On April 7,2010 security lapse at entrance, beside Max's restaurant, to Harrison Plaza. The guard, near said entrance, didn't inspect my luggage/subject said luggage
to scanning with metal detector.

On April 7,2010 security lapse at entrance to Bank of PI branch at Harrison Plaza. The guards, at entrance to said branch, didn't inspect my luggage/subject said luggage to scanning with metal detector.


On April 7,2010, employee, at SM Appliances store at Harrison Plaza, didn't tell me who would install airconditioner I was planning to buy from said store. Said employee was identified as Wilmer.


On April 7,2010, employee at Chowking restaurant at Harrison Plaza didn't have required health certificate at the required area on the clothing she was wearing. Also, no required sign at customer area of said restaurant regarding express lane for senior citizens, contrary to Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2003.




DOH ADVOCATES FOR WELLNESS THROUGH COMPLIANCE TO MEDICINES REGIMEN

Press Release/12 March 2010

With medicine prices going down, the DOH is now reminding our public to use medicines rationally and to complete their prescribed treatment regimen.

Local and international trends are geared towards wellness. Rather than be burdened with the high costs of treatment, especially of hospitalizations, people tend to prefer to invest in the prevention of diseases and the promotion of healthy lifestyles and environments. This wellness concept saves money and improves quality of lives.

“Engaging in sports promotes Wellness. Like sports and healthy lifestyles, compliance to medicines regimen is also Wellness. If you take your prescribed medicines rationally and correctly, you will feel better, live longer, be more productive, and have a good quality of life,” Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral stated.

The DOH has launched this “Compliance to Medicines is Wellness” campaign today in ceremonies held at the Philippine Sports Commission compound, the training grounds for Manny Pacquiao during his amateur days. It was witnessed and supported by PSC Chair Harry Angping, a key official in the promotion of Sports and Wellness in the country. The event aims to promote sports and the rational use of medicines.

“Our efforts to bring down prices of medicines would be incomplete if people persist on not completing their treatment,” Cabral explained. “One common malpractice is when patients stop completing antibiotic courses when their symptoms are gone because it costs too much money to complete a course. But this leads to antibiotic resistance which in turn pushes doctors to prescribe more expensive antibiotics later on.”

An example is the antibiotic Amoxicillin which is just around three (3) pesos. To complete a treatment of seven (7) days and cure you of a bacterial infection, you need 21 capsules that cost 63 pesos only. If the infection becomes resistant to Amoxicillin, to complete a course of another antibiotic, this may cost from 700 pesos to more than 1,000 pesos.

Cabral further mentions that, “Even if you suffer from chronic diseases like diabetes or hypertension, regular intake of prescribed maintenance drugs promises a better quality of life, with less risk for complications or hospitalizations. The lowered costs of medicines now allow our people to comply and complete their treatment courses and take their medicines religiously, if needed.”

These lowered prices of medicines are due to initiatives by government to engage industry to bring down their prices as well as to the competition provided for by lower priced generics whether from local or from multinational sources.

“What we are promoting here are low cost medicines, whether branded or generic. These medicines offer competition that put pressure on high priced medicines to bring down their prices. Generic competition helps and even multinational companies now are geared towards having quality affordable generic lines for their products,” Cabral stressed.

“Manny Pacquiao is our hero. His discipline is an inspiration to us all. And we want our people to exhibit the same discipline in taking medicines as Manny does in training for fights especially now that medicine prices are going down,” Cabral said.

The DOH announced last month the second round of government mediated price reductions that covered 98 medicines. These covered medicines for dialysis, cancer, prostatic disorders, asthma, depression, hypertension, among others. A majority of these price cuts would be effective March 31, 2010. The first round happened August last year where prices of more than 100 medicines were cut by 50%.



http://www.doh.gov.ph/node/2634
DOH RELEASES DATA ON ACCIDENTS AND INJURIES, URGES PUBLIC TO TRAVEL SAFE THIS SUMMER

Press Release/30 March 2010

All roads must lead to safety. This is the battlecry of the Department of Health (DOH) as it urges the public to take precautions against common accidents and injuries now that more people are flocking to local tourist destinations and pilgrimage sites as summer vacation for schools and Holy Week celebration start.

The DOH also found it fitting to release the initial reports of the newly-installed National Electronic Injury Surveillance System (NEISS), a web-based system that will electronically capture injury-related data from 65 participating government and private hospitals in the country.

