Volunteer medic team keeps student demonstrators fit

JAKARTA (JP): For Rismanto and fellow volunteer medics, the "most serious" illness ever tackled by his temporary medical post at the House of Representatives so far was a girl got fainted.

"It was on Wednesday, when the day was so hot since morning. But a heavy downpour in the afternoon later really got many students sick," said the 26-year-old medical school fresh graduate.

The female students of the Gunadarma University in Jakarta was then provided with some antibiotics and vitamins.

Headaches, stomachs, stomach cramps, fever and coughs were the most reported sicknesses during the day, said Rismanto from his post in the foyer of the House Thursday.

He believed it was the "too long standing, too much shouting" that caused many students to fall sick that day.

"A sudden change of a heated day to a rainy day worsened their condition," said the graduate of the Medan-based Sumatra Utara University.

His post, located near the press room, is one of many medical organized voluntarily by different groups in the house to provide vitamins, aspirins, antibiotics and other forms of first-aid treatment for ailing students.

Thousands of students from various universities have occupied the House since Tuesday as part of their total reform movement. Some of them have claimed for having losing their stamina after days of noisy protests asking Soeharto to quit.

Outside, dozens of ambulances from various institutions park at the compound, ready to rush students for serious injuries.

Rismanto said he was volunteering himself with Tim Relawan humanitarian group led by Catholic Father Sandyawan Sumardi, who also chairs the Jakarta Social Institute, an NGO advocating for street children and vagabonds.

According to him, the group runs three separate posts with five doctors under the company of dozens of volunteers.

"We're 24 hour ready to serve, standing by like the students who seemed to never sleep at all," he said.

"Basically, we just put the medicines on the table because we've learned the students are clever enough to read which medicines or vitamins are the best for themselves, except when they came with serious illness," said Rismanto.

He gave no figures about students that have been treated or served by his team.

Drug supplier

Rismanto explained that their main drug supplier for the voluntarily works was St. Carolus hospital.

"Here we have over 2,000 vitamins tablets plus some 400 headache medicines," he said.

"We also have medicines for slight injuries and some equipments to conduct minor surgeries... but thanks God that no serious injuries happened so far," he said.

Another medical post, sponsored by different party, was located just 50 meters away from Rismanto's.

Unlike Rismanto's, the post -- organized by the Institute of Research, Education, Economic and Social Information (LP3ES) -- secured the medicines from pharmacists.

"But they sold them to us with reform prices," doctor Syarhan Hanafi, 29, said, referring to the discount prices they got from the pharmacists.

The Posko Medis LP3ES was among the new posts erected at the House, which has now been dubbed by some students as Kampus Tercinta (My Dear Campus).

In only half an hour after been opened on Thursday morning, the list of patients had already reached nine.

Syarhan said he came along the way from Bekasi, a town just outside Jakarta, leaving his job for a moment at the Cempaka clinic in Bekasi.

"All my colleagues in the clinic are now ready to come over to shift work with me here," the physician said.

His colleague, Zaenal Abidin, 32, added: "It's since a long time ago that I joined student movement... so when the LP3ES called me to join them with the post, I took it with no single doubt."

According to Rismanto, his motive to join the voluntarily works was to play a role in the students movement for reforms.

"Although it's just a small role... because a momentum like this has never been imagined before," said the Chinese indigenous.

It was the very same reason that encourage other fellow doctors to participate in the students movement. (aan)