Fatima Palma: A rapping nurse with a big heart

Fatima Palma looks directly at the camera phone in front of her, confidently rapping line after line of her self-written song. Her recorded performance may seem like an ordinary cell phone video at first, but closer inspection would reveal that it was taken in a hospital. Fatima's a nurse and her audience are patients fighting for their lives.

 

The video was recorded by Daff Marqueses, the daughter of the patient Fatima was rapping for. It has become viral among Filipino netizens ever since it was uploaded online. 

 

“When she [Fatima] started rapping and singing, all of us were surprised that she can. Then I saw my father moved to see her, smiled so I grabbed my phone and took a video,” Daff recounts. “That time, seeing my father smile was the best.  All of us in the room were so pleased. [It] made us relax even for a minute. I’m sure my father felt the same.”

 

Fatima has been working as a nurse for five years, but she is no stranger to singing and rapping in public. In fact, she has been hosting hip-hop events and performing in front of a crowd since she was in college. 

 

“I used to be with one crew… noong high school kami we were into breakdancing,” Fatima reveals. “Sa hip-hop community at some point I thought I could do it, I could rap. Tumutula na ako kaso hindi ko lang alam kung paano lapatan. Pero swerte ko rin kasi I have friends who are emcees. Tinuruan nila ako ng metro. Hanggang sa nakabuo ako ng kanta.”

 

After getting her degree in nursing, Fatima worked as a call center agent. She was about to be promoted as a trainer when she decided to take the nursing board exams. She also taught English to Japanese, Korean, and French students in Ortigas before finally pursuing a career in nursing.

 

However, working in a hospital has not stopped her from doing what she loves. Fatima still hosts events and performs whenever her schedule permits her to do so. It gives her the opportunity to take a break from the stress that comes with her job. 

 

“Minsan uuwi ako, hahagulgol na ako sa pagod. Hindi siya biro… You'd really want to quit,” Fatima says. “Kaso kasi ang iniisip ko lagi hindi naman importante yung pang-sarili ko. Iniisip ko rin sila kasi masayang tumulong ng tao. I like that too. Kasi yung tinutulungan ko yung talagang may kailangan. Parang feeling ko if I'm still one of you, things would be better for you. Yan yung lagi kong iniisip. I think that's what kept me going.”

 

The same reason inspired Fatima to sing and rap for her patients, and join in whenever she hears her patients or their families singing. She has done it many times, but the video uploaded by Daff on Facebook was the only instance where Fatima’s performance in the hospital was recorded.

 

“I don't really do it to most patients. Nakikiramdam din ako… pero ‘pag alam ko na kaya naman saka ‘di sagabal sa trabaho, ginagawa ko siya.” says Fatima.

 

She adds that most of the time, her singing on duty occurs spontaneously. “Kunwari nagra-rap sila… Tapos pagsali ko, hindi sila naniniwala... Parang, ‘Wag ka nang sumali. Wala ka namang alam.’ Tapos nung sumali ako, nagulat sila. Palakpakan yung mga pasyente.”

 

Fatima was administering medicine to Daff’s father when the brother of another patient who was in the same room started rapping for Daff’s dad. That was when Fatima decided to join in.

 

Daff reveals that the moment captured in the video was one of the rare instances her father smiled during his confinement. “‘Di siya madalas tumawa kasi masakit ‘yung nakatubo ang bibig at marami siyang plema plus laging masakit ang ulo niya… Kaya kung napapangiti namin siya, masarap sa pakiramdam naming lahat.”

 

Daff’s father has already passed away, but she will always remember how Fatima made her father happy. “When it was my father's time to take his medicine, she talked to him like [he was] her father, asking him how he was, where it hurts, giving him hope that he'll be going home soon.

 

“Sana ipagpatuloy niya ang love sa musika at work niya bilang nurse. Kasi pag love mo ang ginagawa mo it will just show naturally and will get better results. Maraming salamat kahit sa mga huling araw ng father ko nakapag-bigay siya ng saya,” Daff adds.

 

Fatima says that making patients smile through singing makes her happy as well. “Feeling ko siguro it was always an outlet. ‘Yung music, ‘pag ginagawa ko yun, nakakalimutan kong may trabaho ako. Saka nakakapagpasaya ako ng tao. Yun yung importante sa akin.”

 

The video has been received positively. The nurse reveals that she has been receiving messages from friends who tell her that she did a good job and that they’re proud of her. There are people who might not be too happy with the attention she’s getting, but there are more who send her messages saying that what she did has inspired them.

 

Fatima shares that singing and rapping for her patients has also inspired her and made her feel that she was making a difference.

 

“Kaya siguro parang natutuwa rin akong gawin yun kasi alam kong binigay ng Diyos sa akin yung talent na yun para ibigay sa kanila… Parang pakiramdam ko yung hirap ko sa trabaho parang it has been compensated at some point. God made it possible for me.”

 

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— ARP, GMA News