More than a year has passed since the launch of Saving the Lives of Healthcare Workers in the Philippines (SLHCWP) and ASSIST remains dedicated to helping healthcare workers through the ongoing crisis. In the past few months, over 12,000 PPEs were distributed to health facilities nationwide and more than 7,000 healthcare workers were trained on Infection Prevention Control (IPC) for COVID-19 and Mental Health & Resilience. On-site and remote IPC assessments in hospitals have also been underway.
Dr. Linell Malimbag, Hospital Administrator of the Metro Davao Medical and Research Center, currently works as an assessor in Davao del Norte. She collaborates with participating hospitals to ensure that HCWs and hospital staff remain safe while on duty, while also reducing the risk of bringing the virus home to their families.
ASSIST’s work with medical frontliners like Dr. Malimbang has also provided deeper insight into their experiences. During the onset of the pandemic, she recalls almost 50% of the staff at her hospital resigning out of fear of getting sick. While the hospital remains dedicated to their patients’ welfare, the IPC assessments add another layer of protection for the hospital staff.
Looking back at her experiences in SLHCWP, Dr Malimbang said: “The impact of this program is like a ray of sunshine. Knowing that there are groups like ASSIST and Project HOPE that care about us and support us, I can’t measure how comforting that is.”
For partnership inquiries, please contact Francis Macatulad, Director of Projects and Strategy at [email protected]. This article is published in the October-December 2021 issue of the ASSIST Now Newsletter.
