SM opens center

New mothers of Tala community in Caloocan City can now avail themselves of prenatal and postnatal services at the newly constructed Felicidad T. Sy (FTS) Mother and Child Care Center at the Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital.

The Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital (DJNRMH), formerly Central Luzon Sanitarium (Tala Health Center), became operational in 1940 to serve patients suffering from Hansen’s Disease (leprosy) in Central Luzon.

Due to the decrease in leprosy cases, the DJNRMH opened its doors in 1970 to provide general medical assistance to its surrounding communities.

“The DJNRMH-FTS Mother and Child Care Center is SM Foundation’s 93rd health facility under our Felicidad T. Sy Wellness Program,” said Connie Angeles, SM Foundation, Inc. (SMFI) Executive Director for Medical and Health Programs. “This is part of the Foundation’s commitment in taking care of the communities where its malls reside.”

SMFI has been either constructing, renovating and/or rehabilitating old and dilapidated health facilities into FTS Centers since 2002.

SMFI also handles the maintenance and upkeep of completed health centers.

The bid to turn the medical center into a mother-and-child-friendly facility is the joint response of the DJNRMH and SMFI to the government’s Millennium Development Goals of reducing maternal deaths and decreasing infant mortality by 2015.

“With this new addition, the women of Tala and surrounding marginalized communities are now provided with adequate medical support including prenatal and postnatal care.” Angeles added, “From children, to the elderly and even to our brothers and sisters in the military, SM Foundation provides them with the medical care they need.”