The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Philippines, in partnership with the Chinese embassy and the Department of Health (DOH), donated an autoclave and equipment to the Pasig City General Hospital (PCGH) as part of their Covid-19 healthcare waste management response project.

Aside from the PCGH, which is a local-government run public hospital, the donation was also made to the Dr. Jose N. Rodriguez Memorial Hospital and Sanitarium (DJNRMHS), a Caloocan City hospital run by the DOH.

The handover ceremony on Friday, Dec. 16, was led by DOH Officer-in-Charge Maria Rosario Singh-Vergeire; Minister Counselor Yang Guoliang from the Chinese embassy; Edwine Carrie from the UNDP; Pasig City Vice Mayor Robert "Dodot" Jaworski Jr., representing Mayor Vico Sotto; and DJNRMHS Medical Chief Dr. Alfonso Famaran, Jr.

Other officials from the DOH, UNDP, and Department of Environment and Natural Resources were also present at the event held in Caloocan City.

In a video message shown to the attendees, Mayor Sotto thanked all the stakeholders of the project for their support.

"As we all know, the last two years, medical waste has gone up dramatically. The amount, volume of hazardous waste from our hospitals has risen tremendously. This project is not only welcome in the city of Pasig, but it is much appreciated and this is exactly what we need at this point," Sotto said.

"The equipment, the autoclave and, beyond that, the technical support and training that we have started to receive and will continue to receive with regard to medical waste management, will be of great help to the city of Pasig, and to making sure that we are responsible, as environmentally-friendly as we can be while at the same time, not compromising our healthcare services," he added.

On his social media page, Sotto shared that infrastructure works are starting within the PCGH, wherein the new autoclave and equipment will be placed to "help better handle infectious waste."

In his speech in the ceremony, Jaworski stressed the local government's gratitude for the "generous donation" of their partner institutions.

"We are truly blessed that out of all the many cities and municipalities, not only in the National Capital Region (NCR) but throughout the country, you have chosen our city to be the beneficiary," Jaworski said.

"In the city of Pasig, at least 30 percent of our budget has been allocated to healthcare which is testament to the priority of the administration of Mayor Vico to prioritize the healthcare of all Pasigueños," he added.

The vice mayor expressed his hope for Pasig City to also become recipients of more projects from the national government, the UNDP, and the Chinese embassy in the future.

The healthcare waste management response project is part of the UNDP's larger program to assist in the improvement of the country's Covid-19 response in medical waste management, which include donation of equipment, and provision of technical support and training of healthcare workers.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), autoclaves are devices used to "sterilize equipment and supplies by subjecting them to high pressure and steam at 121 celsius and above." They can decontaminate infectious waste.

"The project upholds the goals of Universal Health Care in the context of an evolving pandemic response, recognizing that effective medical waste management is an essential public health service, and ensuring that investments in resilient health systems involves the need to invest in underlying systems that support a strong healthcare workforce and waste infrastructure," the DOH said in a statement.

The project is funded through the South-South Cooperation Fund of the United Nations.