Guesting at DZMM Teleradyo: Todo Todo, Walang Preno

Quality Life Discoveries was supposed to be featured at Umagang Kay Ganda, the daily morning show of ABS-CBN, on Wednesday, focusing on the various services that the clinic offers. Of course, being the Aquatics specialist of the center, I was more than prepared to demonstrate and talk about Aquatherapy and WATSU® once more, the last time being in Unang Hirit (GMA's morning show). This meant waking up as early as 3 am, to be at the clinic at 4 and sink in the pool for more than 3 hours straight. Gruelling work, while trying to look pretty for the camera! But highly enjoyable!

However, due to some reasons, Umagang Kay Ganda had to back-out and instead I was invited to be a guest at a radio talk show in DZMM… Fine, I did radio interviews before, but of course I couldn't hide my disappointment. The first question I asked myself: Do I still have to wear my swimming trunks?

I was told to be at the DZMM station around 10:30 AM per instructions just in time for the 11:00 talk show. I was greeted by Lyn, the station assistant who led me to the make-up room. I saw the television screens around broadcasting the live radio shows and only then did it dawn to me that this was a televised radio show: Todo Todo, Walang Preno. Darn, I should have worn my trunks! Kidding aside, I was wearing the clinic's uniform of course. Make-up make-up while chatting with Lyn who shared how she could relate very much with the topic to be talked about because she had a nephew who was a "special child." Not long I was led to the booth, where hosts Winnie Cordero and Ariel Ureta were already airing. Off air, Winnie would talk to me, orienting me when we would go on-air, and asking a few questions about me, my work as a clinical consultant in QLD and the programs. I looked around from my seat, and pretty interesting, I could see the producer and technicians in their own booths, and pointed at me was a robotic camera. Ooops don't stare! Winnie and Ariel had their own cameras too. Good thing I was wearing the aqua colored shirt… looks good onscreen. I don't really listen to radio shows, but seeing how Winnie and Ariel work… uhhm, actually work is not the right word, have fun on-air, I was amazed… they're funny, witty and entertaining. After their signature "word of the day" segment, they were already informing the listeners about the next topic: "One Stop Shop to Wellness." This is it… just be my natural self, and forget the camera, forget that you're on air. It's just a conversation.

On air! Winnie asked me about my work, starting first with how I got to be called Teacher Rev… then my work as a physical therapist, how long it takes to be one and so on. We then talked about the programs starting with the TheraSuit Intensive Method, then Aquatherapy, which we spent considerable time with, with me talking about how great the water environment is in bringing out the best in children with disabilities, and at the same time, enjoying it. Ariel, would occasionally summarize or generalize these thoughts, highlighting the importance of early intervention and how physical therapists are "heroes", even "magicians" for helping patients regain their strength and skills when most think are unrecoverable. We had a short break, while new reports and some features were covered. Then in a few minutes, I was back on air, to continue talking about the other programs. I admire Winnie and Ariel for creating a light-hearted atmosphere that I almost forgot we were broadcasting. I wondered before the show, how such a potentially serious topic could fit their show, but they managed to bring out some laughs, while maintaining an educational tone all throughout. I asked Winnie if I could leave some parting message (remembering the small chat with the make-up artist who were all sad and pitiful about people with disabilities) and I did… (translated already) that we shouldn't focus on what our friends with disabilities can NOT do… because if we did, we are depriving them with opportunities to uplift themselves, and furthermore as a therapist, we wouldn't last long with our work… instead, we should focus on what they CAN DO… the small improvements that we see in our patients sometimes are enough reward to push us though…

The show finished around noon, and I asked for a photo with them. I thanked Winnie and Ariel for wonderfully championing the physical therapy profession, and told him that all PT's who were listening would be very glad. I went back to the clinic, very very happy.

