Committed to delivering affordable, accessible, and quality care for all, healthcare provider Healthway values the safety, comfort and convenience of its patients and stakeholders by providing integrated care.
At this time of the Covid-19 pandemic, the all-Filipino company has affirmed its continuous innovation to deliver relevant and quality healthcare – expanding its business network and hold in the healthcare market amid the health crisis.
“Business was really good until Covid-19 came. During lockdown, we found many ways to repurpose our clinics and enhance our services based on the evolving demands of the new normal. Healthway clinics have remained open and to date, we have screened over 100,000 patients and offered treatment and support to help contain the spread of the virus,” Healthway Sales and Marketing Head and Corporate Clinics Head Carmie Pascual De Leon said.
Through COVIDCheQ, the company played an active role in screening for coronavirus and helped many corporations in the reentry guidelines and initiatives of their workforce. It became the alternative center for those who cannot go to hospitals due to co-morbidity or pre-existing medical conditions, which was found to be risky to catch the highly infectious disease.
The Greenbelt Clinic has been repurposed as a chemotherapy infusion center for cancer patients, while telemedecine – through HealthNow – was introduced for consultation, minor surgery, annual physical examinations and executive check-ups to keep patients safe and convenient.
“As we listen to our customers and keep our eyes and ears on the ground, we introduced Healthway At Home, our home service vaccination, consultation with doctors, lab procedures and swab testing – paving the way to more accessible healthcare during [this] health crisis,” she explained.
Healthway opened RT-PCR testing facilities at the Makati Stock Exchange (MSE) and Vertis North for on-site swabbing and drive-thru, as its team of doctors and medical technologists also conduct swabbing at corporate offices.
From clinic management to Covid-19 care
Healthway has been doing clinic management in the last 18 years, and when the coronavirus pandemic broke its on-site medical teams proactively expanded into Covid-19 care and population health doing more aggressive contact tracing, virtual consults and in-depth data analysis.
“On top of these, we have been doing active health education to different institutions to share the 4T Framework that AC Health developed. Healthway has the advantage of having AC Health where scientific literatures and available guidelines are reviewed prior to recommending a particular product or approach,” De Leon said.
This health education roadshow on Covid-19 management helped in the improvement of protocols. By sharing insights, best practices and exchanging ideas within the Ayala group and external clients, testing capacity and preventive measures greatly improved.
At the height of the pandemic hype in September, the new Healthway brand was launched with 65 Family Doc clinics transitioning to the Healthway family bringing its network to over 100 family, specialty and corporate clinics around the Philippines.
The premier healthcare provider operates three distinct clinic formats – Healthway Family Clinics are for community-based primary care, Healthway Multi-Specialty Centers are mall-based specialty services and diagnostics, and Healthway Corporate Clinics are for corporate clients.
The three business units focus on developing remarkable service delivery, while collaborating with other units to create a more seamless ecosystem.
“We are more focused on ensuring safety of our staff, doctors and patients so we observe strict adherence to Department of Health (DoH) and World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. That’s the number one feature we are focusing on and we hope that people will be more confident in seeing their doctors now, because there are medical conditions that can’t wait until the pandemic is over. Our clinics have been safe and clean and our doctors are readily available to serve,” De Leon continued.
Besides implementing protocols mandated by WHO and DoH like PPEs and terminal disinfections, Healthway reinforces health and safety by increasing awareness level through webinars.
“We used to roll out health education through Wellness on Wheels but since the lockdown, we started roadshows via zoom and called it Wellness on Web where we tweaked lectures primarily gearing towards contact tracing, covid management, SEED lifestyle, mental wellness and healthy eating,” she said.
From seven mall-based clinics, Healthway is now present all over the Greater Manila Area (GMA) with a total of 72 clinics, spread throughout the communities within the metro. Seeing a Healthway doctor is just a few steps away from one’s village or subdivision, assuring every Filipino family greater access to preventive care and be referred to specialty centers as deemed necessary.
HealthNow
Telemedicine is available through a platform called HealthNow, accessible via the Health Now mobile app and talk to Healthway doctor.
To complete the patient experience, after virtual consultation, medicine deliveries are made available via Grab Mart, Joy Ride or can be picked up from any of the Healthway Family clinics.
Basic vaccines, vitamins and supplements are available in all Healthway clinics.
Full circle of care
While many businesses closed or went on partial or downsized operations due to the lockdown brought about by the pandemic, Healthway took the initiative to reinvent and launch alternative solutions to help clients.
“We were able to cope and thrive in the new norm while working remotely. It’s good that we established strong relationships with clients and partners, this helped a lot. Now, we work longer hours and do multiple tasks but more than hard work, we make our presence felt, we see our purpose. This crisis drew us closer to our clients, made us more flexible and creative to the point of standing by and sticking it out 24/7,” the executive said, adding that they treat everyone as VIP, giving them confidence that they have a partner they can rely on.
“As we continue with the transition, we are also busy in enhancing products and processes, making sure our clinic services are exceptional and relevant. We do this by encouraging feedback and doing regular customer research, and respond with the kind of products we launch and the kind of care we extend,” she continued.
Safe and Convenient
“The trusted and preferred clinic chain is now the largest network in the county, offering the Full Circle of Care, and there’s more into it. We can’t wait to launch UnliCheQ, our first integrated product that will provide unlimited free consultation with Healthway doctors in 70 plus clinics. There’s more to come, and we want to delight our customers and exceed the expectations of the market that trusts us. Filipinos deserve quality care and more than ever, we are committed to touch more lives and help build healthier corporations and communities,” De Leon concluded.