Published May 9, 2021, 6:48 AM
Over a year after the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic caught the world by surprise, countries and institutions – both local and international – continue to grapple with impact of the health crisis.
The Philippine Red Cross, under the leadership of its Chairman and CEO Senator Richard J. Gordon, continues to serve the most vulnerable even with limited resources. (Photo from Philippine Red Cross)
Despite the challenges, certain institutions continue to cope with the changes brought by the pandemic. In the country, for instance, the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) has been at the forefront in the fight against COVID-19 – revolutionizing how to respond to a humanitarian crisis of this magnitude.
Published May 10, 2021, 12:31 AM
Philippine Red Cross joined the celebration of World Red Cross Red Crescent Day last May 8 to honor the birth anniversary of Henry Dunant, the founder of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the recipient of the first Nobel Peace Prize.
IFRC is the world’s largest humanitarian network, comprising 192 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies working to save lives and promote dignity around the world.
The country is, indeed, well-served by the IFRC’s assistance in the amount of 4.9 million Swiss francs (equivalent to approximately P260 million) from its Global Emergency Appeal to support the Philippine Red Cross as it intensifies tracing, testing and treatment of people with COVID-19.
Published May 8, 2021, 2:59 PM
The Task Group on Vaccine Evaluation and Selection (TG-VES) is closely coordinating with 31 vaccine manufacturers and developers for supply of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines in the country.
A staff member displays samples of the COVID-19 inactivated vaccine at Sinovac Biotech Ltd., in Beijing, capital of China, March 16, 2020. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei / MANILA BULLETIN)
This was disclosed by Department of Science and Technology (DOST) Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara, who heads the task group, which provides recommendations on which vaccines will be considered for negotiation and procurement.
“Dahil sa limitado na kakayahan ng Pilipinas na magsagawa ng vaccine development, ang pamahalaan sa pamamagitan po ng DOST ay nakikipag-ugnayan sa ilang bilateral partners para sa vaccine development at clinical trials (Due to the limited capacity of the Philippines to conduct vaccine development, the government through DOST is coordinating with sev
May 7, 2021
The Senate committee has already discussed bills aimed at establishing the Philippine Center for Disease Control and Prevention and the medical reserve corps.
At the hearing, the Department of Health (DOH) and IATF made suggestions to further strengthen the bill.
According to Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire, the DOH recommended that the Center for Disease Control (CDC) be placed under the Office of the Health Secretary.
It will be headed by the director-general and has 2 deputy director-generals.
It also has an administrative and communications office.
It will establish an office for epidemiology and public health surveillance, a center for reference laboratories, a center for preparedness and response planning, and a center for health evidence.
Published May 7, 2021, 5:13 PM
The Department of Health (DOH) said it is eyeing to further strengthen the country’s genome sequencing capacity in order to detect more cases of coronavirus variants.
Currently, only three institutions have the capacity to conduct genome sequencing. These are the Philippine Genome Center (PGC), University of the Philippines-National Institutes of Health (UP-NIH), and the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM).
“We would like to expand the capacity for this whole genome sequencing not just here in Metro Manila but also having strategic hubs in the other areas of the country. So kasama po iyan sa aming plano (So that’s part of our plan),” said DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire in a press briefing on Friday, May 7.