ROJoson’s Anti-COVID19 Advocacy and Contribution - As of September 2020

ROJoson’s Anti-COVID19 Advocacy and Contribution

As of September 20, 2020

I started my anti-COVID19 Advocacy and Contribution as early as January 2020 and will probably end it in January 2021.

See my ROJoson’s COVID19 Quarantine and Sabbatical Leave Project Plan and Tracking as of August 31, 2020.

In January 2020, specifically, January 29, 2020 – I started to develop ROJ-OCIL-OLETE on Novel Coronavirus* to jump start my formal Patient Empowerment Program and also because of the increasing alarm and fear among the Filipinos on what to do in the face of the COVID19 outbreak.

*ROJ – Online Collaborative and Interactive Learning – Online Learning cum Evaluation Test Exercise

The learning objectives and contents of ROJ-OCIL-OLETE on Novel Coronavirus:

(minimum essential enough not to panic; enough to prevent it; enough to know how to manage oneself when suspected to be infected)

1. What is the fuss about Novel Coronavirus or COVID-19 at present (January - February 2020 - March 2020)?

2. What is Novel Coronavirus or COVID-19 infection?

3. How is Novel Coronavirus or COVID-19 infection acquired?

4. How can Novel Coronavirus or COVID-19 infection be prevented?

5. How to manage oneself when suspected to be infected with Novel Coronavirus or COVID-19?

February 28, 2020 – I officially launched the ROJ-OCIL-OLETE on Novel Coronavirus.

March 29, 2020 – I officially closed ROJ-OCIL-OLETE on Novel Coronavirus with 43 Filipinos taking the OLETE and with 15 getting a Certificate of Commitment and Accomplishment. See sample below.

On March 18, 2020, I officially started ROJDonors Against COVID19 for hospitals in NCR and Luzon in partnership with HelpThru Philippines. In this project, I channeled donations to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to medical frontliners.

On March 29, 2020, I officially started ROJDonors x Mu Relief x HelpThru Against COVID19 in partnership with ROJDonors, Mu Sigma Phi Fraternity and Sorority of the University of the Philippine College of Medicine and HelpThru Philippines. In this project, I channeled donations to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to medical frontliners in at least one rural health units or provincial government hospital in every province in the Philippines except the Metrocities (Metro Manila, Cebu and Davao).

Accomplishments in these channeling ROJDonors donations project consisted of the following:

· March 18, 2020 – Channeled Xavier School ‘66 Classmates’ Donations to HelpThru for Medical Frontliners (P170K)

· April 13, 2020 – P200K (TOTAL = P370K)

· From March 18, 2020 to July 14, 2020 (end of channeling donation) – 50 beneficiaries in Metro Manila; 133 in Luzon; and 83 in Visayas and Mindanao.

· From March 29, 2020 to July 14, 2020 (end of channeling donation) – establishment of 79 Mu Relief coordinators and recipients of PPE throughout the Philippines.

On July 31, 2020, I held the ROJDonors x Mu Relief x HelpThru Against COVID19 Excellent Practice Awards Recognition and Sharing Night through a virtual venue. The objectives were to make a report on the channeling donations against COVID19 project; to recognize and thank the donors; and to present and share excellent practices of the Mu Relief Coordinators. Six papers were presented and each paper presentor was given cash awards (ranging from P75,000 to P15,000 with a total of P195,000).

In the July 31, 2020 Recognition and Sharing Night, I told the audience that we were just taking a break in recognizing people who had so far help protect our healthcare workers and in learning and sharing excellent practices already done by our medical frontliners so as to provide greater impetus and more inspiration in our continuing fight against COVID19 in the Philippines. I asked for suggestions from the audience on how best we can continue to contribute to the fight against COVID19.

Actually, even before July 31, 2020, to be exact, July 24, 2020, I conceptualized a project that would continue to contribute to the fight against COVID19. I dubbed it as the Mu Relief Grant-in-Aid to Doctors to the Barrios Program Against COVID19.

The rationale behind this new project which were derived from experience from the ROJDonors x Mu Relief x HelpThru Against COVID19 consisted of the following (derived verbatim from my July 24, 2020 concept paper):

1. We confirmed the perception that the rural health units or municipal health offices in the provinces are the medical frontlines in the battleground against COVID19 in the community. They tried to prevent and control COVID19 in the community and thereby, avoiding the hospitals to be swamped with COVID19 patients.

2. They played the simultaneous dual managerial roles in the STAY SAFE FROM COVID19 program and the STAY HEALTHY PROGRAM. The hospitals are more focused on STAY SAFE FROM COVID19 program and more on the curative side, less on the preventive side.

3. We received requests mostly from the doctors to the barrios for assistance in the fight against COVID19 in their GIDA (Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas) community when our program was publicized. We had to regrettably turned down quite a number of requests from doctors to the barrios as we have limited funds and we limited it to one beneficiary per province only. Their main reasons for requesting support have been lack of resources and priorities being given to provincial hospitals.

