Gov. Petilla conferred Galing Likha-Kalusugan Award for Mother Bles Birthing Clinic initiative

By Provincial Media Relations Center
September 14, 2012

TACLOBAN CITY  –  Leyte Gov. Carlos Jericho Petilla recently received the Galing Likha-Kalusugan (GLK) Award conferred by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) for his innovative set up of Mother Bles Birthing Clinics in the province as well as in other parts of the country in partnership with Kakak Foundation.

The Galing Likha-Kalusugan (GLK) Award is a distinction given to public and private organizations that best exemplify the highest level of innovation in the country's health marketplace.

The governor received the award recently during a ceremony held at the Hotel Intercontinental in Makati City from top health experts in the country led by Dr. Eduardo Banzon, President and Chief Executive Officer of PhilHealth.

Mother Bles Birthing Clinics (MBBC) are networks of PhilHealth accredited birthing health facility started in Leyte Province. The program aims to provide poor pregnant women with accessible and affordable maternal and infant health care services.

Ninety-five (95) percent of clients of MBBC are PhilHealth indigent members, and the remaining 5 percent are either non-PhilHealth or paying clients. The business model of Mother Bles Clinics harnesses the comparative advantages of the following sectors through private-public partnership: KaKaK Foundation Inc., private practicing midwives, municipal and provincial government.

This is the second time that PIDS hosted such recognition rites in celebration of Filipino ingenuity and inventiveness in the healthcare sector.

Together with the Mother Bless Clinic program, also awarded were the Surveillance in Post Extreme Emergencies and Disasters (SPEED) and PhilHealth Link.

PhilHealth LINK is a call center for PHilHealth members, a collaborative enterprise supported by provincial local government units who want to maximize reimbursement from PhilHealth so that LGU health facilities can have a steady revenue stream. This project was launched by PhilHealth Region VIII in 2010.