A generation is a span of years during which children are born, grow up, and become old enough to have children of their own. In the intervening years, many things can happen to family members, including common health issues and life-threatening ones. Global healthcare company MSD, which marks a quarter of a century in the Philippines this year, has been involved for a generation now in social-impact programs that enable vulnerable Filipinos to have access to timely, life-saving medicines and vaccines.
MSD’s 125 years of global operations has been pushing the boundaries of science around the world with the intention that its prescription products will accelerate health care innovation for all. Its history includes pioneering vaccines for measles and mumps, creating the first vaccine against HPV or human papillomavirus that causes diseases like cervical cancer, and the development of ground-breaking medicines for conditions like heart disease, osteoporosis, diabetes, tuberculosis, HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), pneumonia and anti-microbial resistance.
Vaccine-Resilient Communities
Vaccines and medicines can only be truly effective when they reach their intended beneficiaries, which is why patient welfare is at the core of MSD’s anthem, “Inventing for Life.” By developing important vaccines at the highest standards of safety and product quality, it aligns with the United Nations’ sustainable development agenda of addressing important health challenges faced by people around the world. As a policy, the company supports ongoing assessments to understand infectious disease trends and their threat to public health. It also invests in improving the flow of pharmaceuticals from production to patient, to ensure reliable product supply and affordability.
“One of the most crucial challenges in healthcare is access to medicines and vaccination services. Our goal is to help provide the broadest possible access to our healthcare solutions and medicines within a framework that allows continuous research, development, and distribution of these to address key unmet health needs,” says Michael Blanch, MSD in the Philippines’ Market Access and Corporate Affairs Director.
There is a misconception that only newborns and children require vaccine protection but “the risk of infectious disease develops from childhood well into old age, which is why we advocate a life-course approach to vaccination,” he says.
Perhaps few things inspire as much hope as seeing grandparents, who have had decades of service to family and country behind them, get immunized against life-threatening diseases such as pneumonia so they can look forward to more life in their years as valued members of society. This topic proves to be relevant and timely as the World Health Organization (WHO) recently announced 2020-2030 as the Decade of Healthy Ageing. A consistent advocate of the life-course immunization, MSD believes this is vital to building vaccine-resilient communities.
MSD, alongside other stakeholders, continuously advocates for the awareness campaign “Bakunado si Lolo at Lola, Iwas Pulmonya.” This disease awareness initiative is part of the implementation of the government’s Expanded Pneumococcal Immunization Program for Senior Citizens to protect Filipinos ages 60 to 65 years old through free pneumococcal vaccinations at local health centers or fixed immunization sites and lectures on disease awareness and prevention.
Prioritizing Women’s Health
In order to sustainably improve and save lives at the community level, especially amidst the challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, there is now an even more urgent need to strengthen public-private sector collaboration in advocating for vaccine confidence and vaccine resiliency. MSD continues to conduct and support programs that help identify new approaches to increase awareness and immunization coverage rates.
An area where significant strides have been made in that regard is women’s health. The Department of Health (DOH) reports that more than 7,000 new cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed every year and approximately 4,000 deaths occur due to the disease. A staggering ninety-nine percent of cervical cancer cases are caused by HPV, which is why getting timely vaccination can help protect girls against cervical cancer later in life.
Multi-stakeholder collaborations through campaigns such as “Sa Aking Paglaki, Walang HPV” and “Bakuna Muna!” emphasize that no one should be left behind in vaccination. Currently, MSD actively supports programs that highlight protection through immunization especially in the early adolescence before they get exposed to HPV.
Another women’s health issue that needs strengthened investment and timely intervention is maternal health. Maternal mortality, malnutrition, illness, abuse, and neglect are some of the risks and consequences of unplanned pregnancy for both mother and her child, not to mention the rest of the family.
Hand in hand with groups like local government units, Integrated Midwives Association of the Philippines (IMAP), Philippine Society of Responsible Parenthood (PSRP), and members of the Reproductive Health Network, the company helps raise awareness on choices available for women of reproductive age to enable them to plan for their families. “Women need to gain enough proper knowledge to empower them to make informed choices concerning their own lives, especially those living in rural communities and in resource-challenged settings,” Blanch explains.
A joint effort that the healthcare company takes pride in is MSD for Mothers. MSD for Mothers engages in collaborative initiatives to improve maternal health. MSD for Mothers partnered with the Zuellig Family Foundation’s (ZFF) to improve maternal care in 20 Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas (GIDAs) in Samar and Northern Samar provinces through the program dubbed “MSD for Mothers and ZFF Community Health Partnership: The Joint Initiative”. This partnership program was the first in Asia for MSD for Mothers involving local mayors, community leaders, and health workers who underwent transformative leadership training that enabled them to understand the significance of their role in developing healthcare systems for the poor. MSD for Mothers also worked in partnership with the United Nations Foundation Business Action for Family Planning Access (BAFP), with the aim to fill the gap in reproductive health services for women by reaching out to women workers in supply chain-related jobs across countries where unmet needs for family planning are high.
Patient’s Journey
Embodying MSD’s “Inventing for Life” that insists on the dignity and well-being of the patient, the company leads the multi-sectoral support system “Hope from Within” (HFW) that puts the Filipino cancer patient’s journey in the foreground. The goal is to provide individuals living with cancer with a platform from which to share their story with a stronger voice and a stronger fight to overcome the disease through early testing and innovative cancer treatments such as Immunotherapy. Alongside patient groups, the HFW advocated for the enactment of the National Integrated Cancer Control Act in 2019. By enabling patients, partners, and stakeholders to share resources and insights, HFW is able to bring together multiple perspectives to better learn from them.
It Takes a Village
MSD is passionate about working with the community to make sure its vaccines and healthcare solutions are far-reaching, and are delivered reliably and sustainably. This entails a commitment to programs focused on good governance in the health sector—a safe and sacred investment—because when the citizens are informed, safeguarded, and healthy, they can better contribute to society.
“Every day, our medicines and vaccines touch lives. It is our privilege to work tirelessly with government and advocacy groups to identify and respond to the most critical needs of our patients and caregivers,” notes Blanch. Truly it takes a village to raise a child, as well as keep our elderly cared for, our girls alive, and our mothers empowered.