Kati Tannous is surrounded by local children during a stroll on the beach across from the motel where she and Cora-Ann O’Regan stayed in Roxas City.

O’Regan and Tannous, both UFT member nurses at Lutheran Medical Center, were selected from a pool of 300 applicants to join a medical mission in January for the victims of Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.

Young people flocked to the two nurses, even after the clinic was over. “People would ask to hug us, take a picture, or just stand next to us,” Tannous said.

O’Regan reviews a prescription at the portable pharmacy, which was part of every temporary clinic they set up.

O’Regan checks a patient’s blood pressure. High blood pressure was the most common ailment that the nurses saw. “Working on the medical mission reminded me of just how blessed I am to have things such as running water, a solid roof over my head, a bathroom, a bed to sleep on and particularly access to health care,” O’Regan said.

It was the first medical exam for many people in the remote villages, where poverty was high even before the typhoon struck.

Tannous gives specific instructions about a medication to a patient.

The UFT selected Kati Tannous and Cora-Ann O’Regan, both nurses at Lutheran Medical Center in Brooklyn, out of 300 applicants to participate in the two-week mission.

Villagers lined up to seek medical attention – often their first time being examined by a doctor or nurse. The makeshift clinics were set up in open courtyards and school rooms.

Tannous prepares to take the blood pressure of a patient. High blood pressure due in part to a diet that featured salted fish was one of the more common ailments.

O’Regan checks the lungs of a patient in a classroom that doubles as an exam room for the medical team.

Tannous unpacks the mobile “pharmacy” from a crate.

O’Regan goes over a prescription with a patient.

Tannous, far left, and O’Regan, far right, pose with local nurses who organized patients immediately before the medical team arrived to set up the clinic.

O’Regan shares a seat with members of the military, who used their vehicles to transport the nurses to one village that had especially poor roads.

Many young people lingered with the nurses, even after the clinic was over, to take pictures and chat. A girl asked O’Regan to sign her jersey as a souvenir.

Tannous poses with one of her youngest patients.

A boy plays on the beach near the nurses’ motel in Roxas City. Both Tannous and O’Regan were struck by the joy of children and families who had very little.