National Telehealth Center Attends an Online Conference on Pandemic Influenza Preparedness

The National Telehealth Center, through its Field Operations Coordinator Dr. HR Aujero, attended an online conference sponsored by the Emerging Infections Network (EINet). This symposium was hosted by the Advanced Science and Technology Institute (ASTI) at their facility in UP-Diliman where necessary equipment allows real time conferencing among numerous participants. Attended by 17 APEC economies the 2008 Virtual Symposium Pandemic Influenza Preparedness: Partnerships and Continuity Planning for Critical Systems seeks to describe how private and public sectors in the APEC region can cooperate and work effectively to prepare for and respond to pandemic influenza. This videoconference promotes regional information sharing and collaboration to enhance preparedness against pandemic influenza. In order to improve preparedness regionally, it is vital to understand how each economy in the region is undertaking preparedness. Specifically, EINet's proposed aims are to:

1. Bring together economies in a dynamic, real-time discussion on preparedness through the collaboration of the health and the business/trade sectors, with a focus on critical systems continuity.
2. Share specific examples of current practices, e.g. scenario exercises, communication drills and policy evaluation.
3. Use innovative technologies (e.g. Access Grid) for real-time, virtual interchange, enhancing their utility for future collaboration and response in time of a pandemic.

Telehealth in Remote Batanes

The National Telehealth Center of the UP-Manila- National-Institutes of Health partnered with the Provincial Government of Batanes on a Telehealth Program. This program seeks to connect the doctors of Batanes to each other and to specialists from the Philippine General Hospital. Dr. HR Aujero of the National Telehealth Center was sent to Batanes on a three-month stint to implement the project. The Governor, LGU heads, local doctors, nurses, and health workers have been oriented to the project and have given their full support.

The program has three main components: telemedicine, continuing professional education, and establishing an electronic health records for RHUs. Telemedicine is simply providing healthcare to patients from a remote location. Doctors and selected nurses of Batanes General Hospital, the Provincial Health Office, the Municipality of Uyugan and the hospitals in the islands of Itbayat (Itbayat District Hospital) and Sabtang (Sabtang Community Hospital) have been trained on how to present patients through videoconferencing and how to take pictures of X-ray plates and dermatologic lesions. A number of patients' x-ray plates have been referred to the Philippine General Hospital for official reading of a radiologist. And slides have also been sent to Manila to be read by a pathologist. Other avenues that have been utilized include SMS, and MMS. The latter has been very helpful for dermatology materials.

It is also the program's goals to improve the knowledge and skills of the other health workers such as the midwives and barangay health workers. Video presentations have been produced by the National Telehealth Center in cooperation with USAID and the UP Open University's Multimedia Center for these front line healthworkers. Each session consists of a video presentation and is followed by an open forum with a specialist on the topic from the Philippine General Hospital. Two sessions have been held in the province. The first in the island municipality of Itbayat on household poisoning with Dr. Laura Aguinaldo. A session on stroke with Dr. Paul Pasco was held in the Provincial Health Office in Basco.

The last component is the utilization of the Community Health Information Tracking System, an electronic health record for Rural Health Units. This customizable, user friendly software is free, thus lowering costs for the LGUs. Pilot sites for CHITS are municipalities of Basco and Uyugan and the provincial health office. Mr Alison Perez Senior Programmer of the UP College of Medicine’s Medical Informatics Unit came to Batanes to install CHITS in the pilot sites and train the health workers on its use.

On May 16, 2008, National Telehealth Center Field Operations Coordinator Dr. Hypte Raymund V. Aujero presented to the Governor, the Sangguniang Panlalawigan for Health, and the Provincial Health Office the milestones of the program. NThC Director Alvin Marcelo, MD, FPCS, was able to send his message via video through the internet. The Governor and other officials expressed their appreciation to the National Telehealth Center for reaching out the remote province of Batanes, specially by sending a lone representative to implement the Telehealth program and live among the Ivatans, Isabtangs, and Itbayats for three months. Both the Province and NThC look forward to continuing the partnership.

UPMASA Awards Asus Eee Laptops to Deserving DttBs

Asus Eee Laptops


Dr. Ferdinand B. Pekas from Placer, Surigao del Norte.


Dr. Matthew B. Bawayan from Asipulo, Ifugao.


Dr. Yashier P. Maali from Sibutu, Tawi-tawi.


Dr. Jennifer G. Coritico from Santander, Cebu.


Dr. Cherrilyn G. Zablan from Alilem, Ilocos Sur.


