San Gabriel Valley program offers free surgeries

BALDWIN PARK, Calif. (KABC) -- Local patients who can't afford surgical care will be able to get their procedures done for free thanks to an ongoing program in the San Gabriel Valley.

Kaiser Permanente in Baldwin Park is partnering with the East Valley Community Health Center in West Covina to provide the free services. Candidates have to meet certain criteria, such as not having health insurance and having limited income.

Many people taking advantage don't qualify for free county services.

"We do a full spectrum of different types of surgical procedures. I do general surgery, so we do hernias and gallbladders. There are orthopedic surgeons that do their procedures. There are cardiovascular surgeons and ophthalmologists that do cataracts," said Philip Mercado, head of the general surgery department at Kaiser Permanente Baldwin Park Medical Center.

On Saturday, volunteer doctors, nurses and technicians will perform free outpatient surgeries on 14 uninsured San Gabriel Valley residents. Mercado says demand for free surgeries has been slightly lower since many uninsured are taking advantage of Covered California, but noted they still have a long waiting list.

Mary Louise Saludes, 24, is among the patients who qualified for the program. She has had a solid, rubbery mass growing in her right armpit for the past three years. Doctors diagnosed her with a fibroadenoma, a benign but troublesome tumor that often turns up in young teens and women.

"It has pain once in a while that's why I have it checked at East Valley," Saludes said.

Saludes is grateful for the free surgery and the chance to be free of a painful tumor that's been bugging her for years.

"I talked to my doctors. They assure me that after the surgery, everything will be alright," Saludes said.

Since 2009, Kaiser Permanente in Baldwin Park has provided more than 200 free surgeries. Under the hospital's program, patients also receive free medication and follow-up care.