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IOC ‘very satisfied’ with Tokyo 2020 preparations, say organisers

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Despite concerns about extreme heat, ballooning costs and accommodation shortages, organisers of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics are resolutely upbeat with one year to go until the opening ceremony – and not without some justification.

Asked about the biggest challenges organisers have overcome so far a spokesperson, Masa Takaya, said that “Tokyo 2020 has not really faced any major issues”, adding the International Olympic Committee and International Paralympic Committee are “very satisfied with our preparations”.

State of Philippine mental health care

Today, Oct. 10, is World Mental Health Day. Earlier this week, the World Health Organization (WHO) released its latest Mental Health Atlas (pdf), showing the state of mental health care in the world. BusinessWorld has visualized the WHO’s data on the Philippines below.

Click for the full version.
Click for the full version.

According to the WHO, one disability-adjusted life year (DALY) can be considered one year of “healthy” life lost. The Philippines’ 2,763 DALYs per 100,000 people “can be thought of as a measurement of the gap between current health status and an ideal health situation where the entire population lives to an advanced age, free of disease and disability.”

The Philippines’ country profile shows, besides the figures above, that the country’s mental health policy is only partially implemented and partially in line with human rights covenants. The Philippines also lacks a stand-alone law for mental health. Perhaps most troubling is the fact that the country lacks a suicide prevention strategy.

The profile suggests the Philippines’ mental health reporting is inadequate, as data in this area has been “compiled in [the] last two years for [the] public sector only”. Gaps in the data include the number of mental health outpatient visits and figures on inpatient admissions in the country.

The full WHO profile on the Philippine may be downloaded here (pdf).

Can you recommend local mental health resources in the comments?

Text: Katrina Paola B. Alvarez

PR: Truth or spin?

By Nickky Faustine P. de Guzman

While the perpetual crusade of the marketing industry is “truth in advertising,” a key criticism of marketers, advertisers, and public relations (PR) practitioners is that they are propagandists and panderers. “Spin doctors,” they are often called.

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‘Peacocking’ men may boost pink iPhone as hue fades with women

LET’S FACE IT, the “rose gold” iPhone 6 is pink.

We all know it. It doesn’t even seem as if Apple tried very hard to replicate the salmony glint of a rose-gold piece of jewelry. It went all in with pink.

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‘Gifts’ from Chinese herbal medicine

PARIS — Derived from a herb used to treat fevers some 1,700 years ago, the anti-malaria drug artemisinin is one of many treatments plucked from the treasure chest of ancient Chinese medicine and repackaged for a modern age.

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Pan taps origins of Peter Pan’s 100-year pop culture adventure

NEW YORK — In the century since Scottish author J.M. Barrie created Peter Pan for a stage play then a book, the Neverland universe has inspired movies, books, TV shows, plays, videogames and even a pop psychology syndrome describing emotionally immature men.

For the latest iteration of the classic story involving Tinkerbell, Captain Hook and the Darlings, the focus is on the origins of the boy who famously wouldn’t grow up.

Warner Bros’ Pan is a live-action 3-D feature aimed at children that imagines the beginnings of Peter’s story: how he got to Neverland and learned to fly.

“I think Peter Pan has taken on a life of its own in the same way that Sherlock Holmes has,” said director Joe Wright, referring to Arthur Conan Doyle’s crime-solving British literary phenomenon.

“Peter has incredible courage and fun and so I think that reminds us of childhood in an honest and beautiful way. It’s no surprise that Barrie was writing at the same time as Freud. His story is somehow deeply psychologically accurate and acute,” Wright said.

For Wright, the appeal of Peter Pan had little to do with a reluctance to grow up — a complex embodied by the late singer Michael Jackson and his Neverland ranch in California with its carousel, animals and Peter Pan references.

“I always wanted to grow up. I hated childhood. I found it a really difficult period of life. I was bullied and I was quite scared a lot of the time. So Peter Pan offered an escape from all of that,” he said.

The theme of Pan is of a boy with a powerful imagination who is looking for the mother who abandoned him at birth just before World War II. He discovers his identity and confidence along the way.

Newcomer Levi Miller stars as young Peter, with Hugh Jackman as wicked pirate Blackbeard, Garrett Hedlund as (at this stage) friendly James Hook and Rooney Mara as a controversially white warrior princess Tiger Lily.

Underneath the video-game inspired pirate battles, multi-colored tree villagers and cavernous pixie dust mines, Wright says he wanted make a movie that “reconnected and validated the 11-year-old boy in myself.”

“I wanted to make a film from the point of view of a kid who saw the world as a fabulous extraordinary place, full of magic and wonder, without cynicism or irony.” — Reuters

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: 21st century screwball comedy

The Binge
By Jessica Zafra

FOURTEEN-YEAR-OLD Kimmy is abducted in front of her house by a cult leader.

