Reaching the Unreached: A Doctor’s Call for Equity

By Dr Heidi Sampang, Philippines Flying Labs

Health care is a basic human right — yet in many remote parts of the Philippines, people grow old and die without ever seeing a doctor. In communities like Geparayan, Samar, you can reach families only by crossing long, winding waterways and walking for hours. In Basilan, conflict makes even the simplest travel unsafe. These realities shape health long before illness begins, and they are happening everywhere. 

Children fall ill from unsafe water. Treatable infections become life-threatening. And TB — an old, curable disease — continues to spread because people cannot reach testing centers. Many are never diagnosed. Many never get the chance to start treatment.

This is why we turned to innovation. By using cargo drones to transport TB samples directly from patients’ homes to the laboratory, we reduced waiting times from days to under an hour. Early diagnosis means early treatment — and far fewer lives lost. In this documentary by CNA Insider, you can witness how we have undertaken this work, as well as its far-reaching impact.

Behind every sample is a person with hopes, fears, and a family waiting for them. A grandfather who believed his cough was “normal.” A father too afraid to cross conflict zones to seek care. A mother who never imagined that a pediatrician could check her 8-year-old son in a place so far from any hospital. They remind me every day why this work matters.

Through technology, collaboration, and compassion, we can begin to close these gaps. We can ensure that innovation reaches those who need it most — not as a symbol of progress, but as a lifeline.

And ultimately, we hope the world sees what we see every day: that no community is too remote, and no life too distant, to deserve care.