PhilCAT 25th - PhilCAT

25 Years of Fighting TB through Unified Action:
PhilCAT’S feat through the years

AN IDEA IS BORN

The Philippine Coalition Against Tuberculosis (PhilCAT) was conceived in 1993, a time when the Philippines had one of the highest levels of tuberculosis (TB) in the world. Many obstacles faced those who would work to control TB in the country. The government’s National Tuberculosis Program (NTP) had standardized policies and was organized on a nationwide basis; but private medical practitioners viewed it with condescension for its perceived shortcomings. The private physicians on the other hand, needed to improve their TB control practices; and there was no standardized diagnosis and treatment of TB in the private sector.

It was on this background of mistrust and animosity that the idea of a coalition against TB was born. Filipino delegates from both the public and private sectors to the regional meeting of the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases (IUATLD) in Bangkok, Thailand, had a serendipitous meeting when their bus got stuck in heavy traffic. They agreed on the need to collaborate for TB control, and on their return to Manila, convened an organizational meeting of interested stakeholders. The legal groundwork was then prepared and the Philippine Coalition Against Tuberculosis was formally inaugurated in 1994. From its humble beginnings and a handful founding members (PCCP, PTSI, DOH, ACCP, PSMID, Cure TB, UPCM TB Study Group), PhilCAT today is 65-member organization strong.

Dr. Camilo C. Roa, Jr. led the coalition as its founding chairperson for the first three years. From then on, the dialogue between public and private sectors found a formal forum in PhilCAT activities, particularly the PhilCAT Annual Convention. Since 1996, PhilCAT has also spearheaded the annual World TB Day commemoration activities. Although a purely voluntary organization and despite limited resources, PhilCAT has managed to galvanize the different groups interested in fighting TB in the Philippines.

Local Action, Global Impact

Through the years, PhilCAT has lined up its achievements. From the simple gesture of holding a movie premier for raising funds, the Coalition has moved on to manage multi-million dollar projects that merited international distinctions. At the forefront of promoting Public-Private Mix in TB, PhilCAT’s feat over the years has earned the respect of the international health community. The Philippines has been acknowledged for the Public-Private Mix model that PhilCAT developed and adopted.

25 Years of Fighting TB through Unified Action: PhilCAT’S feat through the years

1993 An idea is born

1994 Formal Inauguration of PhilCAT

The legal groundwork was then prepared and the Philippine Coalition Against Tuberculosis was formally inaugurated in 1994. From its humble beginnings and a handful founding members (PCCP, PTSI, DOH, ACCP, PSMID, Cure TB, UPCM TB Study Group), PhilCAT today is 65-member organization strong.

Dr. Camilo C. Roa, Jr. led the coalition as its founding chairperson for the first three years. From then on, the dialogue between public and private sectors found a formal forum in PhilCAT activities, particularly the PhilCAT Annual Convention. In partnership with the Department of Health, the fist PhilCAT Convention was held with the theme “TB Control – A Shared Responsibility”, at the Metropolitan Theater. Although a purely voluntary organization and despite limited resources, PhilCAT has managed to galvanize the different groups interested in fighting TB in the Philippines.

Local Action, Global Impact

1995 unifying approaches to the diagnosis and treatment of TB

The government had its National Tuberculosis Program (NTP) that had standardized policies and was organized on a nationwide basis but was viewed with condescension by private medical practitioners. Limited by a scarcity of funds, PhilCAT faced the challenge of unifying the approaches in the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis of the private sector with that of the National Tuberculosis Control Program. Under its leadership, consensus guidelines on the management of TB in children and adult TB including TB in the workplace have been developed.

1996 spearheading yearly commemoration of World TB Day

On the 100th anniversary of Dr. Robert Koch’s announcement in 1982, March 24 was announced an official World TB Day by the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (IUATLD). However, this announced was recognized by the WHO and the United Nations officially, but after a decade. In the Philippines, PhilCAT spearheaded the commemoration of the first World TB Day in 1996 at the Quezon Memorial Circle.

