Aruga sa Batang may Cancer Initiative Implements its Telemedicine System in Bicol
The Aruga sa Batang may Cancer Initiative Project began the implementation of its telemedicine system in the Bicol Region on 13 September 2019. Instead of going to the Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital (BRTTH) in Legazpi City, three participating pediatric cancer patients had their follow-up consultation with Dr. Vincent B. Aguilar, Pediatric Hema-Oncologist in BRTTH, at the Bacon District Health Unit in Sorsogon with the support of Bacon Health District Health Officer, Dr. Jazel Saddao-Calleja.
This remote consultation was made possible through the Aruga Project Telemedicine. This online technology allows patients and their caregivers to have their follow-up consultations at the nearest participating health research unit. One of the mothers of the participating patients is grateful that with telemedicine, they will no longer have to travel from Sorsogon to Legazpi City in Albay for every consultation.
One of the participating patients is advised to stay-at-home because of her condition, which makes travel to BRTTH more difficult. With the use of the telemedicine system, online consultations for pediatric patients can be done remotely which could help improve the quality of life of pediatric cancer patients and their families.
The Aruga Project aims to alleviate the health burden among pediatric clients with cancer and their families, as well as health professionals by providing them a website where they can access information, services, and experts related to palliative care. The Telemedicine Program, a component of the project, aims to provide a web-based pediatric palliative care for cancer patients who live in conditions where access to specialists is limited.
The Aruga sa Batang may Cancer Initiative Program is implemented by the UP Open University, funded by the Philippine Council for Health Research and Development (DOST-PCHRD), and supported by the Philippine Children’s Medical Center (PCMC), Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital (BRTTH), Cebu Doctors’ University Hospital (CDUH), Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC), Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC), The Ruth Foundation for Palliative and Hospice Care, and Kythe Foundation, Inc.
