Dr Jimmy Galvez Tan received the Bayani ng Kalusugan Award 2016 during the 118th anniversary of DOH.
As part of its 118th founding anniversary last 23 June 2016, the Department of Health (DOH) honored 20 individuals and organizations who have championed health issues by giving them the Bayani ng Kalusugan Award; one of them is our very own Chairman Dr. Jaime “Jimmy” Galvez Tan.
Dok Jimmy, as he was fondly called by his patients, began his selfless mission of putting “health in the hands of all Filipinos” as a pre-medical student volunteer in the island of Palawan where he witnessed people dying without even seeing a doctor.
From then on, Dok Jimmy have taken different paths to achieve his mission—most of which are unusual paths for most doctors—from leading community-based health programs in the poorest communities, to being a consultant to various international institutions such as UNICEF, to teaching future doctors, up to founding HFI and Clinic ng Bayan.
The Bayani ng Kalusugan Award was first of its kind in recognizing the altruism of people like Dok Jimmy who walked side by side with DOH in promoting Universal Health Care (UHC) or Kalusugang Pangkalahatan—the Aquino administration’s priority agenda for health.
“In reality, the DOH only plays a small role. All of our plans will be nothing without you as implementers. All of our policies will be nothing without you walking the talk. All of the funding will be nothing if the programs are not sustained by the front liners,” said Health Secretary Janette Garin before she hand over the awards to the Health Heroes together with President Benigno Aquino III.
This and all the other awards Dok Jimmy received drove him even more to continue his mission of providing access to quality health care and empowering communities with the same consuming fervor and vision that eventually all Filipinos will have access to quality but affordable health care regardless of socio-economic status , gender, color and geographical location.
Along with Dok Jimmy, the other individual awardees were Dr. Rickson Balalio, Municipal Health Officer (MHO) of Nueva Era, Ilocos Norte; Dr. Esperanza Cabral, former DOH secretary; Virginia Cadano, midwife from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM); Edwin Candido, an anti-tuberculosis volunteer from Region IV; Dr. Agnes Centino, Assistant City Health Officer of Gingoog City; Sr. Eloise David, a nun and nurse from Region VIII; Dr. Penelope Domogo, the Provincial Health Officer (PHO) of the Mt. Province; Dr. Egidio Elio, a private medical doctor from Region VI; Sr. Eva Fidela Maamo, a nun and doctor at the National Capital Region (NCR); Paciano Madlay, a barangay health worker (BHW) from Region IV-B; Irenea Ordinario, a BHW from Region VII; Concepcion Petalino, a BHW from Region VII; Melchor Petracorta, incoming Vice Mayor of Limasawa, Southern Leyte; and Rosalinda Tanguamos, a midwife from Region IX.
