NThC Summer Outing at Calaca, Batangas

SMS Telemedicine Project for DTTBs

On October 10, 2007, Dr. Kenneth Ronquillo, Director of Health and Human Resource Development Bureau (HHRDB) and Dr. Portia Grace Marcelo, Assistant Chief of Community Oriented Medical Education Unit representing UP Manila Chancellor Ramon L. Arcardio spearheaded the MOA signing of the SMS Telemedicine Project with DTTBs at the Chali Beach Resort in Cagayan De Oro City.

The SMS Telemedicine Project for DTTBs is the use of SMS as the primary ICT modality for accepting referrals from Doctors-to-the-Barrios assigned throughout the Philippines. The main goal of the project is to extend the health services of the National TeleHealth Center to the remote and underserved areas of the country through the DTTB Program of the Department of Health (DOH).

Orientation and Training of TelePsychiatry Project in Infanta, Quezon

On March 10, 2008, Dra. Lourdes Ignacio, President of World Association for Psychosocial Rehabilitation Philippines (WARP) and the National Telehealth Center went to Infanta,Quezon to launch the Orientation and Training of TelePsychiatry Project. The event was attended by the Municipal Health Officer,doctors,nurses and IT personnels. Dr. Lourdes Ignacio talked about the need for psychiatric services in the area due to the scarcity of psychiatrists in the Philippines. Protocols containing established management of psychiatric patients were also presented. In the afternoon, Dr. Alvin B. Marcelo, Director of the National Telehealth Center presented Telemedicine in the Philippines and the other on-going projects. Telehealth Nurse- Pia Tolentino discussed the basics of Videoconferencing for future teleconferencing needs of the health workers.

TeleSurgery Project

The TeleSurgery is a joint project of the National Telehealth Center and the Department of Surgery. This endeavor is composed of three components namely TeleRounds, Tele-OR and Tele-SICU.

TeleRounds

TeleRounds is the installation of wireless access to Wards 2 and 4(Surgery Wards). A mobile laptop cart is being used to make rounds. The goal of this component is to be able to help the consultants do their rounds virtually and assess their patients in the hospital even they are not physically present

Tele-SICU

Tele-SICU (Surgery ICU) has the same set-up and activities with the telerounds. The difference of Tele-SICU from Telerounds is the implementation inside the intensive care unit. The added activity besides viewing the ICU patients, TeleSICU is also intended for monitoring the contraptions(ventilators,heart monitor) attached to the patients which serve as a telemetry aspect.

Tele-OR

The Minimally Invasive Surgical Room is connected to the OR Conference Room via closed-circuit televisions (CCTV).Using this system,the goal is to provide an avenue of telementoring of General Surgeons located in MISR to the residents located in the OR conference room. Tele-OR is an interactive learning of different surgical procedures in real-time.

Itbayat, Batanes Health Workers E-learn on Childhood Poisoning

Health Workers from the five barangays of the Island Municipality of Itbayat (3-4 hrs north of Basco by boat) came together at the Itbayat National Agricultural High School (INAHS) on April 22, 2008 for an e-learning session on common household poisoning. Defined as remote professional learning and monitoring competence, e-learning aims to deliver continuing education to remote areas via Information Communication Technology.

Medical Students Romelyn April Imperio, Van Jerwin Mercado, Dan Michael Pineda, and Ezra Valido from The UP College of Medicine came to Itbayat, a fishing and farming community with a population of 3109, to facilitate the activity along with the National Telehealth Center Field Operations Coordinator Dr. HR Aujero. A 10 minute video produced by the National Telehealth Center, USAID, and National Poisons Control Center was shown onsite at the INAHS computer lab. After the video, the BHWs had an open forum with Dr. Laura Aguinaldo, a toxicology fellow of the National Poisons Control Center, who was located at the National Telehealth Center office in UP-PGH. The participants at Itbayat were able to ask questions and hear Dr. Aguinaldo's answers live through the technology of the internet. The BHWs reactions were very positive and said they hope for more sessions. The closing remarks were given by the Itbayat Chief of Hospital and MHO designate Dr. Jordan de Sagon who thanked the students from UP and the National Telehealth Center for reaching out the health workers of Itbayat. Other e-learning videos available for download at www.teheleath.ph are: stroke, bird flu, and tuberculosis.

NThC Explores Possibility of Conducting Telepsychiatry in CM Recto District Hospital in Infanta Quezon.