4. Lastly, we noticed the doctors to the barrios accepted as beneficiaries under the ROJDonors - Mu Relief – HelpThru Against cOVID19 Project have tended to have more structured and comprehensive design and development programs in STAY SAFE against COVID19 and STAY HEALTHY during the COVID19 pandemic.

I gave the proposal to the Mu Sigma Phi Fraternity for consideration. There were consultations and discussions done. I was leaving it up to the Fraternity to take actions on it.

Meantime, I have continued my contributions against the COVID19 fight through public health education and posts in my blogs (Google Sites and WordPress) and social media (Facebook) particularly in the following:

ROJoson TPORs on COVID-19

https://sites.google.com/site/rojosontporsoncovid19/home

Mu Relief xCOVID19 Excellent Practice Awards

https://sites.google.com/site/mureliefxcovid19awards/

PH Healthcare Providers Against COVID19

https://www.facebook.com/groups/217564576184343

On September 19, 2020, I decided to follow-up with the Mu Sigma Phi Fraternity on the action of my proposal. I was told the main hindrance was on the funding. There is a need to raise P600,000 to P700,000 for the project.

ROJoson’s Resolution on September 20, 2020:

I resolve to continue my anti-COVID19 Advocacy and Contribution up to January 2021 (as listed in my ROJoson’s COVID19 Quarantine and Sabbatical Leave Project Plan and Tracking as of August 31, 2020).

I resolve to continue my contributions against the COVID19 fight through public health education and posts in my blogs (Google Sites and WordPress) and social media (Facebook).

I resolve to do one last big-scale project before January 2021. I will pursue the proposal that I made on July 24, 2020 with refinements.

The name (may be changed in the future): Grant-in-Aid to Doctors to the Barrios Action Research Against COVID19.

This project is consonant with my Education for Health Development in the Philippines Program and my public and community service contribution.

I will be inspired by these statements in Charles Dickens’ Novel A Tale of Two Cities:

“They are heroes because rather than simply avoiding the worst of our times, they chose to confront the problems, act with courage, and learn the invaluable lessons offered to them along their individual journeys. By doing so, they became the best of our times."

Draft of new ROJoson’s project proposal against COVID19

Grant-in-Aid to Doctors to the Barrios STAY SAFE Against COVID19 and STAY HEALTHY Amid COVID19 Action Research Project

Objectives:

To incentivize the doctors to the barrios in their community health programs for their constituents to STAY SAFE Against COVID19 and STAY HEALTHY Amid COVID19.

To bring out excellent innovative practices on STAY SAFE Against COVID19 and STAY HEALTHY Amid COVID19 in the community that will serve as models for other doctors to the barrios to emulate and that will eventually help the country win the fight against COVID19.

Mechanics:

Doctors to the barrios must formulate a community health program that has the goals of STAY SAFE Against COVID19 and STAY HEALTHY Amid COVID19. They may have existing programs already. They can refine them to focus on these two goals. They should design or redesign if needed and develop innovative effective and efficient strategies to achieve these two goals simultaneously.

The STAY SAFE Against COVID19 goal or parameter shall be no or smallest number of constituents (inclusive of health care providers) are infected and/or dying from COVID19 infection.

The STAY HEALTHY Amid COVID19 goal or parameter shall be no or smallest number of constituents getting sick from preventable medical conditions and diseases (aside from COVID19). Here, the doctors to the barrios proponents shall choose only one specific medical condition that is prevalent in the community to focus on. The doctors to the barrios shall design and develop a preventive control program on this specific medical condition and implement it during the allotment time.

The implementation should be in the form of action research with a timeline of at least 2 months and at most 3 months with documented tracking of results followed by a summative evaluation and reporting.

The design and development plans should carry at least the following items:

· Title

· Proponents (municipality, contact numbers)

· Situational Analysis

· Goals

· Key Result Areas / Key Performance Indicators

· Implementation plans

· Evaluation plans

· Timelines

· Logistics needed

There will be set deadline for submission of proposals, say, October 12, 2020.

The proposals will be screened using the following guidelines (outside from a complete design and development plan):

· Innovativeness

· Cost-effectiveness

· Community engagement

· Impact

· Sustainability and applicability

There will be 10 grants with P50,000 for each grant (total budget for the grant - P500K).

After the approval of the grant, the cash will be transmitted to the beneficiaries through bank transfer.

After completion of the action research, there shall be a submission of a formal report by each beneficiary.

There shall also be a formal presentation of the 10 action researches in a virtual forum in January 2021. The main objective of formal presentation is to disseminate and share practices to the public.

During the formal presentation, there may be another awarding for the excellent innovative practices (P50K for first placer; P30K for second placer; and P20K for third placer).

At the moment, September 10, 2020, I am looking for the funding of the project.

Total budget: P600K

Tentative Timelines:

Call for submission of proposals: September 28

Deadline for submission of proposals: October 12

Announcement of grants (give grant): October 19

Submission of report: December 21

Formal virtual presentation with awarding of excellent practices: January 11

ROJ@20sept20