Life Matters International was conducting a one week medical mission training midwives in prenatal point-of-care ultrasound on a remote island in the Philippines. To practice examinations, free ultrasound exams were offered to pregnant women

It is MUAM (Medical Ultrasound Appreciation Month). Time for LMI to highlight those who have embraced medical ultrasound and are doing exceedingly well.

Women’s day reminds everyone about issues such as the struggle for equal opportunities, unequal pay, discrimination, sexual violence, inequitable access to healthcare, just to name a few. The Asian Development Bank #ADB points many of them out in their post including the fact that the situation is especially worrisome in Asia.

A few years back, there was this detective series on Netflix called “Death in Paradise“ I used to watch. It was an English series set on one of the Caribbean islands still part of Britain.

On this first day of January 2024 I am looking over the calm San Francisco Bay with blue skies and bright warm sunshine. Many people taking a NewYears walk, some running, some walking their dogs.

Every morning at breakfast time, I check the news from around the world. Just part of staying informed. Same today. Doing so I felt that this has become an increasingly tough thing to do recently.

The memories of those dense waves of water heavily pouring down from the sky during my last days in Manila are still lingering in my mind. We had just completed our 2 nd round of medical mission in Santa Barbara, Pangasinan, and very pleased with the immense progress of the RHU midwives performing ultrasound.

Recently, while attending an organ concert in the church of a small town, I happened to sit across from a most beautiful Madonna statue. The music - played by an artist unknown to me - was most inspiring too. Music and view made my thoughts wander to the upcoming Mother’s Day. I asked myself:

It’s another sunny and hot day in Makati, Metro Manila, The Philippines. Chinese New Yer Celebrations are over, Valentines Day decorations are popping up and it is hot! I am escaping record wet and cold days in California.

It’s a cold but sunny mid December day. I am driving on the freeway from Sacramento back to the Bay. I had just submitted some paperwork to the California Secretary of State for yet another medical mission next year in the Philippines.

It has been exactly 12 months since the founding of Life Matters International (LMI), our nonprofit organization changing the “medical mission” concept from the notorious suspicion of “serving the missionaries more than the intended population” toward an evidence based impactful agent of sustainable improvement for healthcare in developing countries.

It was almost 6:00 am local time and it was still dark. I was carrying a table (table-feet first, tabletop against my chest) to prepare for a group session of a group of healthcare providers. We were on a medical mission in central Yucatán peninsula in Mexico serving locals including indigenous Maya people with poor access to healthcare.

I had a discussion with two women from a UK-based non-profit group called "Women and Children First". Joanna Drazdzewska is the Head of Programmes and her colleague Annemijn Sondaal is the Programmes Manager.