Most DOH hospitals fully compliant with total mercury phaseout

MANILA, March 7 (PNA) -- The Department of Health (DOH) has reported that 16 out of the 20 DOH-retained hospitals in Metro Manila have fully complied with the directive on phasing out the use in the health care system of all apparatuses or devices that contain mercury.

The phaseout is in keeping with Administrative Order No. 2008-0021 which mandates the gradual elimination of the use of mercury in all Philippine health care facilities and institutions.

The move to stop the use of all medical devices containing mercury was jump-started in 1991, when the World Health Organization (WHO) concluded that a safe level for mercury that would not have any adverse effects on a person’s health has never been established.

The 16 DOH hospitals in Metro Manila which have fully complied with the total mercury phaseout are:

San Lorenzo Ruiz Women’s Hospital; Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital; Philippine Orthopedic Center; Valenzuela Medical Center; National Center for Mental Health; East Avenue Medical Center; San Lazaro Hospital; Research Institute for Tropical Medicine; Dr. Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center; Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital; Las Pinas General Hospital and Satellite Trauma Center; Rizal Medical Center; Quirino Memorial Medical Center; Tondo Medical Center; Lung Center of the Philippines, and Philippine Children’s Medical Center. (PNA)
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