Prof. Roderick L. Salenga, professor of pharmacy at the UP Manila College of Pharmacy, was conferred the 2020 Eric Nubla Excellence Award by the Professional Regulation Commission during a virtual ceremony held on Dec. 17, 2020.

With the theme “Outstanding Professionals: The Shining Light Amidst the Challenges of Time,” the awarding ceremony also saw the conferment of the outstanding professional award to recipients in the different categories and fields. Prof. Salenga was also awarded the PRC 2020 Outstanding Professional in Pharmacy.

The Eric C. Nubla Excellence Award is the highest award bestowed by the PRC for professional excellence named after its first chairperson who served from 1974-1986. Salenga is a graduate of the Master of Public Health and BS Pharmacy of UP Manila. A public health pharmacist who specializes in pharmaceutical policy and pharmacoepidemiology, he introduced breakthrough academic models to enhance the training of pharmacy students. He has over 70 local and international conference presentations as well as a number of publications focusing on quality use of medicines, drug accessibility, pharmaceutical education, and public health policies. 

Salenga is the first in the pharmacy profession to obtain the award and the youngest recipient of the Outstanding Award in Pharmacy Education. Also, he was one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) awardees in 2015.

Two other professors from UP Manila were conferred the PRC 2020 Outstanding Professional Award. They are Prof. Sheila Bonito, dean of the UP Manila College of Nursing, and Dr. Josephine R. Bundoc, of the UP College of Medicine, in their respective fields. 

Dean Bonito has an extensive academic background and experience in nursing, public health, education, research, and related fields. She holds the following degrees: Doctor of Public Health, MA Nursing, and BS Nursing, all from UP Manila. She took the following postgraduate studies—Postgraduate Diploma in Gerontology and Geriatrics, University of Malta, Malta, Europe; Postdoctoral Fellowship in Nursing, Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing; and Postdoctoral Fellowship on Data Mining, Vienna University of Technology.

Dr. Bundoc is a Board Member of the Physicians for Peace and Board Director of its Walking Free Philippines program. Recognizing that disabled children can go to school and disabled adults can be gainfully employed with accessible, affordable, and appropriate assistive technology; Dr Bundoc pioneered Rehabilitation Medicine training programs, health and assistive technology policies, community implementation, government-based financing and local manufacturing, and sourcing of raw materials in partnerships with civic societies and the persons with disabilities themselves.

Cynthia M. Villamor | Published in Healthscape Special COVID-19 Issue No. 21 (December 2020)