1997 Addressing tuberculosis in the home, in the school and the community

In partnership with the Philippine Academy of Family Physicians (PAFP), the 4th Annual Convention provided the venue to bring out in-depth exchange of ideas among those immersed in the day to day battle against TB. The convention likewise marked the launching of a crucial multisectoral, PAFP-led projects addressing the concerns of TB in the home, in the school and the community. The activity sealed the long term commitment of the largest private medical organization to help find a solution to this tenacious ancient scourge.

1998 recognizing outstanding DOTS implementers

Attended by more than a thousand participants from the different PhilCAT member organization, the 1998 World TB Day Commemoration held at the Quezon Memorial Circle provided the venue for the presentation of recognition to the Outstanding Health Implementers of the Directly Observed Treatment Short Course (DOTS) Program of the Department of Health (DOH) initiated jointly by the World Health Organization (WHO), DOH and PhilCAT. Chapters of PhilCAT member organizations joined in the commemoration in their respective places all over the country.

1999 celebrating five years of advocacy

This year’s Annual Convention departed from the practice of the past 5 conventions of teaming up with a partner organization and has tried to go it alone. With the support of PhilCAT’s many friends and partners the convention ended up as exciting and interesting as the previous conventions. Through the years of working together with other agencies, the path towards TB control has gained a mileage of success.

2000 story of PhilCAT featured

The story of PhilCAT appeared in the textbook of tuberculosis, “Tuberculosis: A Comprehensive International Approach’, edited by Drs. Lee Reichman and Ernest Herschfield. The textbook included a chapter “Coalition Building for TB Control: The Philippine Experience”. This chapter was clear evidence that PhilCAT has attracted international attention, which validates the importance of PhilCAT’s coalition work.
The year’s World TB Day was significant as it was the most widespread of all World TB Day activities so far, with commemoration activities in 15 provincial sites aside from the one held at the Quezon Institute.
Dr. Rod Romulo successfully organized the first fund raising event of PhilCAT, the premier showing of the movie, “The Insider”, allowing PhilCAT to hire a full-time staff
The publication of the Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Diagnosis, Treatment and Control of Tuberculosis has brought PhilCAT one step closer to a truly unified protocol for the management of TB by all doctors in the country.

2001 onward to a new venture …. DOTS in the private sector

In the late 1990’s, there was great international interest in PhilCAT’s activities in public-private collaboration for TB control. Dr. Mukund Uplekar of the World Health Organization worked closely with PhilCAT leaders. Dr. Rodrigo, PhilCAT Chairperson then was invited to represent PhilCAT in a consultative meeting at WHO Geneva, the outcome of which was a publication describing the current experience and emerging policy framework for involving private practitioners in TB control.
With international recognition came external funding. First, a small grant from the WHOTropical Disease Research and later followed by a Cooperative Agreement from the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) for the Development and Implementation of the Directly-Observed Treatment, Short-Course Strategy by the Private Sector in the Philippines focusing on five specific settings – hospital-based DOTS, private physician-government health center model, private DOTS, DOTS in the workplace, and family-based DOTS among patients of private medical practitioners. Dr. Michael Iademarco provided invaluable assistance during the project implementation.
In the same year, together with the Philippine College of Chest Physicians (PCCP), PhilCAT successfully co-hosted the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease (IUATLD) Eastern Region Meeting.

2002 Brokering partnerships

A historic Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was signed by government and private sectors to work on the Development of a Comprehensive Policy for TB Control in the Philippines. A National TB summit ensued to draft a document that would clarify and clear up oftentimes conflicting policies and come up with a unified policy for all.
The dissemination of the TB Consensus Guidelines in tandem with DOH NTP and Manual of Procedures was carried out under the leadership of Dr. Jubert Benedicto and Dr. Renato Dantes. A MOA with PCCP and Wyeth Philippines ensured the coverage of 6 provinces for round-table discussions and surveys involving both the public and private stakeholders. Congruently, CCAT in Cavite, and CICAT in Iloilo (local PhilCAT affiliates) were established.

