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Tag: Philippine General Hospital

  • Experts Urge Public To Take A Closer Look At Drinking Water

    Experts Urge Public To Take A Closer Look At Drinking Water

    Health experts reveal that it is not enough that the water you drink looks clean to the naked eye. Your water should also be proven clean through lab tests, to avoid common water bourne diseases, such as cholera, dysentery, and gastroenteritis. Unfiltered water also has many potential contaminants, such as chlorine, heavy metals and allergens, as well as parasites.

    Despite this, keep in mind that water is also important in everyday hydration. A document released by the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition cites hydration as a key to supporting the body’s ability to fight the COVID-19 virus and support the immune system, recommending 2-4 ounces of clear liquid beverages every 15 minutes.

    “Keeping properly hydrated at a time like this refreshes our bodies and keeps the virus away,” said Dr. Sybil R. Bravo, a Clinical Associate Professor at the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital and a member of the Blood-Bourne Infectious Diseases Core Team.

    Health experts around the world continue to stress the need for proper hydration, along with getting enough sleep and proper handwashing, as the best ways to ward off the COVID-19 virus. However, access to safe and clean water continues to be a challenge. There are many harmful substances and minerals in unpurified water, and not all bottled water in the market is the same

    Finding clean water that undergoes stringent purification processes to filter harmful substances and minerals means checking the purification process of which it undergoes. Some follow stricter and more stringent global processes to ensure that they are truly clean. Wilkins Pure, one of the water brands of The Coca-Cola Company, is certain to be clean and pure. With international certifications under its belt, Wilkins Pure goes through an advanced, seven-step purification process, which help assure that the water you drink purifies the body of toxins.

    Learn more about the Wilkins via its official Facebook page or cokebeverages.ph.

    About Coca-Cola in the Philippines

    Coca-Cola has been refreshing Filipinos and making a difference in the Philippines for 108 years. The Philippines was Coca-Cola’s first market in Asia to begin local bottling operations. Today, the Coca-Cola system in the Philippines has evolved into a total beverage company, offering 19 brands in its beverage portfolio and employing over 10,000 Filipinos in over 19 manufacturing facilities and more than 60 distribution centers nationwide. As part of its long-standing commitment to the country, Coca-Cola continues to #GOBEYONDGOOD as a business by continuously supporting safe water access programs in over 200 communities, empowering over 200,000 women entrepreneurs through training and peer mentoring, and accelerating packaging collection and recycling under its global World Without Waste initiative.

    REFERENCE:

    John Paulo Ondra Caparros

    Public Relations Department

    Strategic works, Inc.

    +638937472 | +639173068591

    john.caparros@stratworks.ph

    2nd Floor Zaragoza Building, 102 Gamboa Street, Legaspi Village, Makati City PH

  • GBF & URC face shields get seal of approval from hospitals

    GBF & URC face shields get seal of approval from hospitals

    The Gokongwei Brothers Foundation (GBF) and Universal Robina Corporation (URC) completed the distribution of over 100,000 reusable face shields to 33 hospitals, as the country ramped up its response to the coronavirus pandemic.

    Health workers in the frontlines gave a thumbs-up to these face shields.

    “Given the variety of face shields that we got from our warehouse, these were the most user-friendly,” said laboratory manager Ma. Lourdes Gatbonton, of The Medical City.

    “They provide the right amount of distance between the user’s face and the shield. The person using it can breathe much better, unlike with other face shields,” said Gatbonton. “They also do not moisten or have that clouding effect so it allows us to see better and work around the laboratory without trouble.”

    According to Dr Joseph Angelo Kiat of the surgery department at the Veterans Memorial Medical Center, the clearer acetates also help with visibility.

    “They are lightweight and sturdy. The face shields are also easy to clean for reuse,” said Dr. Kiat. “These face shields are already distributed to our hospital employees including our janitors, orderly, and food servers assigned to our COVID wing and wards.”

    URC, one of the Philippines’ largest food firms, repurposed parts of its production line to manufacture tens of thousands of reusable face shields badly needed by frontline health workers battling Covid-19.

    David Lim, URC’s senior vice president for quality, engineering, sustainability & technical services, designed the URC face shield. “We decided to come up with a face shield design that can both be easily manufactured and is reusable,” he said.

    URC’s face shields are made from just three basic materials, making mass production easier: a polypropylene strip that is 14mm thick and about a meter long; an 8-by-13-inch PET sheet; and some staples.

    The company buys the PET sheets and staples, but it produces the PP strips in its facility in Calamba, Laguna.