The NEISS registered a total of 6,503 injury cases for the period August to December 2009. Nearly 60% of the total cases occurred in the 15-44 years old age group. Children less than five years accounted for 7.3% and the elderly or 65 years and over accounted for 2.8%.

There were more male victims (71.3%) than females (28.7%), a ratio of almost 3:1. Majority of those who sustained injuries were Filipinos (99.5%), with other nationalities making up the remaining miniscule portion.

The highest number of injuries occurred in Regions XI (Davao) and III (Central Luzon) with 39.6% and 33.5% respectively. Injury cases were highest in December (30.9%) and in October (28.1%). December was a holiday season where traveling and partying were common, while the entire Luzon was hit by a series of calamities in October.

More than two-thirds (67%) of the total injury cases were unintentional or accidental and around 30% were intentional. Close to 15% were cases of multiple injuries. The most common types of injury were abrasion (38.5%), open wound/laceration (33.8%) and contusion (22.2%).

Leading the list of internal causes of registered injuries were transport/vehicular accidents (27.7%), followed by mauling incidents (24.5%). There were also cases of injuries caused by sharp objects (10.1%) bites and stings (4.8%), burns (1%), chemical substances (0.2%), hanging and strangulation (0.1%) and drowning (0.05%).

Most of the injuries occurred on the road (41.1%), with 16.7% occurring at home. 33.8% of the cases had unspecified place of occurrence.

A considerable number of injury cases (56.1%) had no record of the victim’s activity at the time of the incident, but among those whose activities were recorded, 12.7% of the injuries were leisure-related and 7.3% work-related.

Majority of the victims (99.7%) reached the hospital alive and only 0.26% were pronounced dead on arrival. Nearly 80% of the victims were discharged after being treated at the ER or OPD and 8.1% were eventually admitted for further treatment. Among those admitted, the condition of 16% improved while 0.2% eventually died.

From the 6,503 injury cases, a total of 1,802 were caused by transport/vehicular accidents. Collision incidents accounted for 30.3% of these. More cases occurred in December (32.7%) and almost two-thirds (62.4%) occurred between 8:00 am and 7:59 pm.

More males (73%) were involved than females (27%). More people from the 15-44 years old age group were also involved (60.4%). Motorcycles, tricycles and bicycles were the most commonly involved modes of transport (41.4%), while 12% of the victims were pedestrians.

Only 7.3% of those injured while riding motorcycles used helmets. A similarly dismal percentage of victims (6.9%) wore seatbelts inside a car, van or bus. Driving under the influence of alcohol/liquor (13.2%) topped the list of risk factors for transport/vehicular-accident related injuries. Majority of the injured reached the hospital alive (99.72%), while 60% of those who were pronounced dead on arrival were riding a motorcycle.

“These kinds of accidents and injuries are preventable if we give road safety the attention it rightfully deserves”, Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral said. “We urge the national government agencies and local government units to come together to address issues concerning road users, road infrastructure and motor vehicles for our roads to be made safer”.

Cabral also cited several simple safety tips for the road-using public: drive within speed limits, do not drive under the influence of alcohol or drive while using a cellular phone, use seatbelts and child restraints inside vehicles, wear helmets for motorcycle riders, use vehicle lights and reflective clothing and gears to see and be seen on the road (especially for users of two- or three-wheeled vehicles), and obey traffic rules at all times



DOH STRESSES IMPORTANCE OF CLEAN, SAFE DRINKING WATER

Press Release/30 March 2010

The Department of Health today reminded the public to make sure that their drinking water is safe in the face of an impending water crisis, and in observance of the “Clean Water & Energy Week”. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo had earlier declared, through Presidential Proclamation No. 23, that March 22-28 is “Clean Water & Energy Week for a Healthy World” in support of the United Nations Declaration marking March 22 as “World Day for Water”.

“Make your drinking water safe by bringing it to a rolling boil for at least two minutes”, advised Health Secretary Esperanza Cabral, adding that this will kill bacteria and other micro-organisms that cause diarrhea and other food- and water-borne diseases.

Secretary Cabral also reiterated that personal hygiene practices such as washing hands after using the toilet and before and after handling food can be of huge help in the prevention of disease.

Food- and water-borne diseases, such as cholera and typhoid fever, are some of the leading cases of morbidity and mortality in the country. Cholera, which commonly manifests first as diarrhea, can lead to dehydration and even death if not treated swiftly. Typhoid, on the other hand, is accompanied by sustained high fever, headaches, weakness and constipation or abdominal discomfort.

“Giving attention to clean and safe drinking water is all the more important given the looming water supply shortage due to El Nino”, Cabral stressed.