Partners in health | The Manila Times

DOCTORS Ryan Llorin and Regina Grace Buzon-Llorin have been married for 21 years. Through the years, they have taken separate tracks in the practice of their profession.
Two years ago, just as the Covid-19 pandemic started to taper off, they decided to expand their personal partnership to a professional level by putting up OPAT.PH.

OPAT stands for Outpatient Parenteral Antibiotic Therapy and their clinic specializes in infectious diseases.
Among the services in their menu are the provision of consultation and clearances, travel medicine and vaccination, HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) treatment and counseling.

The treatment can be done outside the hospitals, in the comfort of the patient's home, or the OPAT.PH Clinic located at the 5th Level, East Wing, Shangri-La Plaza, in Mandaluyong City.
"The main goal is to make health care affordable without compromising the effectiveness of their medical therapy and their safety," Doc Ryan said.
"I found the many benefits that OPAT can offer to patients while I was practicing abroad as an OPAT physician — convenience, happier disposition, closer family ties, and lower medical cost.
"My very first OPAT patient was a nice German elderly lady who had an infection with a multi-drug-resistant bacteria back in 2016. More patients soon followed. I managed those patients in my own clinic.

"My doctor-wife and I decided to put up OPAT.PH to handle the complex task of providing that kind of service. We saw the need for a clinic and finally opened one in January 2022."
The couple had many plans, but the pandemic hit and everything got stalled. "We were able to start construction in 2021, and finally, the clinic was built and became operational in January 2022," Doc Regina said.

OPAT is a medical service offered worldwide. It is an alternative treatment option for patients requiring long-term IV (intravenous) antibiotics in order to get well.
"Patients no longer have to stay in the hospital for a prolonged period of time, exposing them to the risks of hospital-acquired infections, higher medical bills and preventing patients to be away from their loved ones," Doc Regina said.

"OPAT makes treatment easy and comfortable without compromising safety and effectivity. Dr. Ryan, who trained and worked in Singapore at Tan Tock Seng Hospital and National Center for Infectious Diseases, would discuss with me the benefits, advantages and significance of OPAT in the lives of his patients, so when he decided he would come home to the Philippines and build it, I said I would help him.
"I believe in the concept and values of OPAT. I believe that Filipinos should not be denied of a health service benefiting so many patients in all other parts of the world."
OPAT.PH is a specialized clinic that caters to patients who need added care outside the hospital setting. Even after only two years this January 2024, the clinic has given its owners a different kind of fulfillment. They didn't deny, however, that they were initially wary for patients to try the clinic's specialized services.
"Being the first of its kind clinic in the Philippines, we are not surprised that patients are initially apprehensive of trying out our services," Doc Regina admitted. "However, after a few days of OPAT treatment, they are happy to have known our staff and facility.

"It is not uncommon to hear comments such as 'I don't need to get admitted to the hospital' and many more. At the same time, family members appreciate the opportunity of taking care of their sick relatives."

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