Olivia Salamanca
The Unselfish Doctor
(1889 – 1913)
Olivia Salamanca was a doctor who studied and worked hard in order to cure people of tuberculosis. She made many lives better and happier because of her unselfish service to those around her.
Her Training For Her Work
Olivia Salamanca was from San Roque, Cavite, where she was born on July 1, 1889. Her parents were well-educated, so Olivia grew up in a home where she could do much reading and studying. Her father, Jose Salamanca, was a pharmacist. He encouraged his daughter in her studies.
In the Cavite High School, Olivia was brightest student. She won the admiration of her teachers. She was so bright that she was asked to continue her studies in America, with her expenses paid by government.
She first enrolled in St. Catherine’s College in St. Paul, Minnesota. Then she studied medicine and finished this course in the Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania.
The Tireless Doctor
When she returned to the Philippines, Olivia at once started to cure people sick of tuberculosis. She was appointed secretary of the Anti-Tuberculosis Society in 1911.
Olivia helped many sick people. She was pleasant and thoughtful with her patients. She always had a smile for them even in her busiest hours. Her parents often said that her smile alone cured them.
This unselfish doctor worked so hard with her patients that she herself got sick. She contracted tuberculosis. She fought bravely to cure herself. Her parents sent her to Baguio hoping she would recover there. But it was a losing fight.
On July 19, 1913, at the early age of 24, the young and tireless doctor died. She had sacrificed herself to make other people well.
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