BAGUIO CITY— Aimed at addressing breast cancer and improving the health care outcomes of its constituents, the city government will formally launch Project Extension for Community Health Outcomes (ECHO) on Wednesday, December 21, at City Hall spearheaded by the City Health Services Office (CHSO).
CHSO deputy head Dr. Celia Flor Brillantes said the city will affirm its steadfast commitment to delivering quality, affordable and accessible medical, health and wellness care to its community members by collaborating with Roche Philippines Inc. and the Philippine Society of Medical Oncology.
Project ECHO is a unique learning model founded by Dr. Sanjeev Arora at the University of New Mexico where participants engage in a virtual community with their peers where they share support, guidance and feedback.
“As a result, our collective understanding of how to disseminate and implement best practices across diverse disciplines continuously improves and expands. We call it ‘all teach, all learn’,” Brillantes said.
In the Philippines, Project ECHO was piloted in Guagua, Pampanga and Samal, Bataan in 2021 and 2022, respectively, she said.
It became instrumental in providing assistance to breast cancer patients during the pandemic by tapping the power of virtual technology to improve survival and quality of life through capacity building, strengthening screening efforts with early diagnosis, and improving patient navigation and referral system.
“We would like to pioneer a virtual telementoring model for breast cancer screening from early diagnosis up to treatment in the Summer Capital. We aim to contribute to the reduction of breast cancer mortality and potentially benefit 21,250 women in 16 barangay,” Brillantes said.
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