MANILA – The statistics is glaring. Two hundred and twenty one mothers die in every 100,000 live births, according to the 2011 data of the National Statistics Office. It has increased from 162 in 2009. Purportedly to address the problem of maternal deaths, the Department of Health (DOH) implemented a policy discouraging home births assisted by traditional birth attendants (TBAS) or hilots.

The Department of Health passed Administrative Order 2008-0029 known as “Implementing Health Reforms towards Rapid Reduction in Maternal and Neonatal Mortality,” called the “No Home Birthing Policy,” during the administration of former president Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. This policy was also intended to enable the Philippines to achieve its commitment to the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The MDGs include lowering maternal mortality rate to 52 per 100,000 live births in 2015.

CHICAGO (jGLi) – The truism that “health is wealth” is finding application on the latest campaign by the Alliance of Filipinos for Immigrant Rights & Empowerment (AFIRE) that healthy people means lower health care costs.

The Chicago, Illinois-based grassroots organization is teaming up with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois and the Coalition of African, Arab, Asian, European and Latino Immigrants of Illinois  (CAAAELI) in inviting Filipino Americans in the community to attend a Healthy Heart, Healthy Family (HHHF) Training Workshops to address heart disease, the leading cause of death among Filipino Americans.

MANILA – Leptospirosis is among the common yet potentially fatal diseases prevalent during rainy season. The recent monsoon rains that flooded many areas in the country have increased the number of cases of people infected with Leptospirosis. News reports said there are 2,213 reported cases of Leptospirosis as of July 28, 87 percent higher than the cases recorded during the same period last year.

Gerard Cortes, registered nurse and clinical administrator of the Center for Health and Development (CHD) said that people are not fully aware of how to prevent the disease. “In communities where we conduct health seminars, most of the people are not very well aware of common diseases and how to prevent it. Some would even say that they don’t know anything about it.”

MANILA -- The Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (Philhealth) on Sunday said a tax benefit would cushion the bulk of its self-employed and individually paying members -- those earning not more than P250,000 yearly -- from the upward adjustment of contributions.

“We expect most of our 4.22 million self-employed members to be shielded by a tax allowance,” said Dr. Eduardo Banzon, Philhealth president and chief executive officer.

MANILA -- Some five million overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and dependents are now protected by the state-run Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (Philhealth).

“We’ve so far signed up 2.52 million OFWs. Including their 2.48 million declared dependents, we now have around five million Filipinos covered by our Overseas Workers Program,” said Dr. Eduardo Banzon, Philhealth president and chief executive officer.

Under the program, Banzon said active land-based OFWs who went through the prescribed registration process of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) are enlisted as Philhealth members.

Few things are more misunderstood than mental illness.  People once thought mental illness was caused by demon possession, sin or witchcraft. Often the mentally ill were cruelly mistreated or killed.  You might think those days are long over, but superstition and ignorance are hard to overcome. It wasn’t so long ago that we were taught that our secret thoughts and fears caused mental disorders. Until recently, treatment for mental illness happened in distant and dismal state run asylums (think about “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” – that isn’t far off the mark). The mentally ill were feared and shunned. But in the last 20 years, things have changed dramatically.

Serious mental illness is scary and off-putting even for the healthiest among us, but for those afflicted it’s a thousand times worse.  They’re often isolated, misunderstood and adrift from lives that once felt purposeful.  Sometimes they even hear voices and suffer terrifying delusions.  And it isn’t just the sick person who suffers – mental illness can and often does devastate

whole families.  Part of what hurts, of course, is the illness itself, and, for families, the loss of a fully functioning loved one.  But when you add to that the suffering caused by stigma and shame, and the resulting secrecy that keeps whole families from asking for help, you have a truly vicious cycle. 

If you can’t remember where you left your keys or the name of a new colleague, it’s probably not stupidity or dementia. More likely, your brain has gotten caught in ruts and information overload. But you can help your brain learn and remember. Create new connections—big or small—and your brain becomes more active  and stays flexible. Even the brains of older people can grow new neurons. Here are five ways to create new neural pathways and to help your brain stay plastic:

Each day, an estimated 6,000 women reach menopause—the time in a woman’s life when the ovaries stop producing eggs and menstrual periods stop. Most women experience menopause-related symptoms such as hot flashes, night sweats, mood swings, and vaginal dryness. For some, these symptoms can be annoying and uncomfortable, but for others, menopausal changes severely affect quality of life, making it hard to focus on much else.