Originally published in the Newborn Screening Newsletter
Official Publication of the Newborn Screening Reference Center
Vol. 15 Issue No. 4. October - December 2011
The Caraga-Wide Youth Leaders Orientation and Planning Workshop with the theme “Mobilizing Youth for Promotion and Advocacy on Newborn Screening” was successfully held on October 21-22, 2011 at Lucianna Inn, Butuan City.
The event was another milestone for the Volunteer Youth Leaders for Health Pioneers and K4 Batch representatives of Butuan City Health Office, headed by Mr. Anthony Torralba. It was directed towards creating linkages with Local Government Units and Centers for Health Development to materialize needed support in terms of resources for advocacy materials and funding. Participants were primarily the SK Chairman of the different barangays, representatives from RHUs and CHOs of neighboring towns, health oriented organizations, and a university also joined the event. Speakers and special guests from DILG, CHD-Caraga, NIH-UP Manila, and NSC-Mindanao gave inspirational talks that fired-up the youthful spirits of the participants for the cause of Newborn Screening, Folic Acid Supplementation, and Support for Rare Disorders. There were 25 official participants who became members of VYLH after the two-day event.
Three days after the workshop, the VYLH Tandag team, through Vincent Mendez and Ma. Aliana Carmen (RHU Tandag Youth Volunteers) initiated a courtesy call at Tandag City Health Office, and together with Deivon Jeiv Mozar (SK Federation President) coordinated with the Philippine National Police to conduct a ride-on advocacy campaign on NBS and Folic Acid Supplementation during the PNP Mass Feeding Program at Tandag City on October 25, 2011. They continued the campaign through the distribution of NBS brochures in the community. – EJ Jover
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* Edbert Jasper Jover, RN is a Researcher and Birth Defects Surveillance Nurse at the Newborn Screening Center - Mindanao (NSC-Min) which is located at the Southern Philippines Medical Center, Davao City. He is also the VYLH-Philippines Mindanao Cluster Secretariat.