2003 Institutionalyzing PPM as a National Strategy

As PhilCAT already had the needed track record for managing funds compliant with the international accounting and reporting requirements, the coalition was selected as one of the sub-recipients of the Global Fund grant for the implementation of the Public-Private Mix DOTS (PPMD) component. A bigger PhilCAT office was established at the PTSI Research and Training Center to house the additional Project Management Unit (PMU) staff hired to oversee the implementation the project. PhilCAT played the role of the broker organization; a huge amount of work, commitment and resources were invested to set-up an efficient PPM network across the country composed of highly-committed players from the private, public and civil-society sectors. Awareness of TB as a public health problem was raised; partners became connected and inspired. Soon after PhilCAT was recognized globally for its excellent work and eventually became an international learning institution for PPM. The Honorable Secretary of Health, Dr. Manuel M. Dayrit, PhilCAT National Chairperson, Dr. Charles Y. Yu and Country Representative, World Health Organization Dr. Jean Marc Olive launched the first seven PPMD units in 2004.
PhilCAT signed an agreement with the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) to launch an outpatient TB package covering TB diagnosis and treatment. This TB package is unprecedented in the country. PhilCAT was made the certification arm of PhilHealth.
With PhilCAT and the DOH at the forefront, 22 government agencies and major private sector health partners joined hands to ratify the “Comprehensive and Unified Policy (CUP) for Tuberculosis in the Philippines,” the first unified policy of its kind in the world. It demonstrated how the Philippines was leading the world in bringing together all sectors to combat this disease. Executive Order 187 was signed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, mandating both public and private sectors to follow the Comprehensive and Unified Policy for TB.
Through the initiative of PhilCAT with DOH and WHO-WPRO, the Philippines became a recipient of US$1.5 million grant from the Global Drug Facility of the Stop TB Partnership. Such grant was intended for the complete 6-month courses of TB medications of 130,000 TB patients over the next three years for both the public as well as PPM-DOTS expansion activities.
PhilCAT with the help from the Philippine TIPS project, and WHO, paved for the adoption of the DOTS syllabus by the Association of Philippine Medical Colleges, integrating it into the 31 medical schools of the country, a historic first in the world. PhilCAT donated scores of books from its Clinical TB Book project to all medical school libraries.
PhilCAT made the way for 6 major professional societies in the Philippines to give their commitment to collaborate with PhilCAT for the training of trainors for DOTS in close cooperation with the Philippine TIPS project.

2004 Engaging private physicians in DOTS implementation

PhilCAT’s 10th Annual Convention became a venue for two monumental events in the history of TB control. Almost 700 physicians went through the basic DOTS, training of trainors (ToT), certification, DOTS and potential DOTS provider courses. Renowned Editor Dr. Lee Reichman publicly acknowledged it as “probably the largest single day in history where so many private physicians went through training for DOTS.” Manila Declaration was signed by 6 organizations together PhilCAT, DOH, PhilHealth and Philippine TIPS to advocate for the utilization of the DOTS strategy among their members..
With DOH and WHO, PhilCAT prepared the Operational Guidelines for Public-Private Mix DOTS. This document cemented the PPMD as a national strategy for increasing case detection, and a unified approach to TB management among all health care providers.
As certification arm of PhilHealth, PhilCAT developed the certification standards along the lines of the DOH’s Sentrong Sigla and PHIC standards. These standards were maintained even when Secretary of Health Manuel Dayrit signed a Department Order designating DOH Sentrong Sigla and NTP to carry on the DOTS certification with PhilCAT still helping on in the private sector.

