Written by: Dr. Donnavila Marie P. Herbster
Have current collaborations with local or global health institutions to improve health and wellbeing outcomes.
In 2025, the University of Baguio (UB) worked with government health agencies, hospitals, the Philippine Red Cross, local health offices and a health-focused non-government organization to bring health services to Baguio City and its communities. The partnerships covered blood services, free primary and preventive care, mental health, and medical and psychosocial care for vulnerable children and families. UB schools and offices carried them out: the School of Natural Sciences (SNS), the School of Nursing (SON), the School of Criminal Justice and Public Safety (SCJPS), the Center for Counseling and Student Development (CCSD), and RIECO.
UB’s health partners in 2025 include:
- Department of Health – Center for Health Development, Cordillera Administrative Region (DOH-CHD-CAR)
- Philippine Red Cross (PRC) – Baguio Chapter
- Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center (BGHMC)
- Baguio City Health Services Office and its health district offices
- Baguio City Mental Health Council
- Helping Hands Healing Hearts Ministries (HHHM) Philippines Inc.
- Barangay Pinsao Proper Health Center
1. Department of Health: “Handog ng Pangulo” Community Health Caravan
UB hosted the DOH’s “Handog ng Pangulo” community caravan at the UB Multi-level Parking and Centennial Hall on Sipat Day 2025 (reported 13 September 2025). It was run with DOH-CHD-CAR and the Baguio City Health Office with all its health district offices. Services were free and organized by life stage, with priority for indigenous and vulnerable populations. They included:
- nutrition services, tuberculosis screening, and HIV counseling and testing
- cervical cancer screening and clinical breast examination
- PhilPEN risk assessment for non-communicable diseases
- mental health screening and adolescent psychosocial triaging (rapid HEEADSSS self-assessment)
- family planning counseling and commodities, and antenatal and postpartum care counseling
- immunization
- oral health, road safety and general health promotion
The RIECO Office led UB’s side, with support from the Campus Planning and Development Office. DOH-CHD-CAR’s team included Dr. Anachris Kilakil, Doctor IV, who graduated from UB’s BSN program in 2008. Her presence shows that UB’s partnership with the health sector also runs through the health professionals it trains.
2. Philippine Red Cross – Baguio Chapter: Blood Services Partnership
UB has a long-running partnership with PRC Baguio Chapter, built around the University’s own bloodletting program, Dugong UB.
Top 2 Hall of Fame Award (12 September 2025). At PRC Baguio Chapter’s Blood Donor’s Recognition Day at SM Baguio Atrium, held under the theme “Give blood, give hope: Together we save lives,” UB received the Top 2 Hall of Fame Award. The award recognizes UB’s steady support for PRC’s blood donation drives and other health services. PRC Baguio Chapter Chairman Atty. Carlos M. Canilao presented the plaque, with Baguio City Mayor Benjamin Magalong present. Mr. Ruben V. Nuarin Jr., SNS ECOS Coordinator, accepted it for the University.
Dugong UB Blood Donation Drive (28 November 2025). UB and PRC Baguio Chapter collected 112 units of blood in one morning at the UB Multi-level Parking. SNS coordinated the drive and mobilized donors, and SON sent faculty and students to help. Donors went through registration, health interviews and blood collection under a system the two partners have refined over years of working together.
3. Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center: Responding to Patient Blood Needs
UB students also give blood directly when hospital patients need it. From August to October 2025, interns of UB-SCJPS (Class Salaknib Diwa 2025) made four rounds of blood donations with the Philippine Red Cross, the SLU Red Cross Unit, and BGHMC:
| Date | Partner | Donors |
|---|---|---|
| 9 Aug 2025 | Philippine Red Cross | 8 |
| 6 Oct 2025 | SLU Red Cross Unit | 1 |
| 14 Oct 2025 | BGHMC | 4 |
| 22 Oct 2025 | BGHMC | 6 |
That makes 19 donations from 18 students. Most went to specific patients who urgently needed Type O blood.
BGHMC is also a partner in the Dugong UB program. In 2024 it gave UB a Certificate of Appreciation for recruiting, educating and inspiring blood donors and volunteers.
4. Baguio City Health Services Office and Mental Health Council: Mental Health Partnerships
UB is a member of the Baguio City Mental Health Council. Through the CCSD, the University took part in two city-led activities in 2025:
- Baguio City Mental Health Council Meeting (15 August 2025, RNJ Hotel). Called by the City Government of Baguio, the meeting brought together mental health professionals and workers from LGUs, NGOs, the private sector and religious groups. They reviewed the city’s mental health concerns and services and planned the city’s Mental Health Week activities.
- Workshop on Crafting Workplace Mental Health Policies (5 September 2025, Casa La El). The Mental Health and Wellness unit of the Baguio City Health Services Office organized it for HR personnel from workplaces across the city. It focused on building supportive work environments.
These activities strengthened UB’s links with groups across sectors. The challenge they identified going forward is building mental health programs that are culturally sensitive, well-resourced and inclusive of the community.
5. Helping Hands Healing Hearts Ministries Philippines Inc.: Formal MOA for Child and Family Health
On 20 October 2025, UB-SNS and Helping Hands Healing Hearts Ministries (HHHM) Philippines Inc. signed a Memorandum of Agreement. Under it, the two will work together over the long term on medical assistance, trauma-informed care, psychosocial support and health promotion for children and families.
The first activity under the MOA was the Community Health Mission and Holiday Sharing: “Bringing Hope to Little Hearts” on 6 December 2025 at the HHHM Children’s Home in Camp 7, Baguio City. 35 beneficiaries, from infants about four months old to adults aged 59, received:
- vital signs monitoring and height and weight assessment
- postural assessment and physical therapy evaluation and treatment
- laboratory tests (blood typing, hemoglobin and hematocrit, red blood cell count, urinalysis)
- holiday packages of milk, groceries and loot bags
A 15-member SNS working committee carried out the mission, together with a UB alumni physician. The lab and clinical results were used for early detection, health education and referral.
6. Barangay Health Center Partnership: Pinsao Proper
UB works with the Barangay Pinsao Proper Health Center in its adopted community. Health is one of the pillars of their partnership agreement. On 17 March 2025, the barangay health center nurses presented their assessment at a coordination meeting and identified a pressing need for health awareness and blood typing. UB’s RIECO Office and SNS responded with a week-long outreach on 21–26 April 2025. They ran on-site blood typing, gave house-to-house dengue awareness lectures and handed out prevention materials across Puroks 1 to 10. The blood typing results also gave the community a record it can use in emergencies and for future blood donation needs.
UB also brought medical and dental missions, Basic Life Support training (SON) and teenage pregnancy awareness sessions to the barangay. It reported these to residents at the Pinsao Proper General Assembly (reported 25 October 2025).
Impact on Health and Well-being Outcomes
Together, these collaborations:
- add to the regional blood supply, with 112 units from Dugong UB and direct donations for BGHMC patients;
- extend free preventive care to indigenous and vulnerable groups through the DOH caravan, covering TB, HIV, cancer, non-communicable diseases, maternal health, immunization and mental health;
- help shape mental health policy and programs at the city level through UB’s seat on the Mental Health Council;
- formalize long-term care for vulnerable children and families through the HHHM MOA; and
- respond to needs the community itself identifies, as in Pinsao Proper.
They also give UB’s students in medical technology, nursing, physical therapy and criminology supervised experience serving the public, so community service becomes part of their training.