Ang Mundo Ni Inay

By Dr. Nelson Abelardo, Chairman

Sagip Buhay Medical Foundation, Inc.

Every year, thousands of Filipinos come to the UP-Philippine General Hospital (PGH) to seek medical attention. They come from all over the country and are the most marginalized members of our society. They get to be seen by doctors, but the treatment they desire is most often elusive as most of them have only a couple of hundred pesos to spare.

In 1995, a group of doctors from the UP-PGH of Medicine felt the need to do more to heal their patients. It was simply unacceptable to give up hope of cure simply due to financial reasons. It was then that Sagip Buhay was founded, literally meaning “saving lives”. What started as a simple drug bank blossomed into a foundation that now assists more than 800 patients annually----around 5000 patients since its conception. Through fundraising activities, generous donors, and the untiring efforts of volunteer-doctors, Sagip has subsidized life-saving medications, laboratories, and procedures so these patients can return to their homes and become productive members of society. In every sense of the word, SAGIP saves lives so that those lives can truly live.

It is through conscientious efforts by groups like the Sigma Delta Phi UP Alumnae Association and individuals like artist Araceli Limcaco Dans that Sagip Buhay continues to fulfill its purpose of bridging the gap in healthcare. In behalf of the thousands of Filipinos Sagip Buhay has helped, I would like to extend our deep gratitude to Mrs. Dans and the organizers of her beautiful exhibition Ang Mun-do ni Inay for choosing us to be its sole beneficiary.