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DoH-Davao Region sets up data system

By Maya M. Padillo

DAVAO CITY — The Department of Health’s (DoH) Davao Region office is spending P2 million to set up a system for collecting complete, accurate, and timely information on health matters that will be used for drafting appropriate policies and programs.

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LUX returns with ‘Perfumed Bath Collection’

AFTER SEVERAL YEARS not in the Philippines, LUX (one of Unilever’s personal care brands) has returned to the local market with the introduction of its new “Perfumed Bath Collection” featuring body washes and bar soaps, and sans the hair care items.

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Diving into the gray zone

By Richard Roeper
Movie Review
Sicario

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Dengue makes a ‘comeback’

MEDICINE CABINET
REINER W. GLOOR

IN A HOSPITAL in Trece Martires City, Cavite, dengue patients had to be admitted and confined to hospital rooms not sufficiently equipped to deal with the sudden rise in the number of dengue cases and influx of patients.

In Cavite Province alone, the big leap in dengue incidence prompted the Philippine Red Cross to set up an Emergency Field Hospital to accommodate more dengue patients.

With dengue hogging the headlines, Malacañang assured the country on Oct. 4 that the Department of Health (DoH) is closely monitoring dengue incidence in the country, and that the department is on top of the situation.

Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma said the health department has been providing medical services to the provinces, cities, and other areas where there are reports of dengue cases.

While noting that the number of dengue cases has risen in several regions, Mr. Coloma said its incidence has “declined” in other regions as well.

He cited Mimaropa where the number of dengue cases dropped from 1,646 to 1,346; Bicol (from 993 to 868); Western Visayas (from 5,718 to 3,756); Central Visayas (3,481 to 3,326); Eastern Visayas (4,508 to 737); Zamboanga Peninsula (4,743 to 3,981); Northern Mindanao (6,298 to 5,795); the Davao region (5,849 to 2,619); Soccsksargen (5,302 to 5,109); and Caraga (6,946 to 2,598).

The coming season of drought due to El Niño may possibly contribute to an increase in the number of dengue cases. The long hours of water interruption will force household to stockpile water in containers where mosquitoes can breed. These water containers must be covered or properly sealed to prevent them from being used as breeding grounds.

According the January-August 2015 DoH Epidemiology Bureau estimates, 55,079 people were suspected of having been infected with dengue after showing some of its symptoms like high fever, muscle pain, and skin rashes. The figure 55,079 represented a 9.15% increase compared to the same period last year, pegged at 50,492.

The DoH has observed that most of the cases were from Calabarzon, Metro Manila, Central Luzon, Northern Mindanao, and Cagayan Valley.

As for the availability of a dengue vaccine in the country, the DoH said the “new vaccine against the dengue virus” is being registered and undergoing strict safety processing at the Food and Drug Administration offices. The DoH said is targeting to launch pilot testing of the vaccine in select areas some time next year.

Since there are no officially approved or prescribed dengue vaccines yet for public consumption, and, at the same time there, no specific medications to treat a dengue infection, prevention is still the No. 1 and the most important step to deal with dengue.

Essentially prevention is avoiding mosquito bites, if possible.

Top among the best ways to eradicate mosquitoes is to eliminate or destroy the places where mosquitoes lay their eggs. Among these breeding grounds are artificial containers that hold water in and around the home. Mosquitoes also breed in clean water containers like pet and animal watering containers, flower vases, and water storage barrels. Water in flower vases must be replaced or changed at least once a week.

Adult dengue-causing mosquitoes prefer to bite both inside and outside residential areas, during the day and at night time, even when the lights are switched on.

It is advisable to use a mosquito repellent on skin surfaces to prevent mosquito bites. If possible and comfortable, wear long sleeved shirts and long pants for further protection. The use of window and door screens, without holes, help in preventing mosquito bites.

If a member of the household is already infected with dengue, take extra precautions to prevent mosquitoes from biting the patient as they may eventually bite other members of the household, infecting them too.

A mosquito-borne flavivirus disease, dengue has spread to most tropical countries, such as the Philippines, and many subtropical areas. The disease is caused by four closely related viruses, the Dengue viruses 1-4.

The World Health Organization (WHO) Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization is currently reviewing evidence and will advise the WHO on any recommended use of a licensed dengue vaccine. A meeting has been scheduled on April 2016.

Key considerations include vaccine safety, vaccine efficacy, disease burden, programmatic suitability, including dose scheduling, and cost-effectiveness.

Log on to www.phap.org.ph and www.phapcares.org.ph. E-mail the author at reiner.gloor@gmail.com.

Photo: Muhammad Mahdi Karim

Coke bottle and art on tour

AS ONE of the world’s most recognized shapes turns a century old this year, The Coca-Cola Company (Coca-Cola) decided to launch a 15-country tour showcasing the art that is, and was inspired by, the Coke bottle.

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