A while back we reported that Mary Johnston Hospital (MJH) was awarded an $83,000 grant from the United Methodist Women (UMW). Rev. Mark Lancaster, CIOO of E-Health Records International, Inc. (EHRI), helped draft the successful grant application with Mr. Arceo, Executive Director and Chairman of the Board at MJH, and Dr. Duran, Medical Director at MJH. This grant funded the Mother and Child Safety Program for one of the most resource deficient neighborhoods in Manila in the Philippines (Barangay 123).
We just received word that the Mother and Child Safety Program has officially launched! The program kicked off by screening patients from Barangay 123, where 58 percent of the children are malnourished; 52 percent of the children suffer from a respiratory disease (e.g. TB, viral infections); and many households lack basic sanitation. The Mother and Child Safety Program includes a milk feeding program, a Hepatitis-B immunization program, free consultations, health classes for mothers, and more.
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A month since the launch of the Mother and Child Safety Program, 86 adults and 63 children have been screened. Dr. Duran is hoping to have at least 100 adults and 100 children enrolled and treated in the program for one year. The staff at MJH is now expanding the program to include treating the other children in the their patient’s households in an effort to further eradicate the disease from the Barangay 123.
Meanwhile, Mr. Arceo, Dr. Duran and the staff at MJH are looking into the possibility of including not just the mothers and siblings, but also the caretakers of children who are positive for TB. And finally, Mr. Arceo and Dr. Duran are in the final stages of purchasing a new X-Ray machine, also funded by the grant. These tools will help MJH modernize their clinical tools, thus facilitating faster and more accurate results while saving thousands of dollars per month and possibly hundreds of lives per year.
It’s truly amazing to see how far the leadership at MJH has been able to make this $83,000 grant go, and the immediate impact it is having on their patients!
To accomplish our mission we need to do a lot more than just develop incredible software – we need to help our partner hospitals access resources and ease the pains of modernization. EHRI and our partners are very excited about this development and continue to help our partners coordinate, connect, and leverage available resources to further their missions.
Onward,
Communications Manager,
E-Health Records International, Inc.