Last but definitely not the least. The doctor with the most number of referrals:
Dr. Augustus Caesar Bigornia from Hungduan, Ifugao.

NThC Conducts E-Health Session with Doctors-to-the-Barrios

15 May 2008

NThC Holds DOST Telemedicine Workshop

15 May 2008 - The National Telehealth Center held a coordination workshop for the DOST Telemedicine Project at the Robbinsdale Hotel, Quezon City. The aim of the said workshop was to engage with the UP Diliman partners/programmers for the ECCS (Emergency Care Coordinating System) component and establish the expected services that the NThC will offer. In attendance were Dr. Alvin Marcelo and the entire NThC staff, Prof. Rommel Feria from the Department of Computer Science, UP Diliman Vice-Chancellor Luis Sison of the RxBox Team, Dr. Paulo Pagkatipunan and Dr. Lynn Panganiban of UP-PGH as Domain Experts. The team was able to agree on the various issues raised during the workshop, particularly, the use of SMS in the telereferral system, the need for voice patch in emergency cases, the role of the RxBox in the ECCS, and the possible software applications that need to be developed for the entire program.

NThC Organizes the 1st CHITS Annual Conference

NThC Holds 1st GIS Workshop for Health Leaders

Batanes Installs Community Health Information Tracking System

Another part of the telehealth program of the Province of Batanes and the National Telehealth Center is the installation of the Community Health Information Tracking System (CHITS). Funded by PANASIA-ICT (Singapore/ Canada) and originally designed by Dr. Herman Tolentino alongside with the healthworkers of Pasay City, CHITS is a software customized for local health centers which comply with reportorial requirements of the Department of Health. It is an open source software, which simply means everyone is free to use and modify it to fit their needs, and translates to zero cost for acquisition and updates.

Mr. Alison Perez, senior programmer of the Medical Informatics Unit of the UP College of Medicine came to Batanes on May 6, 2008 to train health workers on CHITS alongside Dr. HR Aujero of the National Telehealth Center. With the assistance of UP med students Romelyn April Imperio, Van Jerwin Mercado, Dan Michael Pineda, and Ezra Valido, the training consisted of hands-on session on using the software. Initially installed in the pilot sites of Basco, Uyugan, and the Provincial Health Office, CHITS is hoped to systematize and efficiently manage health data. Eventually, all of six municipalities, of Batanes will use the system.

Batanes Health Workers Learn Basic Computer Use

The Batanes Telehealth Project is composed of telemedicine and establishing an electronic health records (Community Health Information Tracking System or CHITS) for Batanes’s RHUs and Provincial Health Office. Computer literacy, therefore, is a very important component. On April 9-11, 2008, health workers from Basco, Mahatao, Ivana, Uyugan, and the island municipality of Sabtang assembled at the Batanes National Science High School (BNSHS) for three days of computer lessons. National Telehealth Center Field Operations Services HR Aujero, with the invaluable technical expertise of Provincial Health Office IT head Ireneo Geronimo and staff, guided the health workers on a step by step process based on the program of the National Computer Center.

The participants started by learning what is a computer and how to attach the cords and cables just in case they might need to. They were introduced to using the computer playing games just to get them accustomed to using a mouse. A number of these participants never touched a mouse before. Then, they proceeded to using a word processor which included formatting fonts, paragraphs and page, inserting pictures, and text editing. The health workers were also introduced to the world wide web. They learned how to search and email including attaching and downloading files. At the end, they were required to type, format, and print their own certificate of attendance. Also,a number of them were opening friendster accounts after hearing about it from their children and friends.

Basco Health Workers Learns Community Management of Stroke Through the Internet

After the successful, e-learning session on childhood poisoning in the northernmost inhabited island of Itbayat, it was Basco's turn to have one. On May 5, 2008 health workers and nurses in Basco, Batanes connected with Neurologist Dr. Paul Pasco of the Philippine General Hospital through the internet. National Telehealth Center Field Operations Coordinator Dr. HR Aujero and medical students Romelyn April Imperio, Van Jerwin Mercado, Dan Michael Pineda, and Ezra Valido from The UP College of Medicine facilitated the activity.

Provincial Health Officer Dr. Roel Nicolas welcomed the participants to the event. A seven-minute video on stroke was shown to the audience. Afterwards, everyone was encouraged to ask questions to Dr. Pasco in PGH. After the initial reserve of the participants, they eventually relaxed and asked their questions. Eventually even myths like “stroke three your out” were busted. Like in Itbayat, the healthworkers in Basco look forward to more sessions.