PHA teaches resuscitation in Basilan
ISABELA CITY, Basilan—The Philippine Heart Association (PHA), in cooperation with local government units, has started a training program in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in communities with limited access to cardiologists.
The PHA conducted its first mass hands-only CPR training with 600 participants under its ZamBaSulTa (Zamboanga, Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi) and newly created Basilan Sub-Chapter at Claret College here on Jan. 14.
“In these areas, primary care providers, health workers, our nurses, midwives and the community themselves often become the first—and sometimes, the only—line of response during medical emergencies,” physician and Basilan board member Nur Khari Istarul said during the training.
He said cardiac emergencies in Basilan are “a race against time, noting the scarcity of specialists and the challenges posed by geography and distance.”
He added cardiologists are rare and access to hospitals capable of managing cardiac emergencies is often delayed by distance, geography and resource constraints.
He cited the case of Kristine Bantala Supnet, a Zamboanga-based cardiologist, who holds a clinic in Isabela only once a week.
Istarul said the most critical minutes after cardiac arrest usually occur “far from an ICU, far from advanced equipment and far from a specialist.”
“Being CPR-ready empowers communities to respond immediately. It bridges the gap between cardiac arrest and definitive care, transforming bystanders into first responders and communities into lifelines,” he added.
Training in high school
As a policymaker, Istarul pushes for the institutionalization of basic CPR or Basic Life Support training for senior high school students.
“It’s encouraging,” PHA ZamBaSulTa chapter president Amelyn Ulanghutan said in welcoming the participation of various sectors, particularly students, in the training.
Ulanghutan said the chapter will push for the participation of police and fire personnel to ensure correct CPR knowledge among uniformed responders.
PHA national president Walid Amil said the chapters will help widen access to heart health education and CPR training in Mindanao.
To establish a local advocacy arm in the province, which has no resident cardiologist, the PHA Basilan Sub-Chapter was also launched on the same day.
The launch underscored the continued absence of a cardiologist in Basilan and highlighted the readiness of local internists to take on a broader role in heart health advocacy.
Amil and Ulanghutan inducted Basilan Medical Center internists Jarrhuma Kanni, Adelfa Tahil, Bernardo Pancratius Tan, Ernesto Sanson, Sherwina Amil and Jakie Lou Eisma-Castillo as associate members of the PHA Basilan Sub-Chapter.
