January 30, 2009
HEALTH CARE WITHOUT HARM SUPPORTS TOXIC-FREE POLICY
Manila – Health Care Without Harm-Southeast Asia (HCWH-SEA), together with more than 60 civil society organizations (CSO), signs the Citizens’ Statement for Consumer Protection against Toxic Chemicals at the National Workshop on Chemical Safety held in Manila on January 27 and 28.
With the theme, Chemical Safety: Protecting Filipino Consumers from Toxic Harm, the workshop aims to draft the plan of action towards the 2020 goal of a sound management of toxic chemicals from its production up to its use in order to minimize the harmful effects on human health and environment.
“We believe that all of us have roles to play to protect ourselves and our environment from toxic chemicals,” said Merci Ferrer, Executive Director of HCWH-SEA. “For our organization, HCWH, we aim to go beyond the boundaries of hospitals. More than lobbying to hospital administrators and heads of the Ministries/Departments of Health in Southeast Asia, we will urge the industry sector to be more critical and not to be too lenient in approving products that are toxic to people’s health and the environment.”
“We will continue to adhere to our motto, First, Do No Harm and make sure that all decisions and actions, especially of the health sector, will not cause more damage to the patients, to hospital workers, community and the environment,” Ferrer added.
The Common Statement will push the government, industry and civil society to work towards 12 points of action: uphold consumer rights, go zero waste, enforce the incineration ban, eliminate POPs, stop toxic waste trade, go organic, protect workers from toxic exposures, save the children from toxic harm, promote the people’s agenda for chemical safety, ensure people’s empowerment and participation, and push for producer responsibility.
The workshop is part of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM), a global policy and strategy adopted by government and stakeholders to protect human health and ecosystems from the harms caused by exposure to toxic chemical substances. SAICM targets to get signature of 1,000 non-government organizations and CSO in at least 80 countries.
Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) is a global coalition of more than 400 organizations in more than 50 countries working to protect health by reducing pollution in health care sector. For more information, visit www.noharm.org. (30)
Copy of the Statement is available upon request.
Sonia G. Astudillo, Communications Officer, 0918 9182369, sonia@hcwh.org
Merci Ferrer, Executive Director, 0920 9056113, merci@hcwh.org
Friday, January 30, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
HCWH-SEA INVITES CSO TO SIGN CHEMICAL MANAGEMENT POLICY FOR COUNTRY’S HEALTH
January 15, 2009
Contact:
Sonia G. Astudillo, Communications Officer, +63 918 9182369, sonia@hcwh.org
Merci Ferrer, Executive Director, + 63 920 9056113, merci@hcwh.org
HCWH-SEA INVITES CSO TO SIGN CHEMICAL MANAGEMENT POLICY FOR COUNTRY’S HEALTH
In welcoming the new year, Health Care Without Harm-Southeast Asia (HCWH-SEA) invites civil society organizations (CSO) in the region to sign the Global Common Statement on Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM).
SAICM is a global policy and strategy adopted by government and stakeholders to protect human health and ecosystems from the harms caused by exposure to toxic chemical substances. In January 2008, the Global SAICM Outreach Campaign was launched to inform non-government organizations (NGOs) and CSOs about SAICM and encourage them to contribute in its implementation in their country.
“The target is to secure at least 1,000 NGO and CSO endorsements in at least 80 countries,” said Merci Ferrer, Executive Director of HCWH-SEA. HCWH is among the six international NGO networks collaborating in the global campaign. The other organizations are International POPs Elimination Network (IPEN), International Society of Doctors for the Environment (ISDE), Pesticide Action Network (PAN), Women in Europe for a Common Future (WECF), and World Federation of Public Health Associations.
“SAICM aims to change how chemicals are produced and used in order to minimize the harmful effects on human health and environment. By 2020 or even before that, we hope to achieve sound management of chemicals from its production up to its use,” said Ferrer.
“Civil Society Organizations, like HCWH-SEA, may take an active role in ensuring that their respective governments are true to the policies and strategies of SAICM,” Ferrer added.
