Through the years, Ateneo de Zamboanga University School of Medicine is geared towards bridging communities to health. With its mission to help provide solutions to the health problems of people in Western Mindanao, the medical school has been constantly paving the way to deploy medical students to far-flung barangays of the region. Not only does it serve as a training ground for the students to apply their medical knowledge, more so it allows them to experience firsthand the realities of the depriving situation living in the fields. This gives the medical profession a whole different meaning. The students are molded in character so they will become doctors with a heart for the people. In line of this mission, eight medical students were assigned at Barangay Adante Piñan, Zamboanga Del Norte.

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Barangay Adante, like other geographically distant communities, is not exempted from such reality that health to poor communities is but a privilege more than a right as access to health care services is dire difficult. Health problems are but a tedious cycle and every so often neglected. Although the efforts of the government could not be disregarded especially in terms of creating programs that may alleviate the existing health problems of the general population, the situation in the grass-root level gives a crystal clarity that access to such programs implemented is but a downward sloppe.

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Considering the situation of the barangay, the group of medical students envisions to capture the above statement “…of stretching out the part of the world that is within our reach.” It is not about changing drastically but on changing eventually. The engagement of the medical students is, at its core, communitydriven and community-empowered in a sense that the approach is designed to assist people in achieving solutions for themselves. The group seek not to about providing momentary solution but on strengthening a health care system wherein the people are actively involved; mobilizing them toward health. Having this approach, the medical students are mere catalyst because the agents of change are still the people. Just like the old saying goes, “a leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim is fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.”

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The four-year community engagement of the medical students aims to actualize their several key opportunities with the people: (a) Increase the likelihood that projects will be widely accepted. People who participate in the step – processes will show significant commitment to help make the projects happen. (b) Create more effective and practical solutions. Drawing on local knowledge from diverse groups will pave the way to meet their perceived needs. (c) Improve the knowledge and skills in problem solving. Learning in-depth about the problems allows seeing multiple sides. People can practice communication and decision-making skills. (d) Empower and integrate people from different backgrounds. When people from different areas of the community work together, they often find that they have much in common. (e) Create local networks and partnership. The more people know what is going on and who are willing to work toward a goal, the more likely a community is to be successful in reaching its goals. (f) Create several opportunities for discussing concerns. Regular, on-going discussions allow people to express concerns before problems become too big or out of control. (g) Increase trust in community organizations and governance. Working together improves communication and understanding. Knowing what government, leaders and citizens can and cannot do may reduce future conflict.