T

he Doctorshare Foundation currently operates Indonesia’s first floating hospital, serving residents living on small and outer islands across Indonesia for free.

Berthing at remote islands, doctors, medical attendants and equipment are carried on shore by a small boat. The doctors examine patients on land and those who need to undergo surgery are brought to the surgery theater on board the hospital ship. Those needing in-patient procedures are treated in the ship’s ward.

The non-profit Doctorshare Foundation was founded in 2008 and focuses on providing medical services and humanitarian aid.

Doctorshare founder Lie Agustinus Darmawan expained his organization’s mission at the departure hall of Labuan Bajo Port in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) on Aug. 20, after a free medication and surgery program for underprivileged
residents.

Darmawan said Doctorshare’s vision was to save people’s lives, provide healthcare to those trapped by crisis, discriminated against by the local healthcare system, marginal communities and those affected by natural disasters, epidemics and malnutrition.

He said Doctorshare has been running the Therapeutic Feeding Center (TFC), on Kei Island, Southeast Maluku regency, since 2008. The TFC aims to raise people’s awareness about nutrition, especially the importance of nutrition for children.

The organization’s founder said that on March 2, 2008, a Doctorshare team was recognized by the Indonesian Record Museum (MURI) in Tegal, Central Java, for holding the single biggest free medical examination event by examining 11,136 people. On Oct. 15, 2011, Doctorshare organized a free medication program in conjunction with the Police’ Mobile Brigade (Brimob) 66th anniversary and was able to top its own MURI award by treating 12,380 patients.

He added that Doctorshare had actively provided humanitarian aid in the form of medical services to natural disaster victims across the country, such as flood victims in Jakarta and NTT, tsunami victims in Aceh and North Sumatra, and the victims of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions in a number of provinces.

Darmawan, who is also a surgeon at the Husada Hospital in Jakarta, said surgeons from Doctorshare performed surgery on Yohanes Dias, 74, a poor resident in Labuan Bajo, who was suffering from a malignant tumor. The surgery was performed in the departure hall of Labuan Bajo Port on Aug. 19.

According to Darmawan, West Manggarai and NTT are still respectively the most disadvantaged regency and province in the country, with a shortage of doctors and medical facilities.

Doctorshare’s West Manggarai field coordinator, Butje Hello, said during their recent stint in the regency, six doctors from the foundation served poor residents in Melo village, Mbeliling district, Labuan Bajo city, Komodo district and those on Rinca Island.