2005 Building Local Coalitions

The Guidebook on Local Coalition Building and Strengthening was published as a guide for building local TB coalitions and strengthening existing local coalitions aimed at promoting further cooperation in TB control between the private physicians, TB stakeholders and the local government units.
The Clinical Practice Guidelines (CPG) on TB in Children was developed by the Committee on TB mostly composed of PhilCAT members – Philippine Pediatric Society (PPS), Pediatric Infectious Disease Society of the Philippines (PIDSP), World Vision, DOH, and WHO, among others.
The Philippine Training Course in Tuberculosis Program Management was devised as a threeweek course training for a critical mass of health managers in all aspects of TB control. PhilCAT developed the manual for this course.
The DOLE Department Order 73-95: Guidelines for the Implementation of Policy and Program on Tuberculosis Prevention and Control in the Workplace was ;aunched.
The First Forum of the Philippine Partnership to Fight TB, Malaria and AIDS. It was then that PhilCAT was confirmed as a member in the public-private coalition involvement in the Country Coordinating Mechanism (CCM).

2006

DOH Secretary Francisco T. Duque III led the Philippine launch of the Global Plan to Stop TB (2006-2015) at the Philippine International Convention Center as part of the 2006 World TB Day Commemoration.
Modules were developed for the series of Round Table Discussion (RTD), Basic DOTS for Referring Physicians, DOTS Expansion, TBDC Training Among Others which became a part of the orientation process in the PPMD’s established by PhilCAT.
Round 5 of the GFATM grant started as a result of Round 2 project being able to show that through PPMD, it was possible to engage the private sector in the implementation of the DOTS strategy. PhilCAT’s task was to established additional 100 PPMD units across the country

2007 Membership Empowerment

“Kapihan”, a quarterly gathering of member groups to discuss how TB activities could be enhanced through partnership was conceived. Starting October 2007, partners took turns in hosting the informal get-togethers. And presented their profile, the work being done, and what their needs are opening potential collaborations. The kapihan also became a convenient venue for the NTP to share new developments in TB control to its partners. PTSI, PBSP, and World Vision were the first three gracious Kapihan hosts.
Drug Resistant TB was recognized as a threat with the increasing number of MDR-TB cases. For the first time, PhilCAT organized Courses on MDR-TB in partnership with its member organizations, the Tropical Disease Foundation (TDF), UNILAB Medical Education and Development (UMED), the PCCP and DOH. These included referral procedures for MDR-TB, and PMDT training for Community Treatment Partners attended by midwives and barangay health workers.

2008 Celebrating Five Years of PPM Journey

Celebrating Five Years of PPM Journey. “High five!” was what the 500 Public-Private Mix DOTS (PPMD) stakeholders gestured to one another when PhilCAT celebrated 5-years of PPMD journey in 2008. Significant strides had been reached: one national coordinating committee (NCC-PPMD), sixteen Regional Coordinating Committees (RCC- PPMD) and 170 Global Fund installed PPMD units were already operational. On top of this, PhilCAT was also managing and monitoring the implementation of 50 non-global fund PPMD units. Around 3,000 private physicians had been trained and mobilized; existing PPMD facilities located strategically were serving 36 million Filipinos in 16 regions across the country. Increased in contribution to the national case detection has been noted starting 2004 and reached a significant high of 6% in 2008; in areas covered by the PPMD units contribution to case detection rate was 18%; treatment success rate of new smear TB cases was at 90%. Five years of eventful journey together wrought with difficulties and challenges, yet highlighted with these successes was a cause for celebration. What used to be a challenge in dispelling apprehension and mistrust by the private practitioners in the government’s TB program has now been turned into actual TB case referrals, giving new lease in life to more patients from all over the country.

