revealed that only 10% of

the households have toilets the

remaining 90% use the river to dispose

of human

wastes only only 10% a veil of water

piped into their

houses 90% bu water from entrepreneurs

who fetch water from only two deep wells

in the

village five gallons of water cost

between 15 and 30 pesos depending on the

distance of the consumer dwelling from

either well no one living in tanyong

owns their home or the land they live on

rent is 500 to 1,000 pesos a month for a

small room and the bigger room costs up

to 1,500 to 2,000 pesos per

month haime and his family live in the

village of tanyong he was among the 70%

of the population who migrated to Metro

Manila from the provinces looking for a

better

life a former peasant farmer he now

earns 165 pesos a day working hard labor

at a construction site in kzum City H

and his wife Lucy can afford only 50

pesos a day to feed themselves and their

four children Joseline 5 years old

marites 4 years old Antonio 2 and 1/2

years old and Rosario a year and 4

months

old Lucy tries her best to provide three

meals a day often skipping meals herself

to feed her

children instead of a good life haime

and Lucy found themselves chronically in

debt Lucy graduated from high school

unlike haime who completed only 3 years

of Elementary

education neither of them learned the

proper ways of caring for

children when the eldest child was still

a baby Lucy was told by a physician not

to breastfeed her child she was told to

buy an infant formula

instead all the children were raised on

condensed milk because this was cheaper

than formula milk Lucy had no idea of

proper nutrition for her

children as a result all the children

were

malnourished they were sickly prone to

respiratory tract infections and

frequently had fever and

diarrhea they frequently passed worms

with their feces Lucy thought this was a

good sign she believed that worms aided

in the digestion of food the two

youngest children Antonio and Rosario

did not receive

vaccinations the bangai health center no

longer had free vaccines for all the

children in the village Rosario the

youngest was the

[Music]

sicklesteel

Lucy brought Rosario to the nearest

public health center where consultation

was free the nurse in the center however

told Lucy that the center had finished

the year's budget allotment for free

medicines

the bangai Health Center's request for a

larger budget for more medicines had

been turned down by the city

council this was because the council

suspected misuse of funds by the

municipal Health officer and by the

mayor Lucy decided to buy a bottle each

of the medicines prescribed for

Rosario carbo istin for the cough at 109

PES p a bottle a diarrhea medicine at

243 pesos a bottle and an antibiotic

at50 pesos a

bottle after she finished the medicine

Rosario was still very ill but the

couple could no longer afford to buy

more medicines for their

child Rosario's condition grew

worse Hime and Lucy brought Rosario back

back to the health center but were

advised to bring her to a private

hospital after only one night their

bills piled up to

4,125

pesos the couple decided to take Rosario

home against the doctor's

advice haime and Lucy were told to bring

Rosario back to the hospital once they

had enough money to pay for

services

after one week of continuous fever and

diarrhea Rosario continued to suffer

dehydration she became severely weakened

and eventually

died why did Rosario

die