Duterte to send DOH sec to Cuba to learn better health system

http://davaotoday.com/main/economy/health/duterte-to-send-doh-sec-to-cuba-to-learn-better-health-system/

DAVAO CITY – Newly-inaugurated President, Rodrigo Duterte, said that he is sending Health Secretary Paulyn Jean Ubial to Cuba to learn how they are running their health service.

During his first meeting with the members of his Cabinet, Duterte said the Philippines could copy Cuba’s good practices in its welfare system as Filipinos continue to suffer from the inaccessible health care service.

Duterte cited the experience of doctors from the Philippine General Hospital who complained that they themselves would shell out money to help patients buy the medicines.

ref: http://davaotoday.com/main/economy/health/duterte-to-send-doh-sec-to-cuba-to-learn-better-health-system/

SONA: Grupo ng mga health worker, tutol sa Salary Standardization Law IV

Health Workers, holDAPed: Overworked, Underpaid Health Workers disgusted over PNoy’s DAP

PRESS RELEASE

July  14, 2014

References:

Bong Bulanadi, Tondo Medical Center Employees Association Vice President, 522-92-46

Gary Liberal, Jose Reyes Medical Center operating room nurse, Mobile No.09183104698

Jossel I Ebesate, AHW National President, Mobile No. 0918 927 6381

Public health workers hold a protest rally today, July 14 in front of the Department of Health (DOH) to condemn the department and the Aquino government for continuously neglecting government hospitals. Health workers, particularly nurses are growing tired of the government's failure to address the chronic understaffing in most government hospitals.

According to Mr. Bong Bulanadi, Tondo Medical Center Employees Vice President, "in Tondo Medical Center, nurses are obliged to go on 16-24 hours duty and nurse to patient ratio is 1:40-45 per shift, a severe understaffed working condition.  This is far from the Department of Health standard of nurse-patient ratio which is 1:12. In addition, salaries remain below the poverty threshold, while on the other hand, it frustrates us when we learn that the Aquino government is squandering billions in government money through Disbursement Acceleration Program (DAP)."  He reiterated that the P157 Billion wasted on DAP is more than enough to address the chronic understaffed working condition in public hospitals.  “How can a nurse provide quality service to patients with this inhuman and degrading  condition?”, he added.

Aside from understaffed situation health workers also express their vehement opposition to the continuing privatization of government health facilities. “Health workers can not simply be bought by government's shallow reasoning that it can not afford to fund the improvement of the critical capacity of government health facilities without the infusion of private capital through Public-Private Partnership/privatization,”Jossel Ebesate, AHW president emphasized.  If government can unscrupulously spend billions from the said DAP fund, that money could have tripled the annual funding of all government health facilities, supplies and medicines which is sufficient enough to provide affordable or even free quality services to the people.

           Health workers feel that the current government is useless in addressing the people's health needs. They are calling for the resignation of Health Secretary Ona for his obvious failure to resolve the perennial health problems of the people and his pro-privatization stand. They also support the ouster of President Aquino and Department of Budget and Management (DBM) Secretary Florencio Abad for the lack of moral ascendancy to govern after their involvement in a billion peso DAP controversy and failure to resolve the rampant corruption in the government. According to Gary Liberal, Jose Reyes Medical Center nurse, "While billions of pesos have been wasted in bureaucratic corruption, millions of lives have been sacrificed needlessly due to lack of basic services". ###

Health Workers breach Malacanang security, hold protest against low salaries, benefits and privatization

PRESS RELEASE

May 20, 2014

References:

Ely Estropigan, All-UP Workers’ Union-UP-PGH President
Mobile no: 0921-4668183

Robert Mendoza, AHW Secretary-General
Mobile No.  0921-2073631

Around 40 health workers from different hospitals stormed Malacanang today amidst strict security in the vicinity.

Mostly wearing white gowns and hospital uniforms, the protesters composed of nurses, doctors and other health personnel waved banners and placards and chanted calls for salary increase and adequate health budget in front of Vargas Gate.

“We have had enough! Our patience and hopes have run out! The Aquino administration is never a government for the poor! He has done nothing to alleviate our suffering and is doing everything to privatize our hospitals!”said Ely Estropigan, president of All-UP Workers Union-UP-PGH Chapter.