The National Telehealth Center, in coordination with the UP-PGH Department of Psychiatry, has taken the primary steps in exploring the possibility of establishing a TelePsychiatry in the Quezon Province particularly General Nakar, Real and Infanta. As everybody can remember, the areas was devastated by a major landslide which caused millions of damage to property and has claimed more than a hundred lived. As a result, it has been reported that Psychiatric cases in the region has increased but such cannot be addressed with the lack or absence of Psychiatrists in the area. In line with such inability of the area, The Department of Psychiatry, spearheaded by Dra. Lourdes Ignacio, consulted Dr. Alvin B. Marcelo, Director of the National Telehealth Center, the possibility of establishing a Telepsychiatry with the area, particularly that of Claro M. Recto District Hospital in Infanta. Dr. Ignacio's team of Psychiatrists which included some residents and fellows, visit Infanta on monthly basis for consultations and prescription of medicines of about 50 patients. On January 14, 2008 NThC technical assistant Al Merca went with the team to inspect the hardware currently being used in the site and further evaluate the system/ software. Moreso, Mr. Merca also met up with Mr. Cunard Pearson, the techincal resource person in the hospital and discussed the required bandwidth and the necessary upgrades regarding the hardware. After a thorough evaluation by NThC Systems Administrator Eric Pareja, the CM Recto District Hospital is now capable of conducting teleconference with UP Manila National Telehealth Center.

NThC holds e-Learning for Health with Batanes

NThC Joins Batanes PHO and Provincial Government in Giving a Symposium on Reproductive Health for High School Students

Due to the increasing number of teen pregnancies and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs), the provincial government thought of increasing awareness of the high school students on matters of sexuality. The target audience were junior and senior students of the Batanes National Science High School. This measure also aims to arm the students leaving for college with the proper attitude and knowledge to keep themselves safe from sexually transmitted infections and pregnancies.

The National Telehealth Center field operations coordinator, Dr. HR Aujero joined Dr. Alethea de Guzman of the PHO, Mr. Jong Valientes, provincial administrator, and DOH representatives Ma. Leticia Bayaras, RN and Cristeta Afrondoso, RN on the morning of March 18, 2008 at the BNSHS. The topics covered were: Fertility, Human Sexuality, Myths and Facts, and Sexually Transmitted Infections. Also present at the event was Dr. Elaine Aguto (UPCM INTARMED 2006) an Ivatan herself and graduate of the Ivana National High School.

Forty-one students attended, mostly (38) girls. Majority of the students learn about sex from books and magazines followed by the internet. The symposium cum workshop came at the right time as a lot of them will be leaving for the mainland for college and that their knowledge about contraception is limited. Only 12 or 29% say they are aware of contraception. Furthermore all of the students say that they do not discuss sex with their parents. Forty of the students say they never had sex, only one did not indicate whether he/she ever did it. Other risky practices like smoking (3 do smoke), alcohol use (6), and illegal substance use (0) were quite unpopular for the students. At the end of the session, the students were shown how to properly use a condom.

National Telehealth Center Takes Part in Various Activities in Batanes

On the second week of March, Basco served as the venue of various activities. As part of establishing linkages and integrating in the community, HR Aujero, MD represented the National Telehealth Center. He also introduced and promoted the telehealth initiatives of the Province of Batanes to these visitors.

On March 13, the Ateneo de Manila University representatives of the Leaders for Health Program held a workshop on Technical Assistance Support Structures for LGU Department Heads for the two municipalities under the Leaders for Health Program namely Ivana (Dr. Alethea de Guzman) and Uyugan (Dr. Richard Lariosa). Dr. HR Aujero actively took part in the workshop, not just as a representative of the National Telehealth Center, but as another doctor in the community.

The next day, March 14, saw the arrival of the Southern Tagalog Group of Psychiatrists who held a symposium on various topics on Psychiatry and had a consultation for psychiatric patients and Special Education students. Among the topics discussed is alcohol abuse, a very relevant topic, since alcohol use, specially gin, is very prevalent in the province. In fact, the Batanes General Hospital has an ongoing program of alcohol abuse prevention among the young.

