Mental Health and Anti-Hospital Deposit Bills Advance to Senate Plenary

Wazzup Pilipinas!

Despite the recent Senate reorganization, Akbayan Senator Risa Hontiveros, who recently moved to the minority, sponsored on Wednesday two major health-related legislative bills for second reading.

Hontiveros said that the advances she made in pushing for the passage of her bills proved that her legislative work is unhampered by the recent developments affecting the Senate.

"The accusation that we hampered the Senate's work because of our position on key issues is pure hogwash. Our legislative work speaks for itself. And now, despite being in the minority, this will not stop me from championing health legislations”, Hontiveros remarked.

Hontiveros sponsored Senate Bill No. 1190 or the Philippine Mental Health Act.

The proposed measure aims to integrate mental health services and programs in the public health system. She said that the Philippines is one of the few countries in the world without a comprehensive mental health law.

The Senator also sponsored Senate Bill No. 216 otherwise known as "The Amendments to the Anti-Hospital Deposit Act" that seeks heavier penalties on hospitals that continue to demand any deposit or other form of advance payment, as a prerequisite for admission or medical treatment of an emergency patient.

"I hope these bills will greatly contribute in the realization of universal healthcare for the people. I hope my colleagues can cross party lines for the passage of these important measures," Hontiveros concluded.

Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke Feels Confident in Handling Filipino Foe’s Well-Rounded Skillset

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Dejdamrong Sor Amnuaysirichoke is fully aware of Joshua Pacio's outstanding reputation inside the ONE Championship cage as both men are scheduled to face each other on the undercard of ONE: WARRIOR KINGDOM in Bangkok, Thailand on 11 March.

Pacio holds an impressive 8-1 professional mixed martial arts (MMA) record and is one of the most highly-regarded strawweight prospects in the Asian region today.

A member and a proud product of the legendary Team Lakay in La Trinidad, Benguet, Pacio is a Wushu specialist with a solid well-rounded skillset.

All eight of his career victories have come by finish, including five wins by impressive submission and three triumphs by spectacular knockout.

“Pacio is a well-rounded fighter, and I have a lot of respect for him. He has good striking. He is good on the ground as well. Joshua Pacio is such a talented fighter,” Dejdamrong said of his opponent.

Despite the worthy praise that he has given to Pacio, Dejdamrong is confident that he can handle the versatility of his Filipino foe inside the cage.

​“For this fight, I’ve trained as hard as ever. I have continued to improve my overall MMA game. I’ve also worked on my ground skills, both offensively and defensively. I'm very excited to test these out in the cage in March,” he stated.

In-House IT Department Urged to go from Maintenance Hub to Growth Driver

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“Going digital” is a trend among businesses right now since it boosts overall productivity in the workplace and in the market. It means maximizing new and available technologies and models in the areas of Social Media, Mobility, Data Analytics, Cloud, and Security in order to make work and processes more efficient and effective.

Its apparent benefits are more than enough reasons to start the digital transformation. Stressing the importance of IT, TJ Rosal, the Assistant Vice President for Sales and Marketing of CuroTeknika, a managed IT services company said, “In light of the global digital shift, IT is in a position where it can make significant business impact. It is time for IT to take on a more strategic role within the organization by developing technology-driven tools, systems, and processes that add value to the business. This is an opportune moment for IT to make a shift from being a company’s mere maintenance hub to a major growth driver.”

Based on a study made by management resources firm Brilliant, majority of companies surveyed have no plans to increase their in-house IT staffing in 2017. However, as companies grow, their IT infrastructure become more complex, placing IT in a dilemma of keeping their current infrastructure up and running rather than focus on strategic initiatives. “The time that should have been spent in researching, evaluating and testing new technologies that add competitive advantage are spent mostly on operational activities which of course are equally important. Unfortunately, the culture of learning is pushed to the side and for the most part, IT resources are hired primarily for maintenance,” said Rosal.