Learn more about the COVID-19 that the Pampanga provincial government will be acquiring and get yourself checked.

This was the advice given by Dr. Almario G. Jabson, President and CEO of The Medical City Clark, to members of the media during the hospital’s yearly media appreciation activity at the recently opened Hilton Clark Sun Valley Resort.

In his message, Dr. Jabson noted that 2020 was a difficult year not only for TMC Clark but for the entire world. The COVID-19 pandemic led to many deaths, months of lockdown, the closure of many businesses and joblessness.

“In spite of this pandemic, I am happy to report that we at The Medical City Clark were able to retain all our personnel. We did not retrench anyone and we even managed to register a modest growth in revenues,” Dr. Jabson reported. 

To address the needs of patients who required medical attention but did not want to come to the hospital, TMC Clark came up with the so called New Normal Services. These services include a One-Stop Shop Outpatient Complex where a patient can have Laboratory, X-Ray, Family Medicine/Primary Care Consultations, Doctor’s requests, Medical Certificate Requests and a Cashier Express Hub all in one safe zone.

If the patient does not want to visit the hospital, we will bring the hospital to them through TMC Clark on Wheels. TMC Clark on Wheels provides ready access to safe and accurate laboratory and diagnostic services in the comfort of your own home. If patients needed to consult a doctor, they could do so through Telemedicine.

At the Ambulatory Surgical Center, TMC Clark launched an 11-chair dialysis unit to cater to patients who wanted to have their dialysis done outside of the hospital setting. Another recent acquisition was the Fibroscan, an ultrasound machine that checks on the status of a patient’s liver.

“You can expect TMC Clark to introduce more new services this year like the Molecular Laboratory, Nuclear Medicine Department, the expansion of the 5h floor of the hospital for the Wellness Center and the expansion of the Hemodialysis Unit,” he added.

However, Dr. Jabson noted that there are still a lot of people who are afraid to go to the hospital because of the fear of contracting the COVID-19 virus.

“There is a challenge we are still facing this year and that is to get people to take charge of their health once more and to get themselves checked,” he said.  “I would like to assure you all, and I hope you help us spread the news, that the hospital is probably the safest place to be in.”

He explained that TMC Clark had adopted a “One Hospital, Two System Strategy” where there are separate teams handling COVID-19 and non-COVID cases. The hospital is divided into different zones and COVID-19 patents are admitted in a different zone.

“It is also important that you are aware of the state of your health so that you will be ready for the arrival of the COVID-19 vaccine. Many are hesitant to have themselves vaccinated because these vaccines were developed in record time. However, getting vaccinated will benefit you more. We have to vaccinate at least 80 percent of the total population so that we will be able to achieve herd immunity against the COVID-19 virus,” he said.

He added that the time to learn more about the COVID-19 vaccines is now and that it is important to get vaccinated.

“Let’s use this time to learn more about the vaccines that Pampanga will be getting. I would like to call on each and everyone of you to help spread the word. Get vaccinated so that we can fight COVID-19 together,” he said

Not all patients who are diagnosed with COVID-19 need to be hospitalized. Patients who can recover from the virus can do so by enrolling in The Medical City (TMC) Clark’s COVID-10 Remote Care program, a home-based recovery system for COVID-19 suspected and positive patients.

Through this program, TMC Clark aims to provide continuous care, convenience and safety and an innovative and compassionate approach to patients during this pandemic.

“This program will allow not so serious COVID-19 cases to get top of the line medical assistance in the comfort of your home,” said Dr. Almario G. Jabson, President and CEO of TMC Clark. “Through this program, we will also help reduce the risk of spreading the virus.”

Patients can enjoy four benefits if they enroll in this program.

1. Enhanced patient-physician communication. Patients receive better care when they can quickly relay their needs. Time is of essence in this pandemic and through remote care, doctors can have updates about their patients any time, anywhere.
2. Reduction in use of PPEs. With remote monitoring, staff and patient exposure can be decreased. Less usage of PPEs also translates into less cost on your medical bill.
3. Urgent care, less contact. The program will allow TMC Clark staff and doctors to provide patients with urgent care without both parties having to worry about exposure to each other.
4. Patients are more involved. When patients know about their status and their recovery progress, it creates peace of mind which further aids recovery. With remote care tracking and monitoring, they are constantly informed about their health condition.
5. Less hospital time. Through the remote care system, patients are still part of their doctor’s rounds and check-ins without being kept in the wards.

To avail of this remote care service, the patient will be assessed to see whether he needs to be hospitalized. If not, the doctor will recommend what kind of remote care and treatment approach the patient needs.