The first South-east Asian women on Mt Everest, along with the PAL Mountaineering Club, were in town to hold a workshop on basic mountaineering skills for boy scouts and guides on March 14. And on March 15, Team Everest conquered Mt. Iraya. Dr. HR Aujero joined them on this climb. Dr. Ted Esguerra, expedition doctor, shared his experiences on various climbs and how he was able to apply telemedicine in the harshest and remotest regions. Armed with a backpack of hi-tech medical equipment and satellite internet connection on his laptop, he was able to transmit live auscultation and video feed to his colleagues and their students in Stanford University. Dr. Esguerra expressed his confidence in Filipino ingenuity in developing similar technologies. He also extends his appreciation to Doctors to the Barrios in serving the remote areas of the country.

Batanes Provincial Government Re-Opens the Sabtang Community Hospital

On March 10, 2008, the Provincial Government lead by Gov. Telesforo Castillejos and Provincial Health Officer Dr. Roel Nicolas re-opened the Sabtang Community Hospital, a 10-bed primary hospital. After almost ten-years of crossing the treacherous sea just to be seen by a doctor, the people of the island municipality of Sabtang (pop 1600) stands to benefit from the hospital. This development was warmly accepted by the I-Sabtangs ably led by Mayor Max Babalu.

The event was celebrated by blessing the facility and having a health fair afterwards. Services rendered were medical consultations (Dr. Roel Nicolas, Dr. Alethea de Guzman, and Dr HR Aujero of the National Telehealth Center), BP taking, Fasting Blood Sugar determination, BMI and waist-hip ratio taking, and Kapadinungan sa Kalusugan (KSK) [the province health insurance system] enlistment. A scalp abscess and lipoma were operated on by Dr. Aujero and Dr. de Guzman respectively.

Now the Rural Health Unit has an additional ally in giving health services to the people of Sabtang and its visitors. Further expansion and improvement of the Sabtang Community Hospital is being planned.

The Director's Birthday Party

17 April 2008 - NThC had a party for Dr. Alvin Marcelo, who celebrated his birthday last April 14, 2008.

NThC receives visitors from Bhutan

17 April 2008 - Mr. Tashi Dendup (Bhutan) and Mr. Benny Sablaya (Paibare) visited the NThC premises to view the projects.

NThC attends the km@doh

11 April 2008 - Dr. Alex Gavino, Ms. Pia Athena Tolentino and Ms. Alexandra Belle Bernal attended the "Knowledge Management @ DOH" Conference at the Hyatt Hotel and Casino, Manila.

NThC joins the April PICATA meeting

9 April 2008 - Dr. Alvin Marcelo joined the meeting of the Pacific Islands Chapter of the American Telemedicine Association (PICATA) via videoconferencing with Hawaii and Seattle, USA.

NThC attends the 4th KEC of the PhilCeCNet

3-4 April 2008 - Dr. Alvin Marcelo, Dr. Alex Gavino and Ms. Pia Athena Tolentino attended the 4th Knowledge Exchange Conference for e-Centers of the Philippine Community e-Centers Network (PhilCeCNet) held at the Heritage Hotel, Manila. NThC, in cooperation with the Last Mile Initiative of the USAID, handed out e-Learning for Health video CDs to the different CeCs.

NThC Activities (March 2008)

27 March 2008
Dr. Franco Antonio Felizarta, an Infectious Disease/HIV Specialist from USA, delivered a lecture on "HCV Infection" at the CeCOME Conference Room, UP College of Medicine.

13 March 2008
NThC conducted a training on "e-Health for Health Workers (CHITS Level 1)" for San Jose del Monte, Bulacan City Health Office and Gawad Kalusugan staff.

10 March 2008
Dr. Alvin Marcelo and Ms. Pia Athena Tolentino joined the TelePsychiatry team for a site visit at Infanta, Quezon. Ms. Tolentino delivered a lecture on "Videoconferencing."

3 March 2008
The DOST Telemedicine Project was formally launched at the PGH Dining Hall with project proponents from UP Diliman and UP Manila in attendance.

3 March 2008
Dr. Hypte Raymond Aujero was deployed to Batanes for a 3-month immersion to establish an e-Health facility in the province.

NThC Activities (February 2008)

28 February 2008
Dr. Angel Bandola of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology delivered a lecture on "Basic Ultrasound for Obstetrics and Gynecology" at the NThC Conference Room.

22 February 2008
Pilot testing of the TeleOR project which connected the Minimally Invasive Surgical Unit (MISU) to the OR Conference Room.

21-23 February 2008
Roxas Site Visit by the BuddyWorks team.

12 February 2008
NThC attended the 10th Anniversary and 6th University Science and Technology Week Celebration of the National Institutes of Health with the theme, "Health Research Towards the Achievement of the Millennium Development Goals" held at the Century Park Hotel, Manila. Dr. Alex Gavino presented a paper on "Design and Implementation of Telehealth Services in the Philippines."