2009 Setting-up PPM structures at the provincial level

The PPM initiative was stirred a notch higher, Provincial Coordinating Committees (PCC) headed by the Provincial Health Officer were established in 44 selected provinces. As no single sector can effectively control TB, the PCC provided the structure that brought together the required expertise, skills, leverage and coordination necessary to enhance the implementation of the TB control program within the province. , the first set of 22 provinces underwent the engagement process which included the conduct of a situation assessment, DOTS advocacy symposium, training of non-NTP referring providers and the launching of the province-wide PPM initiative. The multi-sectoral PCC has been instrumental in eliciting commitment and participation from all those with stake in TB care and control – the public health sector, the private sector, other government agencies, LGUs and those which have initially been termed to as “nonNTPproviders.

2010 Intensifying Training and Research

During the 17th Annual Convention the “2010 Tuberculosis Research Priority Agenda”, was launched and released with PhilCAT as the main proponent and the Philippine Tuberculosis Society, Inc. taking the lead in the task towards its completion. This was dedicated to the memory of the late Dr. Renato B. Dantes, a recognized leader in lung-related Researches foremost of which are in COPD and Tuberculosis. It was Dr. Dantes who conceptualized the idea of having a research monograph that would contain priority areas for investigation in Tuberculosis. This research monograph was a reason for a “double celebration” by the PTSI during its Centennial Year celebration.
The 17th Annual Convention became likewise became the venue for the presentation and launching of the Philippine Plan of Action to Control Tuberculosis (PhilPACT 2010-2016), the roadmap for TB control program in the country. In support of PhilPACT, PhilCAT’s incumbent Board of Trustees with several past presidents agreed to align the coalition’s efforts towards achievement of the objectives of the PhilPACT during the Strategic Planning Workshop July 1617, 2011

2011 Unifying TB Treatment Among Children

PhilCAT paved for the unification of TB in Children Guidelines when it hosted the consultative meeting with different societies and stakeholders to come up with a joint statement on the management of childhood TB in view of the recently released, Rapid Advisory on Treatment of TB in Children by the WHO.
Launching and presentation of important documents on TB in children, TB Infection control and laboratory procedures during the 18th Annual PhilCAT Convention.
PhilCAT became an active partner in initiatives to widen the implementation of TB in the workplace. Some of the activities under this initiative included roundtable discussions with private sector partners – ECOP, TUCP, AHMOPI, PMAP; and public sectors – DOH, DOLE, PhilHealth, and SSS. All these led to the MOU signing which sealed their commitment and support to the revised guidelines on TB in the Workplace.

2012 Commemorating World TB Day outside Metro Manila

The National World TB Day Commemoration was held outside Metro Manila for the very first time. This was done to recognize the efforts and achievements of persons and organizations involved in TB control outside the capital region. Due to its impressive track record, Region 6 was unanimously chosen as the host. The Citizens Iloilo Coalition Against Tuberculosis (CICAT) led by Dr. Malbar Ferrer spearheaded the activity with the theme “STOP TB in my Lifetime:”.
PhilCAT awarded with a another grant from the Global Fund pursued the implementation of a new PPM initiative, the systematic scale-up of Hospital DOTS. Following an engagement process that included an advocacy workshop and the training of the hospital TB team on DOTS, PhilCAT successfully engaged three hundred eighty six (386) private and public hospitals in seven (7) regions across the country within a year of implementation: Ilocos Region, Central Luzon, CALABARZON, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, CARAGA and Davao Region.

