Healthcare

"When health is absent, wisdom cannot reveal itself, art cannot manifest, strength cannot fight, wealth becomes useless, and intelligence cannot be applied."

~Herophilus (335–280 BC), Alexandrian physician

When I need tests or specialists not available in my primary care clinic, I go to The Medical City. Mainly because they're covered by our medical insurance and it's not too far from where I live and work. Thankfully, all my experiences with their doctors, and hospital and laboratory staff have all been good. But then, I haven't had anything serious and I've only had to stay overnight once.

Knock on wood.

Gray hulk

I think that the well-designed logo of the Philippine Heart Center (see yesterday's post) will remain timeless, but the building itself is showing its age. This is just the view of its side, unfortunately, but it is still easily recognizable as an architectural style popular in Manila in the 1970s. The architect of the Heart Center is Jorge Y. Ramos, now 76, who designed other government buildings during the time of Marcos.

Four chambers

The Philippine Heart Center is a government hospital which specializes in cardiology and other medical branches related to it. It was established by presidential decree in 1975, during the time of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos, though, apparently, it was one of the projects of his wife Imelda. I've always loved its logo.

Victorian nightmare

Alejandro Legarda was an Obstetrician & Gynecologist and had a clinic in his house. In fact, one of his sons was born in this very clinic. Yes, the skeleton is real; Alejandro used it when he was in medical school. Pardon the title, but I couldn't help it; this clinic just reminds me of Victorian sanatoriums and asylums I see in movies • LEGARDA ANCESTRAL HOUSE #3

Platinum and dark blonde

Walking along the alleys of Binondo, Manila's Chinatown, I came across a vendor selling… what the heck is it? I was promptly told that it was buhok ng mais (literally, hair of maize)—corn silk. I did a little research and it seems that corn silk is used in Traditional Chinese Medicine to prevent kidney and gall bladder stones, and for treating various urinary tract disorders. It is also a diuretic and has anti-diabetic properties. Impressive. I'll be willing to try infusions of corn silk, but I still say no to gecko tea.

Retail therapy

Many of the largest malls in Metro Manila have a section dedicated to health services: clinics, skin care centers, gyms and such. Healthway has clinics in several malls (this one is in The Block at SM City North EDSA) and it offers medical, dental and skin care services. And these are full services—they have general practitioners (family physicians) and specialists, including surgeons and anesthesiologists since they have several small operating rooms for minor procedures. I've used both their doctors and dentists several times and I'm quite happy with their services. If your medical insurance doesn't cover them, they have inexpensive annual packages that are good enough for general health care. I like the fact that they're located inside malls too. Aside from being open seven days a week, if I have to wait for a doctor to arrive or for the results of a laboratory test, I can relax at a café or go window shopping. And after spending a couple of grueling hours in a dentist's chair or being poked and prodded by a gastroenterologist, what better way to reward yourself for being a good girl (or boy) than by doing a little shopping?

Tiny bubbles

The unusual and modern water feature in the square connecting the two wings of The Medical City, a large hospital complex along Ortigas Avenue in Pasig City. While I was taking pictures of it, a security guard came up to me to ask me to stop because photos aren't allowed without the permission of the hospital's marketing officer. Hate that.

Natural or man-made, take a refreshing dip in Watery Wednesday.

Mobile clinic

I see mobile clinics like this only on two types of occasions. They go to large companies with health care benefits for their employees for scheduled annual physical examinations—more convenient than having employees go to clinics and hospitals and taking the whole day off for it. And they're also hired for big events with lots of people in venues without their own clinics. They're usually stationed in the parking lot, like this one was.

The Eew! factor of TCM

When we visited Chinatown in Binondo, one of the many places we went to was a drugstore that sold ingredients for Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM). Many cultures all over the world have their own body of herbal medicine lore, but TCM goes beyond herbal medicine and many of its ingredients are exotic, to say the least. Not so exotic but it brought out an exclamation of "Eew!" from me nevertheless, is this dried common house gecko (we call them tuko because of the distinctive sound they make). TCM states that it is good for the lungs, kidneys, blood and digestive system. Depending on what disease is being treated, it can be used alone or with other ingredients, and boiled as a tea or ground into powder. TCM is based on the idea of balance—yin and yang—and dried geckos are always sold in pairs, one male and one female. Traditional Chinese Medicine seems to be a field that even modern medical doctors and researchers find fascinating, maybe because it actually works. But I can't imagine drinking gecko tea. Can you?