1-2 February 2008
NThC attended the 15th Grand Scientific Symposium of the UP College of Medicine with the theme, "The Brain & Behavior: Optimizing Function from Birth and Beyond" held at the Hyatt Hotel and Casino, Manila.

NThC Activities (January 2008)

29 January 2008
Ms. Pia Athena Tolentino delivered a lecture on “Telehealth Nursing in the Philippines” via videoconferencing between UP Manila and UP School for Health Sciences, Palo, Leyte.

29 January 2008
Teleconsultation between EVRMC and Dr. Millicent Tan-Ong as Rheumatology Domain Expert.

8 January 2008
NThC joined the UP Centennial Kick-off motorcade and activities at UP Diliman.

NThC Activities (December 2007)

18 December 2007
NThC celebrated its Christmas Party at Don Henrico’s Restaurant, Pedro Gil, Manila.

18 December 2007
NThC joined the UP Manila Lantern Parade with a lantern entry.

17-18 December 2007
NThC held its teambuilding workshop at Pansol, Laguna.

13 December 2007
Alexander Vo, PhD, Executive Director of the AT&T Center for Telehealth Research & Policy at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB), delivered a lecture on “UTMB Electronic Health Network Systems and Programs” at the PGH Science Hall.

11 December 2007
NThC joined the “Adopt-a-Ward Program” of the UP Manila Christmas Celebrations Committee at Ward 15 (Obstetrics Ward).

NThC Activities (November 2007)

14 November 2007
NThC met with Ateneo de Zamboanga University (ADZU) officials for collaboration projects on CHITS and Telemedicine.

1-3 November 2007
Dr. Alex Gavino presented a paper on “Free and Open Source Software for Health” at the 3rd National Conference of Telemedicine Society of India and the 12th International Society for Telemedicine and e-Health International Conference held at Chennai, India.

NThC Activities (October 2007)

11 October 2007
NThC conducted an e-Health lecture and hands-on training on CHITS for DTTBs as part of their Continuing Medical Education Program at Cagayan de Oro City.

10 October 2007
NThC launched the SMS Telereferral for DTTBs (DTTB-100) with the MOA signing held at the Chali Beach Resort, Cagayan de Oro City.

NThC Activities (September 2007)

29 September 2007
Dr. Alex Gavino presented the “National Telehealth Service Program” at the Health Informatics Conference held at the PGH Science Hall.

7 September 2007
e-Learning for Health (Tuberculosis and Bird Flu Modules) with Barangay Health Workers from the Province of Capiz and Dr. Nina Berba as Infectious Disease Domain Expert.

NThC Activities (August 2007)

31 August 2007
Dr. Paul Fontelo of the Office of High Performance Computing and Communications, National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health gave a lecture on “Evidence-Based Medicine Resources at the National Library of Medicine (NLM) for the Mobile Clinician” at the NIH Conference Room, UP Manila.

21 August 2007
e-Learning for Health (Stroke Module) with participants from the Province of Nueva Vizcaya and Dr. JP Reyes as Neurology Domain Expert.

14-16 August 2007
Leyte Site Visit (EVRMC and UPM-SHS) by the Buddyworks Team.

NThC Activities (July 2007)

23-25 July 2008
Tuguegarao Site Visit by the BuddyWorks Team.

10-12 July 2008
Iligan Site Visit by the BuddyWorks Team.

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NThC Activities (1998)

HISTORY

The National Telehealth Center of the University of the Philippines Manila was established in June 1998 through a University of the Philippines Board of Regents Resolution with the mandate to increase access to health information and services through information and communications technology.

VISION

The Center shall be the premier center in the field of information and communications technology applications for health . Cognizant of the public health needs and the limitations of technology, the Center shall strive to put to action health solutions in an environment without borders through teamwork, empowerment and innovation.

MISSION

The National Telehealth Center exists to promote the use of telehealth and related technologies in forming strategic partnerships with stakeholders in the delivery of services where such concepts are applicable. This shall be accomplished through responsible and innovative use telecommunications and computer technologies.

Through the development of sustainable telehealth applications and through collaborations with organizations, health professionals, health workers, clients and community at large, the National Telehealth Center will lead in the promotion of the responsible use of the technology in health, ensure quality in its endeavors, and empower its clients through information and knowledge exchange.