A stride towards better lives for children with hemophilia.

Bangkok, Thailand - Roche Thailand Limited in collaboration with Roche Diagnostics (Thailand) Limited organized its 17th annual Roche Children’s Walk 2020 under the theme ‘Let’s Go.’ The annual fundraising campaign is hosted across Roche affiliates worldwide, with the main purpose to grant the opportunity for children suffering from medical conditions, as well as their families to gain equal access to improved medical care. Thus, enabling them to lead quality lives in society. 

Initiated by employees in 2003, Roche Children’s Walk is the company’s biggest philanthropic event that aims to enhance quality of lives for children, so they can lead happier and healthier lives. The funds are divided into two halves. The first half is channeled through Roche Employee Action and Charity Trust (Re&Act) in cooperation with various organizations to support underprivileged children in developing countries, such as schoolyard transformation with UNICEF in Malawi, orphan homes with Selam Children’s Village in Ethiopia and school scholarships with Aiducation in Kenya. The other half is allocated to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in all countries where Roche operates, including Thailand.

This year, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, all 451 Roche Thailand employees were able to raise a record of 500,000 baht in funds, which was doubled by the companies, totaling 1,000,000 baht. The donations were given to the National Hemophilia Foundation of Thailand, which was received by Professor Emeritus Lieutenant General Thip Sriphaisal, M.D., President of the National Hemophilia Foundation of Thailand.

Farid Bidgoli, General Manager, Roche Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos stated, “I am extremely proud of the efforts and commitment from our employees in Thailand, in their continued support for the annual Children’s Walk fundraising campaign. Although this year, we were able to raise a record-breaking amount of 500,000 baht, Roche Children’s Walk is not about the numbers. It is about being aware, getting involved and supporting the cause. This year, we decided to allocate the funds raised to the National Hemophilia Foundation of Thailand. Together, we can make a positive impact to the lives of children living with hemophilia, to provide medical access with the right treatment for the sake of their future well-being.” 

This year's fundraising activities began in April, amid the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Thus, Roche has carefully considered all public health policies and social distancing measures, which added a unique spin to initiative. Instead of the usual walk, this year’s activity was transformed into a virtual walk, which totaled over 100 million steps. There were also various other fundraising activities, such as, the sales of t-shirts and face masks, singing competition, lucky draw, online auction, and online marketplace - which were very well received by Roche employees.

Mihai Irimescu, Head of Sub-Region Asia Emerging Markets, Roche Diabetes Care and Roche Diagnostics (Thailand) Ltd., said, “As with our Roche affiliates in 169 offices across 76 countries around the world, a portion of the funds raised by Roche Thailand employees will be dedicated to the global children’s projects relating to education, nutrition, primary healthcare and social development. At the same time, Roche Children’s Walk also provides an opportunity for Roche employees in Thailand to give back to the society and improve children’s lives, all the while uniting as one and strengthening our bond as OneRoche family.”

Wareeya Ruthiraphong, Regulatory Affairs Coordinator, Roche (Thailand) Ltd., who participated in the fundraising event 'Roche Children's Walk 2020', commented on her feelings and impressions, “A great part about working at Roche is the opportunity to gain experience in regards to medical supplies and the importation process, which made me truly empathize with patients and their struggles in dealing with diseases. This year, I am honored to be able to make a contribution through Roche, to help improve patients’ quality of lives and livelihood. Our annual Roche Children’s Walk fundraising campaign shines a light on patients with rare diseases, such as hemophilia, to live and prosper in the society. Although we are affected by the COVID-19 pandemic this year, we were still able to raise a record donation – because everyone in the organization truly recognizes the importance and benefits of this project.”

Professor Emeritus Lieutenant General Thip Sriphaisal, M.D., President of the National Hemophilia Foundation of Thailand, stated in honor of being appointed the representative at the receiving end of the donation, “I would like to thank Roche Thailand Limited, Roche Diabetes Care and Roche Diagnostics (Thailand) Limited for organizing this fundraising campaign to help support children and youths and for valuing our goals. On behalf of the National Hemophilia Foundation of Thailand, we are committed to using this donation as part of our effort to support various activities that will help raise the standard of the quality of lives for patients”.

The National Hemophilia Foundation of Thailand has been established for 17 years, with the aims to better the quality of lives of hemophilia patients, and to enhance equity in access to medical care as in developed countries. The 4 main missions of the foundation consist of:

  1. Enhance access to necessary treatments for hemophilia patients to be included in the reimbursement schemes, such as Social Security Scheme (SSS) and Civil Servant Medical Benefit Scheme (CSMBS).

  2. Disseminate and promote knowledge to hemophilia patients, especially about equity in access to efficient treatments.

  3. Foster a strong relationship within the hemophilia patients’ network

  4. Ensure that healthcare professionals, patients, families and caregivers develop a better understanding and readiness to overcome challenges posed by hemophilia, such as injections training, proper health care and exercise.

Formore information about Roche Children’s Walk and the employees’ initiatives to help children around the world, visit https://www.roche.com/sustainability/philanthropy/childrenswalk.html

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