Changing attitudes toward health in a mountain community
“A sound mind in a healthy body” is an oft-quoted dictum that can succinctly describe the goal of TVI Resource Development Philippines, Inc. (TVIRD) for all its employees. It is, therefore, not surprising that the company was recently chosen as Outstanding Employer (big industry category) in Zamboanga Peninsula by the regional office of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
One major initiative of TVIRD is to monitor the health of employees by way of an Annual Physical Examination (APE) carried out by its Canatuan site clinic.
“The APE is conducted to check and monitor the physical and mental condition of every TVIRD employee. If we find that one of them is sick, the company will make sure that he or she takes proper medication,” Rey Romero, Site HR manager of TVIRD, says.
Results of the most recent APE show that none of the 1,000 employees of the company is sick from work hazards. However, so-called “lifestyle diseases” are found among some site staff.
Dr. Ulysses Silorio, TVIRD Company Physician said the APE is also a perfect tool to change
employees’ attitude towards preventive health care.
|
(top) Dr. Ulysses Silorio (in pink polo)checks the pulse of a worker at the company clinic during the Annual Physical Examination (APE). (middle) TVIRD employees wait for their turn as Shere Caballero, company med tech calls them one by one. (below) Malou Prestoza, (far right) company midwife, keeps records as Cynthia Comisas-Lacpao, (middle) company nurse, interviews an employee about his health.
|
“APE is our company’s vehicle to change the deep-seated attitude towards health care. It is a fact that most will only decide to go to the clinic or hospital when they are really sick. Worse, there are even some people who are already sick and yet they still do not visit the doctor. Sometimes, the visit to a health facility is too late as the illness is already at its worst and advanced state. Through APE, we are able to inculcate the importance of preventive health care among our employees,” the doctor says.
Diosdado Bernaldo, Mine Contract Assistant of the Mines Department agrees. He cites a case of an employee who looked healthy and yet the result of his APE proved otherwise. The employee was thankful because the APE had given him a new lease on life. He was given not only proper medication but also sickness benefits from the Social Security System (SSS), which the firm partly subsidizes.
“It is not all work at the mine site. The company takes care of our health too. I think this is one of the reasons why we have co-workers who have been with the company since its exploration phase way back in 1994,” says Sergio Tabanes, member of the Security Force Department.
Delia Patoh, a utility worker on the site adds, “The company really treats its employees well. We have benefits and privileges that other people in our province do not have. One such benefit is our APE and it is free”.
