The Department of Health in its Department Memorandum No. 2012-0138 signed by Madeleine de Rosas-Valera, MD, MScIH (Heidelberg), Assistant Secretary for Health Policy Finance and Research Development Cluster, extended the deadline for securing Special License to Operate for Botika ng Barangay from the Food and Drug Administration until 30 June 2012.

All Botika ng Barangay outlets in the Region are now being advised to submit pertinent documentary requirements through the Food and Drug Administration (Region I) located at the Health Regulations Division, Center for Health Development for Ilocos, Parian, San Fernando City, La Union.

Pursuant to Republic Act 10069 signed on 06 April 2010, May 7 of every year is declared as a special working holiday to be known as "Health Workers' Day Act" to give due recognition to the important role and contributions of the health workers who provide vital health services to the people and to promote their rights and welfare and enhance their sense of worth and dignity.

Section 4 of the RA says that "All heads of government health facilities, offices and instrumentalities, including government-owned and -controlled hospitals, as well as local government health units, and employers in the private sector, shall encourage and afford sufficient time and opportunities for their employees to engage and participate in any activity to mark "Health Workers' Day" to ensure the meaningful observance of the holiday as herein declared."

MABUHAY ANG MGA MANGGAGAWA NG KALUSUGAN!

In pursuit of the DOH’s goal to have at least one trained responder for each household, we conduct First Aid and Basic Life Support Training to as many sector of the population as possible. Hence, we readily accommodated the request of the Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University Mid-La Union Campus (DMMMSU-MLUC) for such training. It was conducted from April 2-4, 2012 in the campus itself, in coordination with their Health Service Department led by Dr. Ruly N. Cirilo.

The CHD-1 HEMS organized its pool of trainers in La Union composed of representatives from this office, the Ilocos Training and Regional Medical Center,the La Union Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council and the San Fernando City Health Office. We utilized the pool since the participants numbered to 123 students which we had to break into four groups with respective set of trainers to facilitate better learning.

In a capsule, the course consisted of lectures and actual demonstrations about common emergency conditions, wound bandaging, splinting, safe techniques in carrying patients, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, rescue breathing and foreign body airway obstruction management. The student-trainees were given written examination and graded return-demonstration to gauge their comprehension of the knowledge and skill which should be acquired.

The Department of Health (DOH) through the National Center for Pharmaceutical Access and Management (NCPAM) and the Formulary Executive Council (FEC), is in the process of revising the implementing guidelines for the Philippine National Formulary System (PNFS). Among others, the revised guidelines shall describe a new format of the Philippine National Formulary and the system and processes for the promotion of the use of the formulary among the different levels of healthcare managers, providers and consumers.

Cognizant of the importance of inputs from stakeholders and partners in this policy revision, a public consultation on the Draft Administrative Order entitled "Revised Implementing Guidelines for the Philippine National Formulary System (PNFS)" will be held on 04 May 2012, 9:00 am to 1:00 PM, at the Department of Health Convention Hall, San Lazaro Compound, Sta. Cruz, Manila

The public is hereby reminded on the following Health Advisory this Summer Season.

• Boil
• Food Safety
• Haze
• Heat Stroke
• Prickly Heat
• Sunburn
• Water Sanitation
• Summer Time in General

Surveillance Method

The period covered in this Lenten monitoring report is from April 1-8, 2012. The cases were gathered by our four Provincial Health Team Offices (PHTOs), three DOH-retained hospitals namely the Ilocos Training and Regional Medical Center (ITRMC), Region I Medical Center (R1MC) and Don Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical Center (MMMH&MC). A few cases were reported by the RDRRMC1 Operation Center based at the Office of Civil Defense Region 1. The CHD-I HEMS Operation Center staff encoded, consolidated, and analyzed the data using EpiInfo 2000 software.  Comparison was made with the data last year, which was from April 19-25, 2011.

Our Findings

A total of 72 emergency events were reported from April 1 to 8, 2012 with 94 casualties.  This is 12% lower than the total count of 82 events during last year’s Lenten with 112 casualties.

There were more vehicular crashes (VC) in 2011 than in 2012 although in terms of proportion, VCs still comprise majority of emergency incidents that were recorded in both years (77% in 2011, 49% in 2012). The table below shows other comparison.

Hepatitis B is a major public health problem in the Philippines with an estimated 7 million people (10-20% of the population) chronically infected with the virus. To curb the burden caused by Hepatitis B infection, the Philippines is committed to control Hepatitis B infection and reduce the prevalence to <1% among future births cohorts. This is in line with the hepatitis B goal of the World Health Organization - Western Pacific Region. To achieve this goal, an assessment of the Hepatitis B birth dose administration at the different health facilities will be conducted to provide baseline data on the current prevalence of Hepatitis B infection among under 5 years old that will be the basis for evaluating future progress towards Hepatitis B control.

The assessors will be Dr. Alexie Marrero (EPI Coordinator for DOH CAR) and Ms. Clarita Lewis (EPI Coordinator for DOH Ilocos).

Scheduled assessment for May 2-4, 2012 are as follows:

May 02, 2012 (Assessors includes Ms. Milagros Pula and Ms. Gabriela Rosete)

• Gov. Roque B. Ablan Sr. Memorial Hospital
• Dingras District Hospital
• Paoay Rural Health Unit
• Badoc Rural Health Unit
• Sta. Teresita Hospital
• Bacarra Medical Hospital

April 17 was declared by as National Hemophilia Day and the month of April as National Hemophilia Awareness Month pursuant to Proclamation Number 1478 signed on April 03, 2008.

The Department of Health was then designated as the lead agency in collaboration/coordination with the Hemophilia Association of the Philippines for Love and Service (HAPLOS) Foundation Inc. and the Philippine Hemophilia Foundation. Furthermore, the Department of Education (DepEd), the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), PhilHealth, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), all government hospitals, and other related government agencies and appropriate Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) are being enjoined to extend their utmost support and cooperation in the commemoration of this event.

What is Hemophilia?

Hemophilia (heem-o-FILL-ee-ah) is a rare bleeding disorder in which the blood doesn't clot normally.

If you have hemophilia, you may bleed for a longer time than others after an injury. You also may have internal bleeding, especially in your knees, ankles, and elbows. This bleeding can damage your organs and tissues and may be life threatening. The cause is a factor deficiency in the plasma of the blood needed to coagulate the blood for it to clot.