The Ayala group has distributed over 10,000 N95 masks to key hospitals in Manila, Quezon City, and other locations, heeding the call from public health institutions running low on personal protective equipment (PPE) amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
AC Health, through Ayala Foundation, distributed the masks directly or through Department of Health channels to different health institutions, as well as to partner institutions that serve communities outside Metro Manila, the group said in a press statement.
The Philippine General Hospital (PGH), San Lazaro Hospital, East Avenue Medical Center, Lung Center of the Philippines, Philippine Heart Center, National Kidney and Transplant Institute, Philippine Children’s Medical Center, Quezon City General Hospital, Quirino Medical Center, Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center, and Ospital ng Maynila in the City of Manila; and the Research Institute of Tropical Medicine in Muntinlupa City were among the recipients of the much needed protective resource.
Rontgene Solante, infectious disease specialist and chair of the Adult Infectious Disease and Tropical Medicine division of the San Lazaro Hospital, one of the top frontline institutions in the fight againt COVID-19 19, expressed gratitude for the donation. The San Lazaro Hospital currently takes care of 18 COVID-19 patients.
“Amidst the challenges of this COVID-19 pandemic, it’s important for us to support our medical professionals and frontliners,” Paolo Borromeo, president and chief executive officer of AC Health, said in a press statement on Tuesday.
Borromeo added that all Healthway mall-based clinics and FamilyDOC community clinics would remain open to serve the public, along with Generika pharmacies, which will continue to provide access to medicines and supplements.
The Ayala group said it continued to reach out to the Department of Health for possible assistance that may be extended to health institutions on the front line of the fight against COVID-19.