MANILA, Philippines - Being in the industry of saving lives, healthcare professionals and workers are in most need of continuing education and training with regard to the latest medical practices and technologies.
“There are many participants in healthcare,” says Dr. Gigi Claveria, senior medical manager of Pfizer Philippines. “There are the doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and those in between — people who are involved in the whole process, from the discovery of the medicine to manufacturing and production, and distribution until it reaches the patient. We want to empower and help them in their practice.”
The global research-based pharmaceutical company’s initiative in this regard is the Good Healthcare Practices (GHP) workshop, a three-year program of learning sessions and lectures aimed at promoting quality healthcare in the country. It is also in line with Pfizer’s global mission of maintaining a quality-focused culture to ensure the safety, efficacy, and reliability of its healthcare products as well as the safety of its patients and consumers.
Now in its second year, the GHP workshop was held recently at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Quezon City, attended by close to 500 private and public healthcare practitioners from the metro and surrounding provinces. The theme for this year was “From Pill to Patients, Taking Steps Towards Quality Healthcare.”
Pfizer Philippines’ medical director Dr. Cristobal Dumo Jr. opened the morning plenary session that featured a multi-sectoral panel of distinguished speakers from both the government and private sectors, touching on topics such as quality healthcare in the Asia-Pacific region, drug development, international standards of good practice in healthcare, and quality management systems.
The speakers were Dr. Francisco Soria Jr., vice president for quality assurance of the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth); Yolanda Robles, chairperson of the Committee on Education and Advocacy of the University of the Philippines–Manila (UPM); Dean Imelda Peña of the UPM College of Pharmacy; and Professor Marina Osi of the University of Santo Tomas Graduate School.
The lecturers included Dr. Angeles Tan-Alora, chairperson of the Patient Safety Committee of the University of Santo Tomas Hospital; Dr. Cynthia Valencia, head of the Research Grants Administration Office of UPM; and Professor Nina Castillo-Carandang, health social scientist at the Department of Clinical Epidemiology of UPM.