2013 Updating the 2006 Philippine Clinical Practice Guidelines

A Task Force was created to Update the 2006 Philippine Clinical Practice Guidelines: Diagnosis, Treatment, Prevention and Control of Tuberculosis of TB in Adults in line with new developments and release of international standards and local procedures in diagnosis, treatment and reporting of TB (NTP MOP 5th Edition 2013, WHO TB Definitions and Reporting Framework 2013, WHO Treatment Guidelines on TB 2010, ISTC 2009.
The Board of Directors approved coming up with a Coffee Table Book to mark the Coalition’s 20th Year Anniversary not only as a memento of the past 20 years but also to promote the importance of coalition building, national partnerships and meaningful collaborations for a more strengthened coalition.
PhilCAT represented by Dr. Lalaine Morters, National Chairperson and Ms. Amy Sarmiento participated in the First Forum of National Partnerships to Stop TB in the World Health Organization (WHO) Western Pacific and South-East Asia Regions held in Seoul, Korea, 22-23 November 2012
PhilCAT represented by Ms. Amy Sarmiento participated in the 2-day workshop for the TB Mapping Dissemination in Nairobi, Kenya organized by the TB Advocacy Consortium (TAC to enhance collaboration between TB patients, civil society, organizations, government agencies, and research institutions.
PhilCAT represented by Dr. Jennifer Ann Mendoza Wi and Ms. Amy Sarmiento participated in the Philippines Joint Program Review August 26, 2013 to September 6, 2013
PhilCAT shared Philippine experience on public-private partnership in TB control and care – NTP Vietnam Study Tour October 18, 2013

2014 Launching of the Young TB Research Award

PhilCAT launched the Young TB Research Award supported by OTSUKA to stimulate the advancement of innovative approaches in TB control and patient management and care during the 2014 World TB Day Commemoration. Dr. Aileen V. Giannan (First Place) and Dr. Ma. Philina Pablo-Villamor (Second Place) were announced as winners during the 2014 PhilCAT Convention.
Dr. Lalaine Mortera and Ms. Amy Sarmiento attended the meeting organized by the American Thoracic Society and the World Health Organization: Caring for the “hidden” 1.5 million TB cases in high burden countries in Bali, Indonesia, 8-9 September 2014. The meeting focused on utilizing professional societies to facilitate delivery of high quality tuberculosis care.

2015 Harnessing the Potential of the Private Sector

In December 11, 2015, with support from Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP). Organized a private sector forum to harness the potential of the private sector in ending the TB epidemic through the development of an effective collaboration and sharing of resources between the various private sector that will ensure the successful implementation of the interventions and packages for the prevention and cure of tuberculosis.
With the theme: END TB IN CHILDREN: The Philippine Clinical Practice Guidelines 2016, the 23rd Annual PhilCAT convention held on August 18-19, 2016 provided the venue for the first public stakeholders’ presentation of the guidelines on TB in children developed by a group of experts based on available evidence.
In 23 June 2015. Ms. Amy Sarmiento participated in the second of four regional consultations on the Global Plan to Stop TB 2016-2020. Meeting participants reinforced the importance for a paradigm-shift in the way TB is fought in countries, underlying the importance of engaging the private sector, the need for community-led demand and for innovations in care delivery.

2016 Engaging Business Communities in TB Elimination

Responding to the challenges of the new END TB STRATEGY, PhilCAT embarked on a new initiative. TB Advocacy to Business Communities (TB-ABC) in five (5) regions in partnership with selected local coalitions:: Citizens Iloilo Coalition Against Tuberculosis (CICAT); Coalition of Concerned Caviteños Against Tuberculosis (CCCAT); Davao City Coalition Against Tuberculosis (DACICAT); Northern Mindanao Coalition Against Tuberculosis (NORMINCAT); Pangasinan Koalisyon Alis TB (PangKAT).
The first search for the MLQ-PhilCAT TOPS Award, Outstanding Private Sector award was launched: Outstanding Private DOTS Facility; Outstanding Private Referring Physician; Outstanding DOTS in the Workplace Program and Outstanding Private Organization. Awarded during the Opening Ceremony of the 23rd Annual Convention.
Outstanding Private DOTS Facilities
1. Lorma Medical Center – San Fernando, La Union (Luzon)
2. St. Anthony College Hospital – Iloilo (Visayas)
3. Xavier University Health Care Center (Mindanao)
Outstanding Private Referring Physicians
1. Dr. Rosalyn H. Sebastian (Region IV-B/MIMAROPA)- Luzon
2. Dr.Cecilia P. Momville (Iloilo)-Visayas 3. Dr. Irish Ruth Batalla (Davao)-Mindanao
Outstanding Workplace Program
Tagum Agricultural Development Co. Inc. (Mindanao)
PhilCAT participated in the DOH-NTP 2016 Joint Program Review conducted from March 6-18, 2016. The Board served as resource persons for the TB-HIV and PPM components of the JPR while Ms. Amy Sarmiento served as the Geographic Team Leader for Region I and acting Team Leader for the Public-Private Mix (PPM) component.
PhilCAT shared experience on “Partnering to Implement the National TB Programme” during the 47th Union Conference on Lung Health, 26-29 October 2016, Liverpool United Kingdom.