    Because it does not have foams that absorb a lot of microbes, URC’s face shields can be dipped in a sterilizing solution and reused. Dr Maria Julieta Germar, who works at the Philippine General Hospital’s obstetrics and gynecology department, said this makes the face shields easier to disinfect than other types.

    GBF executive director Grace Colet related that the innovative solution of the URC engineers allowed GBF to respond fast to the hospitals’ needs for quality face shields.

    “Since these were manufactured locally and efficiently at URC’s repurposed plant line, we were able to secure face shields at a more affordable cost which allowed GBF to distribute to more hospitals in need,” Colet said.

    GBF distributed the face shields to, among others, the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine, Philippine General Hospital, Lung Center of the Philippines, Philippine Heart Center, San Lazaro Hospital, Rizal Medical Center, East Avenue Medical Center, The Medical City and Chinese General Hospital.

    Colet said hospitals were picked based on the number of Covid-19 cases they were handling and their public call for donation.

    URC is one of the largest food and beverage manufacturing companies in the country, producing well-loved Pinoy brands like C2, Great Taste, Piattos, Nova, Cream-O and Cloud 9, among others. From the same parent company, GBF is a foundation dedicated to contributing to the country’s progress by helping educate its workforce in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math.

    REFERENCE:

    JEAN RICELLE A. AQUINO

    Sr. Media Relations Officer

    StratWorks, Inc.

    0927 027 8975

  • PGH calls for blood donations from COVID-19 survivors

    PGH calls for blood donations from COVID-19 survivors

    In this current situation of COVID-19 Pandemic, scientists, physicians and advocates are positively searching and creating medicines and vaccines that could possibly use for the treatment of the coronavirus disease. Currently, there’s no proven treatment yet with the use of medicines and vaccines against the novel coronavirus. However, physicians has used the century-old technique treatment that has been tried and tested on numerous illnesses.

    Since April 15, the number of people who have recovered from the coronavirus disease has surpassed the nationwide death toll. Today, there are a total of 693 recoveries and 446 deaths. Of those 446, 9 died just yesterday. So while the situation is improving, there is still much to do.

    “Filipinos continue to suffer and some eventually die from Covid 19 everyday. There is no proven treatment yet for this although different medications and regimens are being investigated. And the vaccine against the novel coronavirus is not yet available. That is why we are calling for plasma donations from Covid 19 survivors. Their antibodies  may help save patients who are still battling the disease, especially the severe and critical cases,” said Dr. Jonas Del Rosario, spokesperson for the Philippine General Hospital.

    Known as convalescent plasma therapy, the treatment is a century-old technique that has been tried and tested on numerous illnesses, most recently for diseases such as Ebola, Sars, Mers, and Swine Flu. It involves the transfusion of plasma, the liquid component of blood, from a recovered patient to a sick patient.

    Much like other organizations around the world, the PGH sees plasma therapy as a possible stop-gap to hold the virus at bay while more complex treatments are developed. “A vaccine is a year out, but what if we can use the antibodies of those who have already survived to strengthen the immune system of those still battling the virus,” said Dr. Del Rosario.

    Sen. Migz Zubiri receiving convalescent plasma treatment

    Since beginning the experimental treatment very recently, the PGH has received over 90 inquiries with more than 21 passing the criteria and at least 19 having already donated plasma. At least 5 COVID-19 patients were able to receive transfusions.

    “Right now, we are taking care of over 100 COVID-19 patients in the PGH, and some of those are severe and critical cases who have exhausted all other treatment options with no success. For them, plasma therapy could be the last resort. That’s why we’re looking for more donors,” said Dr. Del Rosario.

    Sen. Migz Zubiri

    The plasma donation process for COVID-19 survivors is fairly straightforward. When a prospective donor calls the PGH hotline, he or she is first evaluated over the phone. Once found eligible to donate, PGH personnel will conduct a home visit to get informed consent and a blood sample. After that, the donor is invited to the College of Medicine in UP Manila to donate. For all COVID-19 survivors who want to donate, you may call the PGH hotline at 155-200.

    I have attended the PGH Online Press Briefing dubbed as “From Survivor to Hero, Helping Those Still Battling the Disease” this Thursday, April 23, 2020.

    In my opinion, let us do our part in fighting against the COVID19 by staying at home, healthy mind and body, following the preventive measures and sharing our concerns to authorized government offices. Aside from that, let’s pray together that the Almighty will grant us of knowledge, wisdom, grace, peace, love, providence and healing in fighting the novel coronavirus.

    REFERENCE:

    Catherine Llanes

    Media Relations Manager

    T. +63 2-332-10-31 loc. 103

    M.+63 919 005 2173

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