“In a medical setting for one, everyday we see workers being exposed to toxic chemicals. The agriculture industry is still largely dependent to pesticides. And the presence of toxic substances in consumer products is continuously in the headlines,” she pointed out. “One of HCWH’s global efforts is to eliminate mercury, a known toxic chemical, in health care.”
She added, “these concerns have been raised as early as the 60s. Now, we again encourage CSOs and NGOs to take an even more active role and be the watchdog of their respective government.”
According to the paper An NGO Guide to SAICM: The Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management by Jack Weinberg, “SAICM comes more than half a century after the rise of the chemical industry. By adopting SAICM, world society has formally recognized that injury to human health and the environment caused by exposure to toxic chemicals is a serious global problem, one whose solution requires urgent action and a holistic global approach.”
Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) is a global coalition of more than 400 organizations in more than 50 countries working to protect health by reducing pollution in health care sector. For more information, visit www.noharm.org. (30)
Contact:
Sonia G. Astudillo, Communications Officer, +63 918 9182369, sonia@hcwh.org
Merci Ferrer, Executive Director, + 63 920 9056113, merci@hcwh.org
HCWH-SEA INVITES CSO TO SIGN CHEMICAL MANAGEMENT POLICY FOR COUNTRY’S HEALTH
In welcoming the new year, Health Care Without Harm-Southeast Asia (HCWH-SEA) invites civil society organizations (CSO) in the region to sign the Global Common Statement on Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management (SAICM).
SAICM is a global policy and strategy adopted by government and stakeholders to protect human health and ecosystems from the harms caused by exposure to toxic chemical substances. In January 2008, the Global SAICM Outreach Campaign was launched to inform non-government organizations (NGOs) and CSOs about SAICM and encourage them to contribute in its implementation in their country.
“The target is to secure at least 1,000 NGO and CSO endorsements in at least 80 countries,” said Merci Ferrer, Executive Director of HCWH-SEA. HCWH is among the six international NGO networks collaborating in the global campaign. The other organizations are International POPs Elimination Network (IPEN), International Society of Doctors for the Environment (ISDE), Pesticide Action Network (PAN), Women in Europe for a Common Future (WECF), and World Federation of Public Health Associations.
“SAICM aims to change how chemicals are produced and used in order to minimize the harmful effects on human health and environment. By 2020 or even before that, we hope to achieve sound management of chemicals from its production up to its use,” said Ferrer.
“Civil Society Organizations, like HCWH-SEA, may take an active role in ensuring that their respective governments are true to the policies and strategies of SAICM,” Ferrer added.
“In a medical setting for one, everyday we see workers being exposed to toxic chemicals. The agriculture industry is still largely dependent to pesticides. And the presence of toxic substances in consumer products is continuously in the headlines,” she pointed out. “One of HCWH’s global efforts is to eliminate mercury, a known toxic chemical, in health care.”
She added, “these concerns have been raised as early as the 60s. Now, we again encourage CSOs and NGOs to take an even more active role and be the watchdog of their respective government.”
According to the paper An NGO Guide to SAICM: The Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management by Jack Weinberg, “SAICM comes more than half a century after the rise of the chemical industry. By adopting SAICM, world society has formally recognized that injury to human health and the environment caused by exposure to toxic chemicals is a serious global problem, one whose solution requires urgent action and a holistic global approach.”
Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) is a global coalition of more than 400 organizations in more than 50 countries working to protect health by reducing pollution in health care sector. For more information, visit www.noharm.org. (30)
Saturday, January 10, 2009
HEALTH CARE WITHOUT HARM URGES BAGUIO TO SPEED-UP WASTE TREATMENT FACILITY PURCHASE
January 10, 2009
HEALTH CARE WITHOUT HARM URGES BAGUIO TO SPEED-UP WASTE
TREATMENT FACILITY PURCHASE
Health Care Without Harm-Southeast Asia (HCWH-SEA) calls on the local government of Baguio City to speed-up the purchase of a more efficient treatment technology and identify a centralized treatment facility for infectious hospital wastes in the City. This came in time with the release of the Baguio Hospital Waste Assessment Program report late December 2008.
