The Philippines was still an economically challenged country before the pandemic even as it had already become a middle-income country by latest world standards. When the Foundation was established in 1999 there was a need to address the gap between the overcrowded government health centers and the expensive private healthcare facilities which it had successfully done in the communities where it was able to establish its clinics. FriendlyCare’s mission was able to provide a middle ground. In the aftermath of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic income inequalities were exacerbated and access to affordable, quality healthcare has exposed the vulnerabilities of the healthcare infrastructure of the country.
The pandemic has exposed the resource strapped healthcare infrastructure of the country. Reproductive Health and Family Planning access was severely limited as resources were funneled to COVID care. This caused a delay if not absence of services for prolonged periods affecting access to preferred methods of family planning. Permanent methods requiring operating room facilities were not allowed or were barely made available for over 2 years. Long acting and short acting methods suffered from supplies, logistical constraints and lack of training of new providers. Cases of violence against women and children increased as the quarantines worsened domestic situations. The lockdowns and their impact on the economy, livelihood, schools and families caused major disruptions and worsened the well-being of Filipinos. The National Center for Mental Health reported significant increases in hotline calls as mental health concerns escalated. The longer waiting times for mental health services due to sickness, grief, loss of livelihood, the pressures of work from home and online learning/hybrid learning, unstable internet connectivity, social isolation to name a few caused stresses and mood disorders to rise.
The need for donor support has become even more acute as our government struggles from the burden of debt and an economy that is not yet back to form due to the scarring caused by the pandemic on employment, consumption, the Russian aggression in Ukraine impacting oil and food jacking up inflation and weaker overseas foreign worker remittances. Not to mention the vulnerability of the country to climate change, harsher typhoon season, the migration of health care workers to higher paying jobs in other countries makes the urgency more acute for donations to help FriendlyCare so we can continue to fill in the gaps where our government will remain to lag in the short to medium term.
Through its Clinics and TeleMedicine platform the Foundation charges affordable fees to its individual patients, MSME and other corporate clients who have budgeted medical services for their employees. These are used to defray operating expenses in running the Clinics such as medical fees and salaries, supplies, utilities. What is left over is used to plough back to the Clinics’ operations, and to conduct itinerant missions in partnership with donors and LGU’s for Reproductive Health and Family Planning. Affordable fees for services as well as donations and grants are used to defray expenses in the conduct of Mindfulness-based Programs. Any left-over is used to provide pro-bono services to economically challenged individuals who are unable to work productively due to their mental health concerns.