Primary health care accessible to more Filipinos

For the benefit of communities in need. After reaching its 200th rural health unit milestone, BDO Foundation reaffirms its commitment to improve health facilities patient care through the rehabilitation of health centers.

To give more Filipinos access to primary health care services—this is a commitment that BDO Foundation continues to uphold as one of its core advocacies. Over the past years, the organization has been rehabilitating rural health units (RHUs) nationwide, and recently, it reached its 200th rehabilitated RHU as it turned over the newly renovated Rural Health Unit of San Jose in Camarines Sur—a major milestone for the foundation.

For BDO Foundation, this milestone serves as a driving force to continuously move forward and reach more Filipinos nationwide. 

“With every RHU we turn over, we think about the thousands of Filipinos who will benefit from the facility. We hope that through our humble contribution to the community, we empower health workers to serve their patients better and we help patients gain better access to primary health services,” shared BDO Foundation president Mario Deriquito.

The newly rehabilitated RHU of San Jose is a one-story building that serves more than 45,000 Filipinos in 29 barangays. The foundation renovated the facility, improving its interiors and exteriors, ensuring its accessibility to persons with disabilities and senior citizens, and making comfortable spaces available for breastfeeding mothers and elderly patients.

In his message to the community, San Jose municipal health officer Dr. Arnel Armea said, “This support empowers our health care personnel to perform their duties with dignity and ensure that our community receives the care they deserve.”

“With this rehabilitated facility, mayroon nang space para sa lahat!” he concluded.

The RHU, serving as the first line of defense of communities in maintaining their health and wellness, is a facility that patients go to for routine check-ups, immunization, and preventive health care.

Moving forward, BDO Foundation will continue to uphold its mission to strengthen the healthcare delivery system at the grassroots level through the rehabilitation of health facilities in partnership with local government units as well as BDO and BDO Network Bank branches. 

BDO Foundation and Institute for Solidarity in Asia forge partnership

Partners for progress. Heads of BDO Foundation, BDO Network Bank, and ISA affirm their commitment to support the partnership project.

 BDO Foundation signed a partnership agreement with the Institute for Solidarity in Asia (ISA), formalizing its support for the implementation of the Performance Governance System (PGS) for two provincial governments and five schools divisions of the Department of Education (DepEd). 

The ceremonial signing was led by BDO Foundation president Mario Deriquito (2nd from left), ISA CEO Evaristo Francisco (3rd from left), and BDO Foundation trustee and BDO Branch Banking Group head Ma. Corazon Mallillin (3rd from right). BDO Network Bank president Jesus Antonio Itchon (2nd from right), and BDO Network Bank Salary Loans Group head Alberto Quiogue (rightmost) witnessed the event.  

 

The PGS is a collaborative framework for designing and executing roadmaps for long-term reform. It collects best practices in finding strategies that would meet the rising needs of Philippine public sector institutions.

BDO Foundation, DepEd and Huawei launch partnership

 

As COVID-19 continues to affect the return of students and teachers to classrooms, the corporate social responsibility arm of BDO Unibank has been finding ways to develop innovative learning materials that can be easily accessed online and shared offline.

 

BDO Foundation partnered with the Department of Education (DepEd) and Huawei Philippines for the development of supplemental learning materials that integrate key concepts into the teaching of Science and Mathematics in schools across the country.

 

The partnership was officially launched in a virtual event witnessed by BDO Unibank and BDO Foundation chairperson Teresita Sy-Coson, BDO Foundation president Mario A. Deriquito, and BDO Foundation trustee Lucy Co Dy. Also in attendance were DepEd secretary Leonor Magtolis-Briones, DepEd undersecretary Diosdado San Antonio, DepEd undersecretary Tonisito Umali and Huawei Philippines vice president Daniel Guo.

 

The launch was highlighted by the ceremonial signing of the memorandum of agreement for the implementation of the program dubbed the Search for the Best Supplemental Learning Materials in the Teaching of Defined Key Concepts in Science and Mathematics.

 

The nationwide competition will invite participants composed of public elementary and high school teachers to develop learning modules that integrate financial literacy into the teaching of Science and Math. The most outstanding entries will receive recognition and will be uploaded on the DepEd online learning portal, where they can be readily downloaded by teachers and students all over the country.

 

According to DepEd secretary Briones, “This is very significant for us. We cannot take for granted the importance of Math and Science in basic education. Our educators and learners are fortunate because new materials will be launched to make Math and Science interesting, exciting and full of discoveries and challenges. I would like to thank BDO Foundation and Huawei Philippines for supporting this project.”

 

The initiative is in line with the shared advocacy of the foundation, DepEd and Huawei—touted as the global leader in information and communications technology infrastructure and smart devices—to promote financial inclusion among educators and learners. The contest supports the partners’ goal to institutionalize financial education in DepEd’s K to 12 curriculum.