The Wit and Wisdom of Dr. Juan Flavier: Notes from the Sidelines, №33
Dr. Juan Flavier’s standing height was only 4'11. But despite his short stature, the doctor from the barrios continues to loom large in the Filipino political consciousness. He remains one of our most beloved public servants, both as Secretary of Health (‘92-’95) and his two terms as Senator (‘95-’01, ‘01-’07).
Why was he so beloved? Most people would point to his wit and great communication skills. But as Flavier himself writes, his wit was only secondary to empathy. To be a great communicator, one must be a good listener.
How did a humble doctor- who promised his wife that he would never enter politics- become such a successful public servant? Aside from being naturally blessed with wit, Dr. Flavier credits his success to his formative experience as a rural doctor.
In 1961, Dr. Flavier joined the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM) where he was deployed to Nueva Ecija. It was there that he learned the essentials of working with rural communities, embodied in the PRRM credo: Go to the people. Live among them. Learn from them.
In his book, “Doctor to the Barrios”, Dr. Flavier writes that it is “essential to make a conscious effort to understand the ways of farmers. The biggest pitfall is to “impose one’s way of life, standards, and preconceptions”.
To help farmers and rural communities Dr. Flavier says, one must listen intently and understand their ways of life. This includes their accumulated folk wisdom, their economic circumstances, and their informal networks.
Folk wisdom, according to Dr. Flavier, need not be disparaged. There’s his famous story of reducing neonatal tetanus. The rates were high because rural folk were using a piece of bamboo (called a buho) to cut umbilical cords.
Dr. Flavier suggested using scissors instead of the buho. But the community did not adopt the practice because they believed using “unnatural” tools like scissors would make the infant disloyal to his family.
Therefore, Dr. Flavier and his team modified their message. Instead, they suggested boiling the buho before using it to cut the umbilical cord. And so traditional beliefs remained intact, and tetanus rates went down.
In coming up with that decision, Dr. Flavier writes that it was crucial to know *exactly* what they were changing. They were not trying to correct local beliefs, only the tetanus rates. So, they modified their policy to incorporate local beliefs.
In incidents like this one, Dr. Flavier learned the importance of humility and empathy. It is correct to insist upon and act on your knowledge. But this does not mean entirely disparaging or dispensing with folk wisdom.
In addition, Dr. Flavier writes that one must prioritize rural reforms which are doable, practical, and tangible. For example, there’s the time they tried to introduce one-story fabricated houses made from soil bricks (1:15 cement to soil ratio per brick)
The rural folk did not adopt it because the design did have a basement. So the design was reworked to be one-and-a-half story tall with a basement.
Dr. Flavier also notes that the language of farmers is often couched in unique metaphors and poetry. Straight messages might not be easily understood. Thus, messaging must also be told using metaphors, and often in the form of parables.
For example, in teaching reproductive health, Dr. Flavier noted the difficulty in using tagalized scientific terms. So they used rural metaphors. The use of birth control was compared to pomelos, which produce small fruit if it has too many.
On spacing, they compared it to rice: rice seedlings which are placed too near to each other grow slowly. To help keep track of the rhythm method, they designed beads which could be hung at the foot of a bed.
These approaches also had the benefit of generating laughter and engagement among those listening. These were lessons which Dr. Flavier would bring to the DOH, and the campaign trail to the Senate.
At the DOH, Sec. Flavier and his team devised the MEDIC rubric on health communications: (M)edia Friendly, (E)xciting, (D)oable, (I)nnovative, and [C]urrent.
This can be seen in the DOH’s first initiative under his helm, the National Immunization Day. It was rebranded to “Oplan Alis Disease” to make it easier to understand. To make it exciting, they targeted 5 diseases. And they added “Ceasesire for Children” to ride on the ongoing peace negotiations.
And most importantly, they implemented “Go to the People”: Aside from setting up official DOH stations, they called upon all sectors to contribute. And they did!
Jollibee converted portions of all their stores to Patak stations. UP Mountaineers went to hard-to-reach communities. There was no excuse to not get immunized on that day. In a way, that’s the essence of”Let’s DOH it!”: Everyone has a role. No excuses.
Not even the NPA! Sec. Flavier himself went to NPA-controlled areas. In one discussion, an NPA operative asked “Do you know how easy it would be to shoot you?”. To which Sec. Flavier responded: “At 4'11, I am a hard target to hit.” Everyone laughed and the NPA let them proceed.
Dr. Flavier and his team applied the “MEDIC” rubric to the two most popular DPH Campaigns: “Yosi Kadiri” and “Let’s DOH It”. The latter led to Sec. Flavier being identified as “Mr. DOH!”. And it resulted in sky-high approval ratings of up to 90%- the highest among the Cabinet Secretaries at the time:
Sec. Flavier also applied these principles in his fight for reproductive health- specifically during his fight to promote condom use. This was the time when he faced the wrath of the Catholic Church at the height of its power, w/c had the almighty Cardinal Sin at the forefront.
Secretary Flavier avoided polemics. He preferred to “make love” instead of war. He responded with his trademark humor, starting his speeches “on the sperm of the moment” and hoping for a “standing ovulation”.
He remained humorous even in his few outbursts. In a televised debate with a priest who claimed Dr. Flavier “Hated babies”, the Secretary responded: “I love babies so much I made four of them. How many have you made?”
However, Sec. Flavier noted that he did not directly contravene the moral teachings of the Catholic Church. This was contained in his “ABC” approach to condom use: (A)bstain; (B)e Faithful and stick to one partner; Be [C]areful and use condoms if you cannot do A +B.
This was another of Sec. Flavier’s principle. On matters he had knowledge in, and where science was proven, stand firm. In all other matters, one can make adjustments.
Secretary Flavier was elected to the Senate in the 1995 midterm elections. He received 10.74 million votes (41.8% of all votes cast). He placed 5th out of 12 candidates. In 2001, he placed 2nd behind Noli de Castro, garnering 11.73 million votes.
He applied the same lessons on his road to- and his work in- the Senate.
On the campaign trail, Sec. Flavier relied on everything he had learned in the barrios. He cracked jokes and made sure to summarize his platform in simple, understandable language. He was so good that other candidates disliked speaking after him.
In the Senate, Sen. Flavier stuck to his guns. He stood firm on matters of health policy. But in all other matters- such as policies on security and education- he was respectful and listened first.
This was particularly true during the Estrada impeachment. He refrained from weighing in on complicated legal mattters. His response was always, “Your Honor, I am ready to listen to the witness.” On opening the controversial second envelope: “Your Honor, I am ready to see the contents”.
Unlike the politicians who lined up at EDSA after Erap’s fall, Sen. Flavier stayed home and attended a mass afterwards (presided by Cardinal Sin). His reason? He did not fully understand the implications of what had happened.
Due to his popularity, Senator Flavier was considered a potential candidate for President and Vice-President. But he eventually declined due to health reasons, and for not really wanting either position. In his own words, he did not have the “fire in the belly” needed to pursue either position. It was not in his area of expertise.
In summary: Dr. Flavier’s success was due to his ability to truly respect and listen to the people. He knew when to stand firm, when to listen, and when to adapt. It’s something which many politicians today must learn: one must have principles, but also be humble enough to listen and learn from the people.