“As early as September last year, HCWH-SEA, the Baguio City Environment and Parks Management Office (CEPMO), Baguio hospital administrators of seven tertiary level hospitals and Councilor Perlita Chan-Rondez agreed that a centralized treatment facility is the immediate and long-term solution to Baguio hospital waste disposal,” said Merci Ferrer, Executive Director of HCWH-SEA.
“A timeline of 75 days from September 18 (when the meeting with stakeholders was held) was agreed on. Irisan dumpsite was targeted as a central treatment facility and the consensus was to purchase an autoclave. That 75 days is way over,” she lamented.
From July 2008, chemically-treated hospitals wastes from Baguio hospitals are not being collected by City Government for the lack of waste treatment facility for chemical and hazardous wastes in the Metro Clark Waste Management Facility . This forced the Baguio hospitals to take care of the final disposal of their treated wastes.
In the report released by HCWH-SEA, the approximated volume of infectious waste produced in a month in seven Baguio hospitals is 9,708 kg.
HCWH-SEA is recommending the use of autoclave . Ferrer said that the purchase of an autoclave and having a centralized treatment facility will “ease a great burden to the city’s coffers.”
The City Government is currently paying P500,000 per day or P17.5 million per month to transport its solid wastes.
Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) is a global coalition of 473 organizations in more than 50 countries working to protect health by reducing pollution in health care sector. For more information, visit www.noharm.org. (30)
1 The report gives a look at the hospital waste system in seven hospitals in Baguio City. Full copy of the summary is available for interested media people.
2 Metro Clark Waste Management Facility offers waste disposal and management services within Central Luzon.
3 Autoclave uses steam to treat cultures and stocks, sharps, materials contaminated with blood and limited amounts of fluid, isolation and surgery wastes, laboratory wastes (excluding chemical wastes), and soft waste.
HEALTH CARE WITHOUT HARM URGES BAGUIO TO SPEED-UP WASTE
TREATMENT FACILITY PURCHASE
Health Care Without Harm-Southeast Asia (HCWH-SEA) calls on the local government of Baguio City to speed-up the purchase of a more efficient treatment technology and identify a centralized treatment facility for infectious hospital wastes in the City. This came in time with the release of the Baguio Hospital Waste Assessment Program report late December 2008.
“As early as September last year, HCWH-SEA, the Baguio City Environment and Parks Management Office (CEPMO), Baguio hospital administrators of seven tertiary level hospitals and Councilor Perlita Chan-Rondez agreed that a centralized treatment facility is the immediate and long-term solution to Baguio hospital waste disposal,” said Merci Ferrer, Executive Director of HCWH-SEA.
“A timeline of 75 days from September 18 (when the meeting with stakeholders was held) was agreed on. Irisan dumpsite was targeted as a central treatment facility and the consensus was to purchase an autoclave. That 75 days is way over,” she lamented.
From July 2008, chemically-treated hospitals wastes from Baguio hospitals are not being collected by City Government for the lack of waste treatment facility for chemical and hazardous wastes in the Metro Clark Waste Management Facility . This forced the Baguio hospitals to take care of the final disposal of their treated wastes.
In the report released by HCWH-SEA, the approximated volume of infectious waste produced in a month in seven Baguio hospitals is 9,708 kg.
HCWH-SEA is recommending the use of autoclave . Ferrer said that the purchase of an autoclave and having a centralized treatment facility will “ease a great burden to the city’s coffers.”
The City Government is currently paying P500,000 per day or P17.5 million per month to transport its solid wastes.
Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) is a global coalition of 473 organizations in more than 50 countries working to protect health by reducing pollution in health care sector. For more information, visit www.noharm.org. (30)
1 The report gives a look at the hospital waste system in seven hospitals in Baguio City. Full copy of the summary is available for interested media people.
2 Metro Clark Waste Management Facility offers waste disposal and management services within Central Luzon.
3 Autoclave uses steam to treat cultures and stocks, sharps, materials contaminated with blood and limited amounts of fluid, isolation and surgery wastes, laboratory wastes (excluding chemical wastes), and soft waste.
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