Clad in colorful traditional dresses, close
to a hundred health personnel and community health workers from the different
municipalities and one city in Basilan, including representatives from the
different government line agencies and non-government organizations, the
military, and the religious sector participated in the one-day technical forum
of the summit.
A photo exhibit also donned the venue that
displayed the accomplishments and activities of health workers in the different
towns of Basilan.
Dr. Rhoda Delgado-Principe, provincial health
officer said the Department of Health (DOH) of the Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao (ARMM) with the technical assistance from the United States Agency for
International Development had been adapting high impact evidence-based
interventions in Basilan through the Sustainable Health Improvements through
Empowerment and Local Development (SHIELD) project.
They include among others Active Management
of the Third Stage of Labor (AMTSL), Essential Newborn Care (ENC) and Long
Acting Permanent Method (LAPM)—Bilateral Tubal Ligation (LAPM-BTL) and
Postpartum Intrauterine Device (PPIUD).
“These interventions are included in the
Caring for Mothers and children in the Community (CMNC) training package
participated by service providers in ARMM provinces and cities,” she said.
Principe disclosed that riding on the success
of LS (Life Saving) intervention 3 and the dissemination forum conducted in
Manila last August 29-31, 2012, the province of Basilan is sharing its
experiences and successes in the implementation of these life-saving
interventions in the summit.
“This will coincide with the SHIELD project
close out. Best practices from the community, the local government units, and
hospitals were shared to inspire and at the same time encourage local
stakeholders to adopt and scale-up these best practices to help contribute in
attaining the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) 4 and 5.
Among those who shared best practices in
Basilan were: Marie Fernandez, member of the Community Health Action Team
(CHAT) of barangay Limook in Lamitan who shared on community participation;
Lolita Trota, Kagawad of barangay Colonia in Lamitan on local government
support; Lamitan City Health Officer Dr. Vicente Yu III on AMTSL; Afreen
Amerin, RN Heals of Lamitan District Hospital on EINC hospital experience; and
Kingkang Sali of Lamitan CHO on PPIUD best practice experience.
Dr. Leonardo Alcantara, SHIELD Project chief
of party took pride of the significant accomplishments of the provincial health
office in improving the health conditions of mother and child care in Basilan.
“(Before) ang estado ng kalusugan ay laging
nasa dulo ang ARMM, but now no more,” he said, noting that the Family Health
Survey of 2011 attested to the improved state of health in ARMM. He explained
that the SHIELD project is supported by the USAID and that the Hellen Keller
International (HKI) is only an instrument in introducing the programs in the
ARMM.
A report reveals that HKI is leading an NGO
consortium to implement a five-year, $15 million program to improve family
health in the Philippines’ Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM). The
United States Agency for International Development (USAID) awarded the
Cooperative Agreement to HKI to serve as the prime organization of the EnRICH
Grantees Consortium. Partners include ACDI/VOCA, Christian Children’s Fund, and
Save the Children.
The goal of the consortium is to enable
communities in the ARMM to achieve and sustain improved family health. The
project, called Sustainable Health Improvements through Empowerment and Local
Development (SHIELD), is based on viable Family Planning, Maternal and
Newborn/Child Health, Tuberculosis Control and Malaria Control strategies, and
involves related health promotion and nutrition activities.
