By Vir B. Lumicao
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| The Filipina patient awaits her fate while confined at TKO Hospital |
A lupus-stricken Filipina domestic helper is under close monitoring by doctors in Tseung Kwan O Hospital, where her employer took her Monday night after she had severe headache and nausea, both offshoot of her rare disease.
The patient, E.L.S., who works for a Chinese family in Sai
Kung, said she is now worried that her employer would dismiss her because of
her health condition.
The 28-year-old Filipina said she received a message from her employer on Tuesday morning saying she could no longer work for them. The helper said she was concerned this could mean the employer is going to fire her.
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In the evening, the patient also got a phone call from Welfare Officer Virsie Tamayao of the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration who was informed by The SUN about her situation. The worker said Tamayao promised her OWWA’s medical and livelihood assistance and scholarship for one of her siblings, as she is single.
As she is still under coverage by the two-year mandatory insurance for all departing workers in the Philippines, she could also get medical benefits from this.
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But that gives her little comfort, knowing she could be booted out by her employer any time because of her condition.
E.L.S., the eldest daughter of a construction worker and a
laundrywoman in
She came to
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The worker was allowed by Immigration to find another employer and on Feb 22, she began working as a second helper for a family at Marina Cove on Hiram’s Highway.
In August, E.L.S. suffered from severe pain in her joints and dizziness. She was diagnosed at TKO Hospital to have systemic lupus erythematosus, a rare autoimmune disease.
Medical journals say lupus occurs when the immune system attacks a person’s tissues and organs. Inflammation caused by the disease can affect different body systems, including joints, skin, kidneys, blood cells, brain, heart and lungs.
E.L.S. said she still doesn’t know how long she would stay in the hospital. But she has already told her parents about her illness and they advised her to go home, she said.
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