Quality Life Discoveries: Inauguration Day

Quality Life Discoveries was recently inaugurated last July 19, 2008. Attended by families, friends and representatives from various sectors of the medical/paramedical fields, the event was initiated by a Eucharistic celebration led by Fr. Anderson Monteiro de Rezende, FDP and Fr. Eugene Castilla. This was followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony and blessing of the center facilities. Welcome remarks were given by Ma. Theresa Mariano of Social Services Development Department of the Quezon City Government (in behalf of the Honorable Mayor Feliciano Belmonte) citing the need to provide quality services to the residents of the city, especially to those who are underprivileged. Mary Ann Cua, managing director of Quality Life Discoveries then gave a moving speech recounting her son Jared's ordeal with cerebral palsy, emphasizing the challenges faced while undergoing various treatments and therapies around the world. She also shared events inspiring her to establish a center which aims to provide fellow Filipinos access to quality services which was only available abroad before. A brief lecture about the status of leading pediatric conditions such as Cerebral Palsy, Down's Syndrome, Autism and ADHD in the Philippines was offered by Dr. Francis Xavier Dimalanta, one of the country's leading developmental pediatricians. The clinical director of Quality Life Discoveries, Christian Oliver Cruz, then gave a presentation of the various programs of the center and how these may provide solutions for its clientele. An open-house during the afternoon gave the guests and visitors a glimpse of the center's outstanding facilities and an understanding of its many programs and services. All in all, the inauguration was a success, a perfect landmark event commemorating the 30^th National Disability Prevention and Rehabilitation Week.

Half-Naked for Half of the Day…

When confronted with the question, "How would you describe your job in Quality Life Discoveries?" I would usually answer: "Well, my work requires me to be half-naked for more than half of the day each day…" Seriously!

Well, that's just one aspect of my daily routine. Having a pool in the clinic you work in, means expecting to stare at your pruned fingers at the end of each session. When you work in the water for so long, you could almost honestly say that you could breath underwater (I think I already have scales and gills growing on my body). But kidding aside, I enjoy working with my clients, ranging from the very young and fragile (say 10 months old) to the very old and senile (record eldest 86 years old) in the pool. This and pushing paper, talking, supervising, designing and organizing. It gets overwhelming once in a while, but the challenge is exciting. The only sad thing is I always wish I have the body to flaunt whenever I'm in the pool.

Just recently, the center was featured in Expat Travel & Lifestyle Vol. 2, No. 1 2008 (I think it was released around March – June) which featured healthy living. Months before, we were interviewed by Jacky Ong who was able to experience some of our services firsthand. The article is "Beyond Health: Discovering Quality of Life" and it includes a picture of me half-naked. Biggify these scans if you dare. But seriously, it is a well written piece introducing our center. Take a look.

Quality Life Discoveries

One thing leads to another. I've always professed that one's job doesn't dictate your mission. You're always bound to fulfill your life's mission in the jobs that you choose or get offered to. I guess it was time for a change, for me to move on, after a wonderful decade of teaching in the University of the Philippines, to start anew… to something that will jumpstart my interest and creativity.

The past few months, I've been very busy organizing and setting up Quality Life Discoveries (QLD). It seemed providential that during the times I've been studying Watsu® 1 and 2, I'll be joining them not only as an aquatherapy specialist and PT consultant but also as its clinical director as well. With a handful of therapists and consultants already trained in some of the flagship programs of QLD and a remarkable investment by good-willed owners (who themselves have a son with cerebral palsy), one of my initial goals was to mold QLD into a fully operational rehabilitation and wellness center. Macro-ergonomic theory and concepts, organizational skills and knowledge, passion for anything technological and cutting-edge; and taste for branding and visual aesthetics all contributed to this task.

