Center of Excellence for Women’s Health Fosters Critical, Sustainable Resources for Women in Rural Philippines

March 2025

In rural Philippines, women struggle to get medical care they desperately need. A project supported by the Robert J. Havey, MD Institute for Global Health is working to fix that problem.  

By transforming the Salcedo Doctors Hospital in Salcedo, Eastern Samar, Philippines into a regional Center of Excellence for Women’s Health, principal investigator Magdy Milad, MD, MS and team members Phillip Gorrindo, MD, Victor Trinkus, MD, and Princess Urbina, MD are creating opportunities for women. 

“The need for women’s health services in this area is critical because women face unique health challenges that require specialized care, including reproductive health, maternal services and the management of other gender-specific diseases, all of which are essential to their overall well-being and empowerment,” Milad shares. 

Without the Center of Excellence for Women’s Health, local women were left without critical resources. The new facility provides an exceptional environment for the women of the community to gather, receive first-class healthcare, and experience positive health outcomes all under one roof. It provides a place where healthcare providers are empowered to develop expertise to meet the needs of the greater community.

The center’s location, Eastern Samar, is the poorest province in the region, with 29 percent of the population living in poverty. There is little specialty medical care, to say nothing of an overall dearth of care for women. The nearest medical center for obstetric and gynecologic care is Eastern Visayas Medical Center (EVMC), located 125 km – approximately a three-hour drive away - in the city of Tacloban. 

“The work we do is necessary because women are dying of preventable diseases in this rural area of the Philippines,” Milad explains.

The Salcedo Global Health Project is designed for immediate help as well as long-term sustainability.  

The team achieves these goals by implementing robust infrastructure and comprehensive training for all levels of healthcare providers. Through the use of checklists, protocols, order sets and surgical training, the project ensures that providers are equipped with standardized tools to maintain consistent, high-quality care. This approach not only enhances immediate healthcare delivery but also fosters long-term self-sufficiency by empowering local providers to manage and maintain systems independently. 

“At the Salcedo Doctors Hospital in Eastern Samar, Philippines, we work with leadership, doctors, nurses and support staff to better understand their patient needs and help catalyze improvements to health care and health care delivery,” Milad says. 

The project is funded by the Havey Institute for Global Health Directors' Discretionary Fund. 

Magdy Milad, MD, MS, is a member of the Robert J. Havey, MD Insitute for Global Health, Northwestern University Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (NUCATS), and Center for Reproductive Science. 

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