"We have to fight back"
Keynote speech of Vice President Noli de Castro
We are here today because we have a serious problem. This problem is called hepatitis B, a disease which increases a person's risk of developing cirrhosis and liver cancer.
You, doctors and health workers, are fully aware of the ways by which the hepa-B virus has been silently spreading itself.
The use of contaminated needles, blood transfusion, unprotected sex, infection of a baby during birth-these have been identified as the common means of transmission.
In a sense, hepa-B is just as treacherous as the much-dreaded AIDS virus.
Kaya naman narito tayo ngayon upang harapin ang sakit na hepa-B, at sama-samang gumawa ng mga hakbang para pigilan ang pagkalat nito.
Ito ay isang delikadong sitwasyon, at kailangan nating gamitin ang pinagsamang lakas ng gobyerno, pribadong sektor, at international organizations upang magtagumpay tayo.
This is an alarming situation and we need to mobilize the support of various stakeholders, such as the government, the private sector and concerned international organizations to curb the spread of hepa B.
Confronting our losses
My friends, I am disturbed by the statistics that you have provided me:
More than 7,000 Filipinos are found to be with liver cancer, likely due to hepa B.
Liver-cancer patients can hope to fight for their lives for three months, but less than six percent survive for five years, and nobody is expected to last beyond 10 years.
I should know. Naranasan kong mawalan ng dalawang mahal sa buhay dahil sa cancer of the liver: ang una ay si itay (grade five pa lamang ako sa Pola, Mindoro, nang pumanaw si itay sa sakit na liver cancer). And recently, si kuya naman (na ang diagnosis ay cirrhosis). Sa dalawang kasong ito sa pamilya ko, walang makapagsabi kung ano talaga ang pinagmulan. Marahil dala ito ng kakulangan ng awareness at consciousness sa sakit sa atay at ang posibleng causes nito. Siyempre po marami yan-in the case of my father and brother, it could be a genetic factor and predisposition to the disease. Yet, we have no conclusions. What I wish to drive at is the importance of information and awareness campaign because we can avoid getting into the terminal stage through early detection. But more importantly, there are ways to prevent the disease and that is one of the major reasons why we are here.
About eight million Filipinos are infected with hepa B. With this information before us, the need for immediate action becomes painfully obvious.
We have to fight back, not today, but yesterday. Our actions should be driven by a sense of urgency of the highest level.
Fighting back
In fact, the fight started way back . . . more than a decade ago.
In 1994, we enacted Republic Act 7846 that mandates immunization for all infants and children under eight years old. But while the law is in place, the administrative mechanisms to implement it are sorely lacking.
There are very few hospitals and health clinics that take the pains of screening hepatitis-B status among pregnant mothers. Fewer still provide vaccination of infants at birth.
Perhaps it is timely that we meet today, in this summit, to reiterate the steps that should be taken to control the virus. Sana matumbok ninyo ang strategic actions para masugpo ang sakit na hepa B.
First, as I have previously mentioned, we have to encourage greater awareness of the disease. Many people diagnosed with hepa B were not aware that they were infected, until it was too late.
Second, we have to aggressively implement the hepa-B immunization program. You doctors and health workers know that a vaccine is available to prevent the infection from causing more damage to the body. Sadly, the rest of our people do not know, or worse, do not care.
And third, we have to find ways of generating more resources to support the anti-hepa-B campaign. Like many things in government, funding for a social development program requires political will. And let me assure you-there is political will.
Protecting our OFWs
Merong isa pang anggulo ang problemang ito na dapat din nating bigyan ng malalim na pag-aaral. Ito ay ang sitwasyon ng ating mga OFWs.
Kung tutoo ngang marami nang na-expose sa hepa-B virus sa Pilipinas, at itinuturing nang isa sa mga hotspots ang Pilipinas, marahil ay dapat nating siguruhin na hindi magiging daan ang ating mga OFWs upang kumalat ang sakit sa ibang lugar.
Alam naman natin kung gaano kahalaga ang mga OFWs sa ating bansa, at sa kanilang mga pamilya dito.
Hindi lamang ang buhay nila ang nakataya dito, kundi pati na rin ang buhay ng ating ekonomiya.
That is why I am endorsing the proposal to integrate hepa-B protection as part of the predeparture processing of our OFWs.
Let this be our way of assuring foreign institutions that hire Filipino labor that our OFWs are not just competent and hardworking. Our OFWs are also adequately protected against hepa B.
Moving forward
On this note, let me extend my appreciation to the organizers of this conference for keeping the hepa-B issue on top of our governance agenda.
We all know that all the attention is focused nowadays on the intensifying political campaign for the May elections.
Well, we are not politicians here.
We are workers who have a job to do.
Election period or not, let our fight against hepa B proceed on full steam.
Ladies and gentlemen, the battle lines are drawn. Let us move forward and make our country safe and healthy. M
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