DOH6 2013 Red Orchids Awards up
Cabatuan LGU and Hospital vie for Awards

DOH6 2013 Red Orchids Awards up

By Elsa S. Subong Tuesday 2nd of April 2013

ILOILO CITY, April 2 (PIA) -- The Department of Health-Center for Health Development 6 (DOH-CHD) is upbeat on the next round of recognizing entities working to make their places 100 percent Tobacco-Free.

DOH Regional Director Susana Madarieta said more and more local government units, health facilities and work places are making great strides in enforcing measures to protect the public from hazards of tobacco smoke and exposure to second-hand smoke.

She said the DOH Red Orchids Awards is an incentive for those entities working hard to implement a smoke-free environment.

“The Red Orchids Awards is among the many efforts of DOH to curb tobacco epidemic in our country,” Madarieta said.

The scheme is also a response to the guidelines set by the World Health Organization Framework convention on Tobacco Control and the Philippine Civil Service Commission’s memo circular no. 17, series of 2009 0n Smoke-Free Environment Policy.

For 2013, the following LGUs are the regional entries: Anilao, New Lucena, Sta. Barbara, Cabatuan, Maasin in Iloilo; Buenavista in Guimaras; and Dumalag and Roxas City, in Capiz.

For the retained hospitals, there are the Corazon Locsin Regional Montelibano Memorial Hospital; Western Visayas Medical Center; Western Visayas Sanitarium; and Don Jose Monfort Memorial Extension Hospital.

For the attached agencies, the regional entries are Ramon Tabiana District Hospital and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation-8, while for other agencies there are the Civil Service Commission, Pagcor, Bureau of Jail Management and Penology- bago City, and the DOH-CHD for regional office entry.

Awardees are chosen on the strength of their efforts to establish 100% Smoke Free-environment through the “MPOWER” tobacco control policies, which means: M-monitor tobacco use and prevention policies; P-protect people from tobacco smoke; O-offer help to quit tobacco use; W-warn about dangers of tobacco; E-enforce bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship; and R-raise taxes on tobacco.

Winners shall receive specially-designed trophies and P100,000 worth of drugs and medicines for non-communicable diseases for the LGUs and its hospitals only.

For those LGUs winning for three consecutive years a P500,000 grant to be used for tobacco control projects shall be given. (ESS/PIA-Iloilo)

Cabatuan.com - Timeline 2013