Health workers claimed that President Benigno Aquino III failed the Filipino people by privatizing Philippine Orthopedic Center and other public hospitals, and attacking job security through streamlining, retrenchment and contractualization.

The protesters said that worse than the previous administrations, Aquino administration had not given any salary increase. Instead of providing for mandated Magna Carta benefits, it sowed intrigues and disunity among health workers through controversial Productivity-Based Bonus (PBB) and “high-risk-low risk” classification in hazard pay provision.

Police security officers and non-uniformed men forcibly pushed the protesters towards Chino Roces bridge. Malacanang security PO1 JS Aguilar under the command of P/Supt FM Opellano tried to seize Alliance of Health Workers (AHW) secretary-general Robert Mendoza even if the protesters were already at Mendiola.

A health student who joined the protest, Mark Neri, sustained abrasions in left hand.

“What kind of “protectors” will hurt and try to abduct us health workers who are saving peoples’ lives? What kind of government will hit female health workers with shields when we are just exercising our right to assemble and freedom of expression? They are protecting corrupt officials and Napoles, but not the Filipino people!” cried Mendoza.

The health workers peacefully dispersed after the program in Mendiola. #

Nurses unite! Struggle for rights and people’s right to health!

PRESS STATEMENT

May 12, 2014

Reference: Jossel I Ebesate

AHW National President

Mobile No. 0918 927 6381

Today, on the occasion of International Nurses’ Day, the Alliance of Health Workers (AHW) -Philippines express our solidarity with the Filipino nurses and all nurses in the world who continue to offer their skills and knowledge in service of the people and stand up for people’s right to health amidst worsening economic and political crises and attacks on our rights.

As the national organization of health workers in the Philippines, we in AHW share the nurses’ dream of a united nurses and health care workers dedicated to providing services to those who need these most. We are one with the nurses and the people in our vision of a healthy society where the people and health workers are empowered and can contribute to health and development.

But we see that the people’s health situation is worsening as people’s health and interests are sacrificed in the name of profit and business interests.  We witness the suffering and deaths of many people who are impoverished, could not afford the increasing cost of public and private health care, and deprived of basic needs while those in power steal public funds, grab people’s lands and play puppet to foreign dictates. 

At the same time, we ourselves suffer from violation of our rights to jobs, living wage, benefits, and unionize. For instance, our fellow nurses in Tondo Medical Center go on duty for 16-32 hours. Nurses in government hospitals get a pay of P 18,549/month (Salary Grade 11), below the mandated Salary Grade 15 in Nursing Act of 2002 and way below the P30,000/month minimum cost of living in the NCR. Nurses in private hospitals and institutions suffer more with P6,000-P10,000 entry level monthly wages, without hazard pay and no job security. 

We realize that our commitment to serve the people is never easy when the situation that breeds poverty and ill-health continues to exist. We cannot fully save lives when lack of personnel, supplies, equipment and facilities, and poor governance ail our public health care system.   We cannot provide adequate and quality health services when our ranks need deliverance from chronic understaffing, contractualization, low and subhuman wages, poor working conditions, harassments and violation of rights. We cannot dream of better health for the people as long as the government privatizes public hospitals and health care, takes away whatever little free services the poor people receive and threatens to dislocate the poor patients and health workers.

We see that our duty to serve the people goes beyond learning the most advanced technologies and equipment in health care or reaching unreachable health statistics targets. As nurses of the people, we are duty-bound to work with the people, start where they are, uphold their interests alongside with our interests, and stand up for rights and justice.  Our duty brings us on the side of our patients and the people against threats to health and our rights, like privatization, fee for service, contractualization and streamlining, wage freeze, unreasonable power and water rates hike.  Our duty necessitates that we struggle together with our patients and the people for free, affordable, and accessible health care towards a society freed from local and foreign domination, oppression and exploitation.

This day and the days and years to come, we call on all Filipino nurses to serve the people and uphold our rights and people’s right to health, like Florence Nightingale and our own Filipino nurse-heroes like Nazaria Lagos (1851-1945), Minda Luz Quesada (1937-1995), and Mary Vita Jackson, who served the people and fellow health care workers inspite of risks and hardships. Let us stand up, unite with fellow health workers and the Filipino people, and together work for genuine societal change. #