CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY (PIA)–In observance of the 18-Day Campaign to End Violence Against Women (VAW), the Department of Health (DOH)–10 augments their health personnel specializing in handling VAWC health interventions and the provision of funding for the operational costs of its Women and Children Protection Unit (WCPU).
“The role of the DOH for its women and children protection unit is to provide technical assistance by means of providing training to our DOH retained hospitals in Northern Mindanao Medical Center (NMMC), Mayor Hilarion A. Ramiro Sr. Medical Center (MHARS-MC), and Amai Pakpak Medical Center,” DOH-10 Regional Gender and Development (GAD) Focal Person Dr. Emma Pilar Imperio said during the Talakyan sa PIA, November 20.
In adherence to Administrative Order No. 2013-0011 or the revised policy on the Establishment of Women and their Children Protection Units in all government hospitals, Imeprio said they are monitoring their health institutions here in the region to ensure compliance.
The said AO aims to upgrade operational capacities and train health care personnel with the recognition, recording, and reporting of VAWC cases.
“We were given a memo from our central office to monitor the effects of the pandemic in our WCPU’s, and assess areas of improvements last august, in our findings we saw that there is still support from the hospital (for VAWC cases), “she added.
As the country reels from the economical, health, and social uncertainty brought by the pandemic, gender, sexual and domestic abuse issues due to the implementation of home quarantine measures were magnified.
Imperio notes that aside from the physical interventions, they are also focusing on psychological support for the survivors.
“The health impacts of these are primarily on the physical abuse in households, but also on top of that there’s also depression and trauma, so part of the services provided is psychological support, we have a psychologists where we refer survivors to,” she said.
Imperio also emphasized the significant role of psychological support in aiding survivors cope with their traumatic experience for their fast recovery, and giving them enough confidence to stand up for themselves and return back to their normal lives.
“Physical abuse is given appropriate medical confinement and management, along with that comes the emotional abuse with the depression because of what they went through, but it’s good that we have psychologists in our DOH retained WCPU’s to aid them in their psychological trauma to gradually bring them back to their normal routine and the community,” she adds.
Despite the halt of their technical training for new WCPU personnel due to travel restrictions and social distancing protocols, Imperio said they are currently in the process of sending the documents for the augmentation of their WCPU centers as soon as the trainings resume and are giving out full support to continue its services here in the region despite the pandemic. (VPSB/PIA10)
