By Jawharilal Rajendran

DR JOSEPH THAMBIAH

Senior consultant at the division of spine surgery, head of the division of orthopaedic trauma at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, National University Hospital

THE suffering caused by the recent earthquake in Haiti resonated deeply with Dr Joseph Thambiah as he watched the images nightly on television. Four years ago, the orthopaedic surgeon led a medical relief team to Java in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake and witnessed first hand the mangled bones and crushed lives of the victims.

He returned, a man with a mission. "That earthquake opened my eyes to how basic medical care is not easily accessible to everyone. I began to look for more opportunities to help people and turned to Batam where there is a large number of rural folk with limited access to primary healthcare," says Dr Thambiah.

In his usual eager-beaver manner, he quickly set about forming Batam Medical Outreach, a group of 80 or so doctors, nurses and assorted volunteers who travel to the island just south of Singapore on weekends to provide medical care: Simple deeds like dispensing medicine and doing minor surgeries that go a long way to enhancing the lives of the villagers.

The work is daunting, from the logistics - medicines, surgical equipment and the like - to co-ordinating the volunteers. There is a long waiting list to be part of the mission which comes under the auspices of St. Andrew's Cathedral.

All are welcome - Christians and non-Christians alike. About 50 per cent have no medical expertise whatsoever, so they handle administrative tasks at the makeshift clinic and help out with simple medical procedures like taking blood pressure and handing out medicine.

For Dr Thambiah, the reward is knowing he has helped people like an old lady he once encountered. He recalls: "She came to see me with a tightly rolled-up metal strip in her hand which turned out to be an ointment tube with every last bit of ointment squeezed out of it.

We had given it to her and she kept it for a year. It's so easy to take basic medicines for granted but for people like her, it is almost like a precious commodity."

Not satisfied with just treating those on Batam, Dr Thambiah has plans to reach out to people on the smaller outlying islands and will travel there by sampan if he has to. Mind you, he hasn't forgotten the less fortunate closer to home. With money from a church wellwisher, the mission recently bought a 23-seater bus, removed all the seats and turned it into a mobile clinic complete with a dispensary and a small surgery. It provides treatment for elderly folk in housing estates and foreign workers in dormitories.

Having come from a poor family, Dr Thambiah is all too familiar with the plight of the less fortunate. He grew up one of seven children in a kampung house in the Jalan Eunos area. His parents hailed from Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu and his late father Jacob worked as a technical instructor at a vocational school in Geylang Serai.

"Honestly there were days when there was not enough food in the house. Nine mouths to feed was a big struggle. But I had a happy childhood. Dad was a man who worked with his hands and that was one of the things he must have passed down to me. I'm a handyman at home, fixing things, painting, landscaping..." recalls Dr Thambiah.

The "rabid Man U fan and closet Tottenham Hotspur supporter" went to neighbourhood school Kaki Buki Secondary, which was better known for its football team than its academic prowess.

Under the guidance of "dedicated teachers like Howard Desker, Joan Ng and Maureen Ong", he became top boy, scoring straight As in his O levels.

"From an early age I wanted to help people and the paths I chose, like taking up science and then the pure sciences at NJC (National Junior College), helped me in that direction. After deciding to do medicine, I picked orthopaedics and surgery because orthopaedics is very manual and I like working with my hands. It also makes an instant impact on the patient you treat," he says.

"I remember one patient who had been suffering for over 20 years and was basically housebound. Within a month or so of operating on both her knees, she had dyed her hair, put on lipstick and become an active member of society. Her life had changed dramatically."

Indeed, Dr Thambiah is a man of many talents. He cooks - he is known to make a mean karvadu (salted fish) sambal - and bakes an assortment of Christmas cakes.

At Easter, he gives away the hot cross buns that he makes. He sings too, mostly Elvis numbers, collects figurines of Elvis and gyrates his pelvis while doing Elvis impersonations at church events. Blue Suede Shoes is his favourite Elvis number.

Last December, his bubbly wife Rose and sons Matthew, 21, and Mark, 17, threw him a surprise 50th birthday bash at an East Coast beach club. The good doctor was in his element. As his patients in Singapore, Batam and Java will tell you, there are plenty of good vibes when he's around.

raj@sph.com.sg