Health center benefits aeta community

Around 500 Aeta families are expected to benefit from the new barangay (village) healthcare center at the Pastolan Village inside this premier Freeport after being turned over by the Redondo Peninsula Energy (RP Energy).

The RP Energy’s initiative of renovating the “KliniKaBarangay Health” and Wellness Center is part of the company’s “Katuwang Natin sa Buhay” umbrella corporate social responsibility (CSR) program.

Part of the renovation is fitting the healthcare center with equipment that include a weighing scale, blood pressure monitor, stethoscope, a microscope, an autoclave machine, nebulizer, medicine cabinets with medical supplies, and even a delivery bed for the community’s use.


According to RP Energy project manager Grant Smith, the health and wellness hub will provide the Aeta community with basic health services that focus on maternal health and child care.

“We’re glad to have this opportunity to help address the concerns and problems of RP Energy’s stakeholders including the isolated communities around the Subic Bay Freeport,” Smith said.

The leader of the Pastolan tribal council thanked the RP Energy for its initiative to improve the health of his community.

Before the formal turnover of the refurbished healthcare center, RP Energy representatives conducted a training program for the local village health workers.

For four days, the health workers were formally trained in modules for “mother and baby care” and “care of the sick and injured.”

“It would be improper for us to just turnover the clinic like that. We also made sure that all the concerned personnel are well-trained in basic medical care and in the use of the medical equipment”, Smith said. The RP Energy project manager added that sustainability is a key consideration in any of the company’s initiatives.

To date, more than 250 health workers and midwives from the surrounding communities including representatives from the Indigenous Peoples (IP) sector have also been trained by the Philippine National Red Cross through the RP Energy’s KliniKaBarangay program. (Jonas Reyes, Manila Bulletin)