Phillippines Health Programs

Health is a primary concern for most parents in the Philippines, particularly for those who cannot
afford medical care and who often live in communities that lack even the most basic of health services.
Save the Children has been at the forefront of bringing health to the people through cost-effective and
sustainable strategies.

Save the Children is helping the Department of Health of the Philippines train a core of expert trainers,
representing over 16 regions of the country, who in turn will train over 350,000 barangay health
workers in primary health care, maternal and child health and a host of related topics. Using a standard
national training program developed by Save the Children, these barangay health workers will be able
to provide consistent, safe and cost-effective care at the village level.

The Philippines Field Office has long recognized the strategic role that schools play in improving the
health of its population. This long-term experience in school health programming and implementation
on the part of Save the Children enabled us to move to the next step: that of further enriching the
program and expanding its scale.

The School Health and Nutrition Demonstration Program presents a unique opportunity for interested
sponsors. Not only can they rely upon Save the Children’s highly collaborative approach in the field to
ensure long-lasting improvements in children’s health, they can also help relationships flourish among
key stakeholder such as local and national government units, school heads, local NGOs and parents.
Their funds can also provide a stimulating and nurturing environment where healthy and productive
students, teachers and non-teaching personnel can all work together to improve the health of children.

Consider the following statistics:

• An estimated 50% of pupils are anemic;
• Two out of 10 children are iodine deficient;
• Four out 100 pre-schoolers have night blindness and 17 school children go blind every day due
to Vitamin A deficiency;
• A majority of the school children suffer from dental caries (84.3%); intestinal parasitism (75%);
malnutrition (44.9%); and various infections of the ear (17.2%) and skin (52%)

The School Health and Nutrition Program focuses on the following key interventions:
• Health and Nutrition Services - stool examination; regular deworming; vitamin A
supplementation; school feeding/breakfast; screening for vision and hearing problems; and
school health fairs;
• Healthful School Living– bio-intensive gardens, nutrition-promoting canteens and cafeterias,
adequate water supply; construction of sanitary toilets and functional school clinic
• Health and Nutrition Education – curriculum review and enhancement; behavioral change
communication materials; life skills education; adolescent reproductive health; child-to-child
and teacher-child-parent approach.
• School and Community Mobilization and Coordination for Health and Nutrition – Organization
of school and community health and nutrition task forces; mobilization of local health
personnel, NGOs and other sectors; advocacy for sustained support from the local government
 units; and linkage with academic institutions and private organizations.

Coordination for all activities begins at the national level with a Technical Working Group,
composed of representatives of Save the Children and key national agencies (e.g. Department of
Education, Culture and Sports). Reporting to the Technical Working Group is a Project
Technical Committee composed of key representatives from the regional, provincial and municipal
levels. This Committee oversees the project’s overall implementation within a school district. The
Committee is generally tasked with coordinating with the national Technical Working Group,
conducting regular project assessments, mobilizing manpower and other resources, conducting
advocacy activities, reviewing and consolidating reports to be submitted to the national level.

Community involvement has been very strong at the school level and remains a distinct feature
of the project – community mobilization is a key strategy

Nutrition Center in the Philippines

Programs:

The NCP models and advocates several health and nutrition programs that address the
millennium development goals 1 (eradicate extreme poverty and hunger), 4 (reduce child mortality)
and 5 (improve maternal health).

Pabasa sa Nutrisyon is an innovative approach in strengthening the implementation of the five (5)
Impact Programs (Home, School and Community Food Production, Micronutrient Supplementation,
Food Fortification, Nutrition Education and Food Assistance) of the Philippine Plan of Action for
Nutrition (PPAN). Through Pabasa, mothers are grouped into 10-12 per class informally discussing
health and nutrition using behaviorally designed materials developed by the Nutrition Center of the
Philippines (NCP). Pabasa is designed to empower women in reducing their family’s vulnerability to
malnutrition through the adoption of proper nutrition practices and healthy lifestyles. The NCP
provides training and materials for local government units and NGOs that plan to implement Pabasa.
To know more about Pabasa, contact us at programs@ncp.org.ph This e-mail address is being protected
from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Food Always in the Home (FAITH) is a home and school gardening program that NCP advocates.
FAITH focuses on home food security making food always available, accessible and affordable for the
family. Training is provided to scientifically learn how to plant fruits and vegetables without the use of
pesticides and using limited space. By promoting fruits and vegetables, the NCP encourages dietary
diversity which is associated with better health outcomes. The NCP can provide training and materials
for local government units and NGOs that plan to implement FAITH. To know more about Faith ,
contact us at programs@ncp.org.ph This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need
JavaScript enabled to view it

Nutripan sa Eskwelahan (Nutripan) establishes a bakery that caters to primarily to schoolchildren. The
bakery, based in the school or in the community, is mandated to provide bread or biscuits fortified with
iron and vitamin A to schoolchildren at an affordable price. This project is essentially a feeding project
for schoolchildren (and in some areas, for preschool children as well). Nutripan is different from other
feeding projects. Bread is sold and the bakery seeks to be self-sustaining by generating enough sales to
maintain its operating expenses. This project grew form the NCP’s own research findings (link to
research) that fortified bread can reduce vitamin A deficiency and moderate anemia. This project
translates biomedical research into a tangible program that benefits children. To date, there are 36
bakeries in various parts of the country. To know more about Nutripan, contact us at
programs@ncp.org.ph This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript
enabled to view it

Kumare (Kalusugan para Umunlad si Mare) is a maternal health program designed to improve the
delivery of much-needed iron supplements to pregnant women. We have demonstrated that this
approach increases the number of prenatal visits, the number of iron tablets consumed, and improved
hemoglobin levels. The intervention is anchored on training and re-orientation of health workers by

giving them more responsibility for the mothers in their catchment area. Key skills are taught and
simple materials are used to monitor the implementation. To know more about Kumare, contact us at
programs@ncp.org.ph This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript
enabled to view it

Supplementary Feeding Programs can be designed by NCP for non-government organizations or local
government units that plan to have a feeding program. The NCP can provide a variety of food products
(Link to Shop>PNFC) that can ensure a 30 day cycle of flour-based, rice-based or milk-based food
products that meet at least 33% of the Recommended Energy and Nutrient Intakes. To know more
about our food products, contact us at nutrifoods@ncp.org.ph. This e-mail address is being protected
from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it