Find more Odd Shots—or post your own—at Katney's Kaboodle.

Test tubes

The unusual but colorful ceiling decoration in the medical laboratory of the University of the Philippines Health Service. I was so tickled, I just had to ask the laboratory technicians—all women, which is also pretty odd for a Manila hospital—if I could take a picture of it and they kindly let me in.

Find more Odd Shots—or post your own—at Katney's Kaboodle.

Plastic, metal, wood

They say that necessity is the mother of invention. I'd like to propose another, which I think is more appropriate to this day and age: the lack of financial resources. I spotted this wheelchair at the University of the Philippines Health Service. A monoblock plastic chair with sawed-off legs attached to a custom metal frame and what looks to be bicycle wheels. Cool, isn't it? And if you're wondering about the wooden furniture, join the club. The waiting areas are full of them—chairs, benches, tables and this screen being used to cover the circuit breaker panels.

Find more Odd Shots—or post your own—at Katney's Kaboodle.

A very good option

The University of the Philippines Health Service is a 50-bed primary care hospital located inside UP Diliman. For the students, faculty, employees and dependents of UP, consultations with physicians are free. For faculty and employees, the free service extends even after retirement—a boon in one's senior years when health care costs shoot up. Not being from UP myself, I do not know if other services like laboratory tests are also free. What I am sure of is that 'outsiders' may also avail themselves of their health services, and at a very low cost compared to private clinics, hospitals and healthcare systems. I had to bring our maid to the UP Health Service recently for a recurring fever and my bill—consultation with a family physician, complete blood count (CBC) and urinalysis—came to a grand total of only PhP315, just a little above US$6. She's okay now, in case you're wondering—the recurring fever was caused by a mild infection which just required an antibiotic.

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Just a reminder to all you CDP bloggers out there: If you haven't voted for the January theme yet, please do so! The poll is in the January Theme Day Poll forum topic. Please help spread the word too!

Doctor, dean, president

Agerico B. M. Sison, M.D. graduated from the University of the Philippines College of Medicine in 1921. He became that school's fifth dean in 1951. He is also the founder and first president of The Medical City, which opened its doors to the public in 1967 as the ABM Sison Hospital. The Medical City is now one of the best hospitals in the Philippines. This bust of Dr. Sison is located in the garden oasis of The Medical City.

Shoot me

With a flu vaccine, that is. The medical insurance company of the Ateneo de Manila University offered flu vaccinations for the employees of the school and their dependents at a 50% discount—PhP400 (a little less than US$10) instead of the regular PhP800. Needless to say, many of the employees took advantage of the offer. A couple of nurses set up shop in a classroom with their disposable syringes and needles with pre-measured doses of vaccine, cotton balls and alcohol. After my shot, I kept getting asked if it was painful. No it's not. It's just like being bitten by a red ant but the pain doesn't last as long.

An oasis at the hospital

One of the biggest hospitals in Metro Manila, The Medical City along Ortigas Avenue in Pasig City has two towers. One has the doctors' offices and the other has the patients' rooms and labs. In the middle of the two is this small oasis of greenery—a respite from the clean, modern architecture and interior design of the hospital. Off one side of the meandering path is a very modern fountain; on another is a Starbucks and a Pancake House, both of which have umbrella tables outside so you can have your coffee or meal within view of the garden.

The other side of the stairwell

The fire extinguishers in the previous photo are on the left side of the clinic's stairwell. This is on the right side. The waiting area of the medical and dental clinics of the Health Alternatives for Total Human Development Institute, Inc. (HealthDev Institute) is really just a corridor with benches and this little decorative grouping. The clinic's fees are less than half of what one would normally spend seeing a doctor in a private practice and the service is much better than what one would get in a government-sponsored public hospital or community clinic—a very good alternative indeed. More than the clinics though, the HealthDev Institute also provides health development training and planning for various schools, communities and provinces in the Philippines.