PASIG CITY – The Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth) recently conducted a two-day training for members of the Speakers’ Bureau of the Philippine Alliance of Patient Organizations (PAPO) to help spread updated information about the National Health Insurance Program (NHIP) to stakeholders from various groups.

Representatives from 21 patient organizations of PAPO were oriented to help prepare them cascade accurate information about PhilHealth to its members. The Speakers’ Bureau is tasked to disseminate basic information on registration, premium contribution, benefits and benefits availment, among others. By being equipped with the right information, the participants will be able to guide the members of their organizations and their beneficiaries in availing themselves of what PhilHealth has to offer. The activity was held at the Bayanihan Center in Pasig City.

The training was divided into six (6) sessions. The first four (4) sessions focused on providing the participants with general knowledge about PhilHealth such as its history, membership, benefits, communicating the NHIP, and the role of PAPO and the Speakers’ Bureau. The last two (2) sessions enabled the patient organizations to plan their training methods and spread the lessons to their members. They were also asked to demonstrate their lecture approaches as the PhilHealth resource persons provided comments and suggestions on how else to improve on the presentations.

The patient organizations that participated in the activity are Cerebral Palsy Association of the Philippines (CPAP), I Can Serve, Philippine Children’s Association of Learning Disability (PCALD), Kythe Foundation Inc., Philippine Society for Orphan Disorders, Psoriasis Philippines, New Vois, Dialysis PH, Health Care Ministry Kapitolyo, Yellow Warriors Society Philippines, Positive Action Foundation Philippines (PAFPI) Org, Philippine Cerebral Palsy Inc. (PCPI), Philippine Association for Citizens with Developmental and Learning Disabilities Inc. (PACDLD), PhiThyCas, The Max Foundation, Balikatang Thalassemia, Scheloderma Philippines, Hemophilia Association of the Philippines for Love and Service (HAPLOS), Diabetes Society of Camp Crame, People Empowerment for Arthritis and Lupus (PEARL) and St. Luke’s Medical Center (SLMC) Arthritis Club.

Some of the issues raised during the orientation were the number of hospitals that provided Z benefits for life-threatening sicknesses such as cervical cancer, tetralogy of fallot, and ventricular septal defect; how best to answer critical questions from members; alleged improper charging of bills in some hospitals; and the reported refusal of some hospitals to accept patients who were not diagnosed within their institution.

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The Speakers’ Bureau training is provided for under a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) between PhilHealth and PAPO which was signed during the PhilHealth Forward event last February. The MoA calls for PhilHealth to conduct a Social Health Insurance Education Series or SHInES for PAPO members in order to provide information on the NHIP, and to establish a pool of speakers from various patient organizations affiliated with PAPO who will cascade the information to their respective member organizations. In return, PAPO will aid in the information campaign of PhilHealth by reaching out to different stakeholders that are members of their organizations. The PAPO-PhilHealth Advocates are now trained as members of the Speakers’ Bureau. (END) (Inna Ysabelle A. Bangalan)