Buddhist Clinic Gives Free Checkups

In his 12 years of life, Ismael Samano hasn’t received regular medical checkups.

“I’ve never seen a doctor before except for when I was sick,” said the Panorama City resident, who complains of occasional leg pains and has had nutritional problems.

But on Sunday, a physician interviewed him and advised him to take vitamins regularly.

He was one of more than 200 people treated by doctors and nurses from the Buddhist Tzu-Chi Free Clinic visiting the IHM Blythe Street Project, a Latino community center in Panorama City.

“It’s like a dream come true,” said Maritza Artan, director of the center, also known as Casa Esperanza. The free medical care was especially important to residents of the crowded apartments surrounding the center because many are undocumented immigrants who lack health insurance, she said.

Two dozen Tzu-Chi doctors and nurses refashioned the center into a temporary hospital and pharmacy.

An ear, nose and throat specialist extracted a cotton ball from the ear of a 6-year-old in one part of the building, while a few feet away, patients had their teeth cleaned at two dental stations.

Elsewhere, nurses checked blood pressure and a pharmacist handed out basic flu medicines and antibiotics, their instructions translated by volunteers who switched from English to Spanish to Mandarin on request.

“I give them many thanks,” said Maria Alvarado, who had her eyes and teeth examined.

For the Tzu-Chi Foundation, which is based in Taiwan and has a clinic in Alhambra, this outreach effort was small in scope. Its volunteers have served up to 600 people in a single day since they started their roving clinics in 1995, said Tzu-Chi spokeswoman Debra Boudreaux. The group has previously set up shop in Sherman Oaks, but visited Panorama City for the first time Sunday.

Dr. Stephen Denq of Chatsworth, one of the Tzu-Chi volunteers, said he saw some patients with serious conditions, including diabetes and hypertension, for which he had only limited treatment at hand. “We don’t have any basic labs here,” he said of the makeshift hospital. “We don’t even have exam tables. But we’ll try to do whatever we can.”

The volunteer health professionals will likely return to the center for another visit, Boudreaux said. The Tzu-Chi Foundation also responds to international emergencies, and has aided earthquake victims in Taiwan and Turkey.