What Quality Life Discoveries is all about…

Quality Life Discoveries actually forms the latest chapter in a family's tale of love. Edwin and Mary Ann Cua have been seeking the best medical and therapy services abroad for their son, Jared, since he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy due to prematurity. With all of their dedication and perseverance in seeking services for their son, Jared improved dramatically, developing functional skills defying doctors' discouraging prognoses. All their travels proved to take heavy toll for Jared, who grew more and more exhausted, experiencing a seizure attack which may have been due to the stresses of traveling. The couple thought that instead of risking their child's life going all around the world incessantly, why not bring all of these easily accessible right at their fingertips. The puzzle begins to be pieced together: therapists gathered, trained in new programs and soon, a center to be built not only for their son but for other families to share in the quest of discovering quality in their lives.

The Logo

People would expect that I had a hand in the design of the center's logo. It looks like one of my creations, but it is not. It was created long before I joined QLD. But I actually like this logo, enough to call it mine because of the concepts it represents. The yellow tile features a child's drawing of a family, representing the center's vision of being family-oriented. The center is not just a center for the recipient of the services but a venue where the whole family can spend time together. The green tile features hands representing the center's pledge on the service of enabling our clients and their families discover their potentials. The red tile shows a mother and child image, symbolizing the center's focus on authentic care. And finally the blue tile includes books representing the center's vision to be a venue for learning and research.

Programs and Services

• Physical Therapy
  
• Occupational Therapy
  
  • with Multisensory Environments
    
  • with Sensory Integration Intervention Programs
    
• Aquatherapy
  
  • Aquatic programs for Kids and Adults
    
  • Aqua-fitness programs for Adults
    
  • Watsu® for relaxation and flexibility
    
  • Adapted Watsu® for kids (autism, cerebral palsy, movement disorders and others)
    
• Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
  
• TheraSuit^TM Intensive Method
  
• GigerMD^TM Rehabilitation
  
• Oral-Motor Therapy
  
• Special Education Tutorials
  
• And many more to include in the future…
  

I'll be featuring some of these programs in my blogs in the future in detail. I've already mentioned Watsu® in my previous blogs. For a more detailed discussion on each, please visit our website at http://www.qualitylifediscoveries.com . We still have to update it unfortunately. Our e-brochure may be viewed below.

Quality Life Discoveries E-Brochure - Upload a Document to Scribd

Read this document on Scribd: Quality Life Discoveries E-Brochure

Branding

And now to the aesthetic aspect which I know contributes a lot to how people will view and accept QLD and its services. I wanted to brand Quality Life Discoveries in a way that will not be limiting (in terms of target market, eg.: not just the pediatric population but also adults) but will also stand on its own among health service providers. It is quite challenging to build around an established logo, and since the logo itself already features several colors, I knew that I have to invest heavily in the use of colors for branding. I also relied on colors for organizational and administrative purposes.

The following images show the art I created for QLD. The earlier promotional materials depict my heavy reliance on color, using violet framed by aqua as the primary colors. The established multi-colored logo (I have to build around it) can effectively stand above it. I assigned a color for each of the programs, which then became used as reference in our administrative operations (color coding of schedules, folders and forms according to the programs) and geographic references (each floor in the center is color-coded too, blue for the first floor, red for the second and green for the third).

Icons were created for each room, hopefully effectively representing the programs the rooms will be used for. It blends seamlessly with the architecture of the center. Those who have visited the center will be amused to see which icon I used for my office.

Here are the latest materials I created for the center:

Flyers, Handouts, Brochures, Tarpaulin and Promotional Materials.

Icon designs.

Door and Elevator Design.

Looking forward…

There are a lot more to accomplish in the center, and a lot more has happened behind the scenes which are far too detailed and busy to write about. Although we are already operational, we aren't officially open yet. Our blessing will be on July 19, 2008, just in time for the National Disability Awareness and Rehabilitation Week Celebrations. We are also still looking for physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech pathologists. So if you're interested or know someone who's interested, don't hesitate to forward resumes to revcruz@qualitylifediscoveries.com .

It's been a while since I wrote for my blog and it's quite understandable why. But I'll try to update this not only with updates from QLD, but also features of my latest artistic creations.