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Let us be safe and keep ourselves healthy at this time of pandemic.

As Metro Manila and other areas in the country are now under the modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) status due to the surge of COVID-19 cases and the threat of the Delta variant, it is best to stay at home and keep ourselves healthy - exercising at least 150 minutes per week and eating nutritious food every day. These can be our little, but sure way of helping the government to contain the current situation.

With the partnership between the government and the private sector to fast-track the vaccination rollout, some companies have already initiated to inoculate their employees for protection against the deadly virus.

Amid the worries that the pandemic has brought in our everyday lives, particularly scrambling to buy some medical supplies or looking for online teleconsultations, there are various means which we can avail of the services in the most convenient way.

One-stop medical shop

Save yourself from panic attacks when supplies inevitably run out. But don't just buy from the first seller you encounter on the e-market that peddles purportedly quality medical supplies. Medical Depot, the one-stop medical shop, is now open at Robinsons Galleria, their first mall outlet.

The company has been supplying the medical needs of hospitals, doctors, clinics, and diagnostic centers for more than 30 years. Starting in Bambang, Manila, with 16 employees in 1991, it now has 150 employees and 16 branches.

Today, as the company expands to the mall for the first time, high-quality medical supplies become more accessible to everyone. It offers premium products at lower prices such as oxygen concentrator, oxygen tanks, oxygen regulators, ventilator machines, pulse oximeters, gloves, face masks, branded and generic medicines, hospital equipment, among others.

For more information, check out www.medicaldepot.com.ph or email support@medicaldepot.com.ph.

On the other hand, to provide Filipino's holistic well-being, providing professional consultations, wellness programs, products, and delivery services at this time of pandemic, an all-in-one app called mWell is now available for download. This is the first fully integrated health and wellness mobile app by Metro Pacific Health Tech backed by a powerhouse of top names in the healthcare, wellness, and tech industries.

A whole gamut of doctors and health practitioners have joined the app's roster comprising of general practitioners and specialty doctors to enable much needed access to health professionals during this pandemic. Doctors are able to easily manage digital appointments, keep patients' confidential medical records, and issue e-prescriptions. And with the partnership of Medicard, users can book COVID-19 testing services.

The app also provides a more enriching journey as users can access the e-Pharmacy service that will allow them to buy prescription medicines online.

A two-day virtual event will also be held on August 28 to 29 called National mWellness Day, where app users anywhere in the country can avail of free online teleconsultations from a roster of specialized doctors including dermatologists, gastroenterologists, doctors of internal medicine, gynecologists, pediatrics, and psychiatrists, among others.

For more information, visit www.mWell.com.ph.

Healthy and mindful eating

Café Belmont at Belmont Hotel Manila introduces “B Healthy,” a nutritious, low-calorie line of menu options from a variety of salad and dressings to plant-based selections. This is mindful eating with a calorie count if you are looking for light yet satisfying meals.

These salads may be paired with a variety of choice dressings from base of olive oil to yogurt. Fresh ingredients like greens, herbs, and fresh-catch seafood complete this line up, which you can mix and match with our wide range of dressings like smoked Caesar, spiced pimiento, and vinaigrettes.

The perfect pairing for these salad options also includes immunity-boosting drinks, which are refreshingly concocted greens and fresh fruits. It features Sweet Sensation, good for lowering blood pressure; the Minty Pear with a Lemon Twist for weight management; Green Smash for healthy digestion; and more.

The selection also offers full-course meals served in a Hotbox, low-calorie yet completely satisfying dishes with salads, seafood appetizers, chicken, vegetable pastas, sandwiches and seasoned fruits.

Its plant-based menu uses choice ingredients from In a Nutshell. It also offers plant-based classic and gourmet cheese made from nuts, to recreate those creamy, tangy, melt-in-your-mouth cheese platter. With this, you can actually enjoy varieties from cranberry rosemary chevre, pepper jack, smoked gouda, mozzarella, cream cheese, and more.

Also available are the plant-based quattro formaggi pizza, broiled BBQ ribs with chevre mac 'n cheese and herb savory - to complete a nutritious full-course meal.

For delivery and takeout, contact tel. nos. (02) 5318-8887 or email dine@belmontmanila.com.

Meanwhile, vegans can now enjoy meat-free and ethically-sourced alternatives of their favorite pizza and pasta at the Firehouse Pizza in Alabang.

For pizza lovers, there are three available flavors to enjoy: the Vegan Firehouse Pizza loaded with top-quality ingredients seitan, minced, vegan parmesan, vegan brie, vegan mozzarella, jalapeno, and arugula; the vegan four-cheese pizza has vegan old smokey, vegan herbed feta, vegan parmesan, and vegan mozzarella; and the vegan truffle pizza that features savory mushrooms and gooey cheese, finished off with a dash of truffle oil that infuses all the ingredients.

Its plant-based pasta menu includes vegan lasagna, baked fillet caprese, and meatless albondigas.

For more details, please visit www.facebook.com/firehousepizzaph or call 09985953832.

Vaccine for all

Okada Manila offers free COVID-19 vaccines to its team members and qualified dependents which started in July 2021. The company aims to complete its vaccination rollout by the fourth quarter this year in partnership with AC Health.

Dubbed “Vaxta sama-sama, panalo,” a continuing effort of the resort's 3T Campaign, its vaccination program aims to safeguard the health and well-being of the integrated resort's more than 5,700 team members.

The company has also implemented well-being programs such as webinars for mental health, skill enhancement e-sessions, counselling services, and distribution of health kits. To continuously keep its team members safe, the integrated resort also put in place industry-leading safety protocols in the property. IATF and DOT health and safety guidelines are also strictly observed.

And as part of the Department of Tourism's (DOT) recovery program in four key tourist destinations of Palawan - El Nido, Coron, San Vicente, and Puerto Princesa - tourism secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat, along with testing czar and National Action Plan Against COVID-19 deputy chief secretary Vince Dizon, and provincial governor of Palawan, gov. Jose “Pepito” Alvarez, led the ceremonial vaccination of El Nido tourism frontliners and workers at the Lio Estate on August 3. The DOT targets to inoculate over 30,000 tourism workers in these tourist hubs.

In line with the DOT's mass vaccination program in Lio Estate, Ten Knots kicked off its own vaccination program where 600 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines purchased through the Ayala Vaccination and Immunization Program (AVIP) arrived at the Lio Airport, via AirSWIFT; these were used for employees as well as for the El Nido community.

Despite challenges in tourism, Palawan was cited as the “World's Best Island” in 2020 by renowned publication, Travel + Leisure, and remains to be one of the top PH destinations to visit.

For more lifestyle content, head over to GMA's Lifestyle page.