Development (DOST-PCHRD) will present updates on some of its supported projects under the
Information and Communications Technology (ICT) for Health Program in this month’s Talakayang HeaRT Beat.
Preceded by the Health Information Systems (HIS) Program under the National Unified Health Research Agenda (NUHRA) 2008, the ICT for Health Program was launched in 2011. It aims to generate tools that will bridge gaps in healthcare through telehealth services, ICT-enabled medical devices, and public health surveillance. The projects to be presented by the Council in the upcoming media conference will focus on the following:
Increasing access to pediatric palliative care
Along with anti cancer treatments, palliative care is equally important in alleviating the symptoms experienced by patients with cancer. Aiming to make palliative care more accessible to children with cancer, the University of the Philippines Open University developed the “Aruga sa Batang
may Cancer (ABC) Initiative: A Web-based Pediatric Palliative Care Service Provider in the
Philippines,” a web-based service provider which enables telemedicine consultations for
patients. It also caters to healthcare professionals by providing training courses through the platform’s Learning Management System and providing them with access to the Pediatric Cancer Registry.
Mapping out COVID-19 Scenarios Disease modeling is a tool that can help in strategizing and planning for interventions
concerning pressing health issues. The “Feasibility Analysis of Syndromic Surveillance using
Spatio-Temporal Epidemiological Modeler (FASSSTER),” originally developed by the Ateneo de
Manila University as a surveillance tool for dengue, typhoid fever, and measles, was repurposed to support pandemic response in the country. FASSSTER is now used to map out COVID-19 scenarios and guide decision-makers in formulating policies to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Collaboration among the DOH, DICT, and DOST Regional Offices was pursued to develop
training plans and materials for the nationwide roll-out of FASSSTER and TanodCOVID.
Streamlining COVID-19 Diagnostics
Boosting diagnostic capacities for COVID-19 allows more patients to receive the needed
medical care as early as possible. To simplify and expedite the workflow of COVID-19 detection, the project “A Retrospective Study on the Accuracy of AI-Powered Reading of Chest X-Rays in the Diagnosis of COVID-19 Pneumonia in a Tertiary Hospital (CHERISH Study)” of the Medical City and the Domingo AI Research Center (DARC) is exploring the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the detection of COVID-19 using chest x-ray images of patients
Monitoring of COVID-19 Patients
Due to the nature of their profession, healthcare workers are among the groups that are highly vulnerable to COVID-19. To allow healthcare workers to perform their duties safely, the
University of the Philippines Surgical Innovation and Biotechnology Laboratory (UP SIBOL) developed the “Telemetry System for COVID-19 PGH Response Team” that will enable remote monitoring of COVID-19 patients. The system was integrated into the RxBox, a DOST-PCHRD-funded technology that is able to measure a patient’s temperature, blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen saturation, uterine contractions, and electrocardiogram readings in one device.
Another project by the UP SIBOL which aims to provide healthcare workers with tools to lessen
their exposure and risk of COVID-19 is the “Telepresence Terminals for COVID-19 Response Team.” The device, called Bot Ensuring Safety and Health in Isolated Environment or beshie, will allow healthcare workers to remotely communicate with COVID-19 patients.
DOST Secretary Fortunato de la Peña, Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara, DOST-PCHRD Executive Director Jaime Montoya, and the project leaders of the featured studies will be present to answer questions related to the technologies and the ICT for Health program of the Council. The DOST-PCHRD invites the media to join the press conference on September 29 to learn more about these initiatives.
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