A twin celebration

Asian Hospital and Medical Center mounted a twin celebration to mark two new milestones for the Philippine healthcare industry: the groundbreaking of its new hospital tower and the unveiling of the country’s first-ever Lifestyle Medicine Center.

Asian Hospital and Medical Center CEO Theo Seiler said: “This is an important step not only for communities in the south of Metro Manila, but for the whole Philippines as well, as Asian Hospital brings forth two new significant milestones for the healthcare industry. As we lay the first stone for our new hospital tower and open the doors of our unique Lifestyle Medicine Center, we signify our commitment to world-class, patient-centered medical care, which we hope would again serve as a benchmark in the local healthcare industry.”

First to be celebrated was the groundbreaking ceremony for the new hospital tower envisioned to be a 14-story energy-efficient building to increase in patient capacities and provide an upgraded infrastructure for out patient services. The tower, which is expected to be completed by first quarter next year, will house the Rehabilitation Medicine Department, Sports Rehabilitation Department, the Hearing and Ophthalmology Departments and additional patient rooms.

Next to be unveiled was the Lifestyle Medicine Center, the first of its kind to be offered in the Philippines, which is set to redefine healthy living. Conceptualized as a one-stop shop, the center not only caters to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of lifestyle-related diseases but aims to help instill the culture of health and wellness among Filipinos. It will house the Pulmonary Unit, Center for Women’s Health, Executive Health Section, Nutrition and Wellness Section, Heart Station and Neurosciences Section.

Teens rule the Crissa Synergy Dance Competition

A showdown among the best all-girl dance groups, a series of exciting games and entertaining performances summed up the Crissa Teen Synergy Dance Competition held at the Music Hall of the SM Mall of Asia. Organized by top fashion label Crissa and the only dance competition endorsed and accredited by the Department of Education, the Crissa Teen Synergy Dance Competition is the biggest and longest-running all-girl dance competition in the country. Now on its fifth year, the dance tournament has become an important venue to showcase high school dance enthusiasts’ artistry, creativity and coordination.

Crissa came up with the best dance face-off between the competing schools and gave the excited audience an exciting show and fun activities this year. As early as 10 a.m., host Rizza Diaz began the countdown to the main event via fun games where members of the audience won prizes from the sponsors and got souvenir shots at the photo booth. Supporters of the dance groups also tried to scream the loudest to bag the “Best Crowd Cheer” title.

During the much-awaited dance competition hosted by Valerie Concepcion and Channel V Philippines VJ Alvey, 18 teams showed off their best to wow the judges and the crowd. The grand finalists stood out from hundreds of participants who competed in the elimination rounds held separately at the TriNoma, Market! Market! and Robinsons Manila malls.

Competing for best all-girl dance group were Gentle Angels School-Marikina, Colegio de Sta. Rosa, St. Paul College-Pasig, Deparo High School-Caloocan, Saint Pedro Poveda College, Manila Cathedral School, Arellano University-A. Mabini Campus, Holy Light School, St. Mark’s Institute, Benigno “Ninoy” S. Aquino Sr. High School, Lagro High School, Ismael Mathay Sr. High School, Juliever Academy, Colegio San Agustin, Marikina Science High School, Maria Montessori Holy Christian School, Systems Plus Computer College Caloocan and Miriam College-High School.

They were judged according to visual effectiveness, costuming effectiveness, variety movements, synchronization, creativity and originality, showmanship and crowd appeal. The teams were also evaluated based on how they creatively brought the Crissa “fashionably fun” concept to the stage, where team members had to accessorize and jazz up their own Crissa outfits to express their unique styles and fashion statements.

Judges for this year’s dance competition were Jhong Hilario of Streetboys, Jojo Zafra of Maneuvers, Lema Diaz of Philippine All-Stars, choreographer Ickay Eusebio and Dr. Noemi Bellosillo of the Department of Education. As the judges deliberated, the audience was entertained by Vhong Navarro, the Streetboys, the Philippine All-Stars, Pinoy Republic and the Claret Hataw Boys.

Bagging the grand prize was Colegio de Sta. Rosa, which went home with P100,000 and also took home the trophy for “Most Stylish Team” with a cash prize of P5,000. Other winning teams were first runner-up Saint Pedro Poveda College, which won P75,000; second runner-up Miriam College-High School, winning P50,000; and Gentle Angels School, which won “Best Crowd Cheer” and P5,000 cash prize.

The Crissa Teen Synergy Dance Competition was made possible by Smart Bro, Fres Soap, Time’s Trading/Carla Craft and PH Care.

Glimpses of Dell’s technological future

In their efforts to reach the consumers more, Dell participated in the country’s biggest electronic show as Summit Live mounted its second Consumer Electronics Live (CEL) at the World Trade Center.

Dell joined this year’s CEL, which showcases the latest products from over 40 other exhibitors and have more than 10,000 gadget lovers on the three-day exhibit. The attendees previewed the next wave of digital entertainment, gaming and home networking products and technology demonstrations at the Dell Lounge.

Dell Philippines consumer retail channels director Jerry Lacson unveiled three of Dell’s new high-end laptops including the world’s thinnest Dell Adamo XPS. The Dell Adamo M13 is the pinnacle of craftsmanship and design. Its chassis is made from a single piece of aluminum featuring precision detailing and a scalloped backlit keyboard. Hands down to the thinnest laptop in the world with Dell Adamo XPS at only four-tenths of an inch thin. It has a 13.4” display featuring an Intel Core 2 Duo ULV processor, 4 GB DDR3 memory and 128 GB SSD storage. The new Alienware M15x from Dell is the ultimate in portable gaming. The 15”-inch gaming notebook codenamed “Defiant” is powered by Intel Core 2 Extreme Quad-core Mobile processor. It can accommodate up to 8 GB DDR memory.

Art according to Confucius

After the success of last year’s event, the Confucius Institute at the Ateneo de Manila University and Shangri-La Plaza again present a Chinese Painting Exhibit on Feb. 3 to 11 at the Grand Atrium, Level 2 of the Shangri-La Plaza. The Chinese painting exhibit will feature works done by the Chan family and the painting students of the Ateneo Confucius Institute. On Feb. 7, a Chinese painting demonstration will be conducted by Dr. Alex Chan Lim and Dr. Felix Chan Lim. My dear friend Vicky Zubiri will again be part of this exhibit after her very successful solo exhibit at The Peninsula Manila. See you there!