PHL CONSULATE GENERAL IN HONG KONG HOLDS MEDICAL CONSULTATIONS AND LECTURE ON WELLNESS

The Philippine Consulate General in Hong Kong organized a Medical Consultation Project and a Lecture on Wellness held at its premises on October 7.

The said activity was organized in cooperation with the Philippine Medical Association (PMA)-Southern Tagalog Region and Cavite Medical Society, Dr. Alvin Yee-shing Chan, Treasurer of the Confederation of Medical Associations of Asia and Oceania, the Philippine Association of Hong Kong, and Philippine Airlines (PAL).

A total of 253 Filipino workers were examined by the medical team from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in the Consulate’s Conference Room.

The participating doctors were Dr. Oscar Tinio, past PMA President, members of the Cavite Medical Society, namely, Dr. Benjamin Mangalinan Alaban, Dr. Jennifer Alincastre-Alaban, Dr. Arnulfo Asis Zenarosa, and Dr. Arlene Garcia Zenarosa, and Dr. Louis Gerard Agustin, a doctor undergoing training on breast cancer surgery at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Hong Kong.

The six Filipino doctors conducted physical examinations on the patients, recording vital signs such as blood pressure, pulse rate, heart rate and respiratory rate.

Serious cases that need referrals to Hong Kong specialists were attended to by Dr. Alvin Yee-shing Chan.

The doctors noted that most of the patients suffer from work-related illnesses such as body aches, skin infections, fatigue and lack of sleep, poor nutrition, and infections. They encouraged the patients to do further consultations with medical authorities in Hong Kong.

After the medical consultations, Dr. Tinio conducted a Lecture on Wellness at the Consulate’s public area. The one-and-a-half hour lecture was attended by 110 Filipino workers. It focused on non-communicable diseases (NCDs), such as heart disease and stroke, diabetes, respiratory diseases and cancer.

According to Dr. Tinio, the incidence of death due to NCDs is a growing public health concern that does not receive the amount of media attention that it deserves. These diseases are crippling to the Filipino population as they affect mostly middle- to low-income families. Dr. Tinio advised the audience to adopt a healthier lifestyle and undergo periodic health screening as preventive measures.