AT LEAST 27 medical practitioners from Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center (EVRMC) in Tacloban City on Friday, August 10, received their training certificates after a three-day seminar and workshop on journalism.

“I’ve seen the gap in the communication between EVRMC and its stakeholders. We need to build a strong relationship with them,” said Dr. Randy Saavedra, the hospital’s chief of the public health department.

Saavedra said the need to bridge the hospital to the community and even among its various departments pushed them to launch the journalism training for their publication’s editorial team.

“Our long-term goals are to promote our success stories and network the hospital to the local government units. Also, we want that the research works of our doctor will be published,” added Saavedra, who is the editor-in-chief of the “Bridges”, the official publication of EVRMC.

According to Saavedra, their quarterly publication will be distributed to the local government units in the region.

Tacloban-based media expert Aaron J.P. Almadro, who facilitated the workshop, lauded the group for organizing the event.

“When I was invited to give a lecture on publishing, instead of speaking alone, I assembled a team of professional practitioners to help me introduce the beauty of print to these aspiring journalists. So, we discussed the whole editorial process,” Almadro, the editor and creative director of 8 Magazine, said.

The publication staff composed of doctors, nurses, physical therapist, administrative assistants, medical technologist, pharmacist and other professions were trained on writing news, feature, opinion, editorial cartoon, basic photography, photo editing, and layout design.

“We hope we inspired and shared enough knowledge for them to successfully create a news magazine that is both informative and entertaining,” Almadro said.

Desiree Nayra, a nurse by profession who works as administrative assistant in EVRMC, thanked hospital chief Dr. Salvador Evardone for his support to the publication.

“It’s an opportunity for us to learn about journalism. I learn a lot. This is a big help for our institution, for us to do more for our hospital publication,” she said.

Accredited by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, EVRMC is a 500-bed capacity and Level III hospital in the region.

After the 2013 Super Typhoon Yolanda, EVRMC’s main building was relocated to brgy. Cabalawan in Tacloban, with its new six-story structure equipped with modern medical equipment and services.