Thursday, July 26, 2007 Rotarians launch drive for dengue prevention
ROTARY Clubs in Davao City composed of service-minded professionals under Rotary International District 3860 combine resources to launch a comprehensive blood service and dengue prevention project at the Davao Medical Society (DMS) building at the Brokenshire Memorial Hospital on July 28.
This was announced by Rotary Club of East Davao past president Rodel Riezl SJ Reyes, assistant governor for Zone 2-C, who said the project will start through a half-day bloodletting activity and program chaired by RC Waling-waling headed by President Maria Luisa Jacinto.
The impact project is initiated by RI District Governor Joseph Michael "Yumi" P. Espina of RI District 3860 covering 14 provinces, about 20 cities and more than a hundred towns in the Visayas and Mindanao. He also announced that this launching is in connection with National Blood Month.
According to AG Riz Reyes, the project launch will be simultaneously conducted in the cities of Cebu, Tacloban and Davao.
Dr. Renie Maguinsay, past president of RC Waling-waling Davao, will give an overview of the Rotary district's blood service program. A hematologist, Dr. Maguinsay, is the program's district chair.
During the ceremony, Dr. Milagros Viacrucis, coordinator of the Department of Health 11 regional blood program, will discuss briefly with the Rotarians on the new DOH policy on blood banking and the importance and use of blood components.
While Saturday's launch in Davao City is directly handled by all Rotary clubs in Davao, in cooperation with the Davao Medical Society headed by Dr. Ruby Robiso, the rest of the city's close to 20 clubs are enjoined by DG Yumi to conduct their individual bloodletting and dengue prevention activities through Rotary Year 2007-2008.
Aside from the DMS, other partners in the project are Philippine National Red Cross, Association of Hematologists in Mindanao Fund, Inc., Mindanao Thalasemia Fund Inc. (MTFI), Hemophilia Association in Davao (HAND) and Davao Children's Cancer Fund, Inc. (DCCFI).
The eight clubs directly involved in Saturday's activity are as follows: RC Waling-Waling under President Jacinto, RCDowntown Davao led by Pres. Eliza Joy Balinas, RC Sta Ana (Pres. Reynaldo I. Reyes), RC South Davao (Pres. Ismael Tabije, also chair of the Council of Presidents of Rotary), RC Davao 2000 (Dave Uy), RC East Davao (Pres. Efren Elbanbuena), RC Pag-asa Davao (Al Iskanda Sangki), and RC North Davao (Lorenzo "Bong" Cristobal).
Other participating clubs are RC West Davao (Pres. Frank Guillano), RC Davao ( Pres. Samuel Labang), RC Metro Davao (Pres. Fred Mendiola), RC Matina ( Pres. Cho Leonor), RC Davao Gulf (Pres. Maning Nartatez), RC Calinan (Pres. Tony Obsioma), RC Toril (Pres. Lucy de Leon) and RC Urban Davao (Pres. Otek Durante)
South Davao PP Leoncio Villa-Abrille, senior assistant governor for operation for Mindanao, and Waling-waling PP Nen Santos, another SAG, will grace the occasion.