2017 Launching of the Philippine Strategic TB Elimination Plan (PhilSTEP)

With the theme: SHIFT, SHAKE & SEISMIC CHANGE TOWARDS TB ELIMINATION, the 24th Annual PhilCAT Convention provided the venue for the launching of the Philippine Strategic TB Elimination Plan (PhilSTEP) and the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act. No. 10767 (Comprehensive Tuberculosis Plan Act of 2016). Likewise this was also the first public dissemination of the results of the 2016 National TB Prevalence. This convention was historic and momentous one as PhilCAT had as Keynote Speaker, the very dynamic and active Executive Director of the Stop TB Partnership, Dr. Lucia Ditiu.
PhilCAT was elected as secretariat of the “Philippine TB Caucus”, a network of political representatives who works collectively and individually to end the TB epidemic. In partnership with the Global TB Caucus Secretariat, PhilCAT helped organized the Asia Pacific TB Summit. The Global TB Caucus is an international network of over 2,300 active members of parliament from over 131 countries. Part of the Summit was an evening plenary jointly organized by the Global TB Caucus, the Philippines TB Caucus and the Philippine Coalition Against Tuberculosis (PhilCAT) to discuss the global threat of drug-resistant TB as well as deliberate on needed action to tackle these pressing challenges.

2018 Ceremonial Signing of the Pledge of Commitment of Support to PhilSTEP

In line with the Global theme of World TB Day 2018 – “Wanted: Leaders for a TB-free world” You can make history. End TB, the organizing committee came out with the local theme Wanted Leaders for a TB-free Philippines. “MGA LODI …….. PANGUNAHAN ANG PAGSUGPO SA TB. The focused of the commemoration was to build commitment to end TB, not only at the political level with Heads of State and Ministers of Health, but at all levels from Mayors, Governors, parliamentarians and community leaders, to people affected with TB, civil society advocates, health workers, doctors or nurses, NGOs and other partners since all can be leaders of efforts to end TB in their own work or community. The 2018 World TB Day Commemoration was successfully held at the Liwasang Aurora, Quezon Memorial Circle on March 16, a Sunday. There could not have been a better venue to honor the first Filipino Leader to support the fight against Tuberculosis, President Manuel Luis Quezon. The pledge of support for the Philippine Strategic Plan to Eliminate TB (PhilSTEP) by PhilCAT Members and C.U.P. partners was led by Congresswoman Angelina “Helen” L. Tan, Chair Philippine TB Caucus. Dr. Francisco T. Duque III, Secretary Department of Health was the keynote Speaker.
PhilCAT completed the New Funding Model (NFM) Global Fund Project on hospital engagement with outstanding performance exceeding targets across all periods. The project contributed significantly in attaining one of the targets under Strategy 3 of the Updated 2010-2016 Philippine Plan of Action to Control Tuberculosis (PhilPACT) which was to engage 90% of public hospitals and 65% of private hospitals in TB control either as DOTS provider or referring center by end of 2016. Overall additionality for the engagement of public hospital in the regions covered was 69% (291/421) and 59% (319/540) for private hospitals. A total of 65,120 TB cases all forms were notified through the hospitals engaged from 2014-2017
PhilCAT participated in a workshop on tuberculosis (TB) community, rights and gender (CRG) tools held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia organized by the Stop TB Partnership, April 9-11, 2018