Once the patient agrees to be part of remote care, he will be enrolled in the recommended program and will be given instructions on how to use teleconsultation and who his assigned healthcare personnel will be for the duration of his recovery.

As soon as the patient is enrolled in this program, TMC Clark will keep an eye on the patient throughout the program. Daily updates from teleconsultations will keep doctors and patient on track until recovery.

The Remote Care Program is a program that TMC Clark developed together with its newest partner, Home Healthlink Innovations, Inc., a remote care solutions provider.

“We are working closely with Home Healthlink to see where and how TMC Clark can continue to give the best care possible to our patients,” Dr. Jabson said.

Personnel from the Philippine National Police (PNP) paid a courtesy visit to the leadership of The Medical City (TMC) Clark to discuss possible partnerships between the two institutions.

PNP Regional Special Training Unit 3 Officer-in-Charge PLt. Col. Miguel M. Guzman, which is based in Clark Freeport, Mabalacat, met with TMC Clark President and CEO Dr. Almario G. Jabson last Monday, January 11, 2021 to finalize the details of the Memorandum of Agreement.

Under the Memorandum of Agreement, TMC Clark will conduct a blood donation drive at the Regional Special Training Unit headquarters and will extend discounts to them on other medical services to be availed. A formal signing of the MOA is scheduled on Monday, January 25, 2021.

“Our policemen are just like the frontliners in hospitals. They continued to be on duty all throughout this pandemic and it is only fitting that we extend whatever help we can to them,” said Dr. Jabson.

The Medical City Clark has added another feather to its cap.TMC Clark won the Gold Award in the Brand and Marketing Campaign category of the 2020 Asian Hospital Management Awards for its “A Safe Zone for All Patients” Campaign.

The Asian Hospital Management Awards is a prestigious ceremony which recognizes and honors hospitals in the Asia Pacific Region. Running alongside the Hospital Management Asia conference, it is the most prominent management awards in the region. There are 13 award categories to demonstrate the innovative and progressive approach that hospitals across the region are doing to improve healthcare.

TMC Clark participated in the Brand and Marketing Campaign Category which recognizes innovative  branding and marketing campaign that led to increased awareness of the hospital. This includes the use of traditional and online marketing tools to improve visibility, brand recognition and revenue.

The hospital beat 200 other entries submitted by 89 hospitals based in 16 countries in the same category. The judges for the Brand and Marketing Campaign Category were Dr. Sandhya Mudumdar from the Joint Commission International and formerly of the National University Hospital who was the chairman; Dr. Widyatusti Wibisono of the Indonesia Hospital Association, PERSI; and Dr. Mohamed Hamdy of Al Salama Hospital, Abu Dhabi.

TMC Clark’s “A Safe Zone for All Patients” campaign was the hospital’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic has kept people away from hospitals. Even if they already need medical attention for their non-COVID 19 ailments, it is the fear of contracting the COVID-19 virus that is keeping them from going to the hospital to seek medical consults. This fear has also failed to make people realize that if they delay or leave their condition unchecked, they are putting their lives at risk.

The overall goal of the “A Safe Zone for All Patients” campaign is to bring the patients back to the hospital. To achieve this goal, TMC Clark came up with campaigns that informed the public of the measures that were undertaken to make the hospital safe not only for the healthcare workers but more importantly for the patient.

The campaigns focused on three areas:

1.       To promote the implementation of safe zones in the hospital which showcased the infection and safety protocols that the hospital implemented to make the hospital safe for patients. The hospital came up with patient education videos that started with a whole new world video, a video about the new normal practices and operation protocols.

2.       An information dissemination campaign telling patients not to delay their health and to visit their doctors. The campaign focused on the protocols that the hospital has adopted to entice the patients to return to the hospital.

3.       To promote the new normal services that the hospital came up with as an answer to the “call of the times.” These services are teleconsultation, laboratory on wheels, my results online, rapid tasking and RT-PCR testing, virtual diabetes and nutrition services consultation. These services can be availed of without having to visit the hospital.

The campaigns were conducted at the height of the community quarantine in Pampanga and in the nearby provinces. With people forced to stay home with more free time, TMC Clark saw this as an opportunity to conduct these campaigns online, primarily through Facebook, through videos, posts about the new normal services being offered and constant reminders to not delay their health and to visit their doctors when the need arises.

“This Gold Award comes in the heels of the hospital’s ISO 9001: 2015 certification. We are truly grateful that in spite of these challenges, we were able to rise up and achieve all this, all for the quality care and the safety of our patients. We will truly treasure this award because it was given during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Dr. Almario G. Jabson, TMC Clark President and CEO, during his acceptance speech.