P’sinan gears for another GP National Award

LINGAYEN--- Pangasinan is out to grab its second victory this year as it faces the bigger challenge of sustaining its good performance in 2009 when it won the Garantisadong Pambata National Championship Award.


As gleaned from the reports of the Provincial Health Office (PHO), Governor Amado T. Espino, Jr.said the province of Pangasinan has shown very good performance which meets the national standards of 95% in the GP indicators, particularly the Vitamin A supplementation coverage.

Gov. Espino said that from 2007 to 2009, the indicators for Vit. A coverage increased from 83% in October 2007 to 95% in October 2009. The latest GP report showed that as of April 2010, Pangasinan has maintained its 95% coverage.

Towards this end, the provincial government through the PHO has solicited the commitment of its partners in the local government units and non-government organizations in the GP implementation.

The PHO has lobbied for the support of the Association of Barangay Captains and other elected officials to the province and municipal health service providers to improve further and sustain its performance in GP Coverage as the Garantisadong Pambata Preschoolers Health Week kicks off on October 11 to 15.

In a meeting at the Capitol Resort Hotel last Tuesday, the Center for Health Development, the PHO and their different partners from both the government and non-government sectors came up with action plans to enhance and maintain the province’s good performance in GP.

Good practices in Nutrition Program Implementation and its relation to GP strategies were presented and the creation of ordinances relative to the program were tackled as a means of strengthening the province’s performance on GP.      

The Garantisadong Pambata campaign which was started in 1998 aimed to promote the universal access of child survival services for the improvement of child health in the country.

The campaign is centered on educating parents and local government units on the 10 child survival interventions for continued and sustained delivery of under-five child health services and increase the number of under-five children accessing the child survival services by 25 percent.

The GP’s theme for this year is “Ways to Save Your Child: Bring your Children 6months to 5 years old to your Nearest Health Facility for GP Services.

The 10 child survival interventions which are the focus of the celebration include skilled attendance during pregnancy, delivery and immediate post partum, care of the newborn, breastfeeding and complimentary feeding, micronutrient supplementation and deworming, immunization of children and mothers, integrated management of sick children, injury prevention and control, child spacing , proper personal hygiene and smoke-free home. (PIO)