MANILA - Last August 29, Volunteer Youth Leaders for Health (VYLH) – Philippines together with the Institute of Human Genetics, NIH-UP Manila, March of Dimes, Department of Health (DOH) and the Commission on Population and Development (POPCOM) organized a webinar on preconception health which marked the culmination of the first youth-led Preconception Health Awareness Week. The webinar and week-long event held with the theme “Preconception Health para sa Malusog na Pangangatawan at Planadong Kinabukasan” aimed to increase public awareness on the importance of preconception health in attaining good health and well-being among women and men of reproductive age, as well as the importance of preconception care in the prevention of birth defects and premature births.
Honorable speakers, namely, POPCOM Commissioner Dexter Galban, March of Dimes Vice President of Global Health Programs Dr. Salimah Walani, and UP Manila Chancellor and VYLH-Philippines National Program Adviser Dr. Carmencita Padilla, were invited to talk about the current teenage pregnancy and family planning situation in the Philippines, Preconception health and its global promotion, and Preconception health in the Philippines as a multi-sectoral challenge respectively. The webinar was moderated by VYLH-Philippines Vice President for NCR-South Luzon Ms. Jeanne Ruth Basas, RND.
Moreover, Dr. Mary Ann Abacan and Dr. Beverly Lorraine Ho also graced the webinar by giving their messages to the participants. Dr. Abacan, VYLH-Philippines NCR & South Luzon Cluster Adviser, welcomed all the participants and mentioned that “[i]t can’t be denied that the voice of the youth is what matters because it is your voice that will drive the future”. This was followed by Dr. Ho, Director on Health Promotion and Communication Service of the Department of Health, who greeted everyone and expressed her appreciation for the invitation to this webinar. Furthermore, Dr. Ho mentioned the importance of promoting health in realizing “Ambisyon 2040” or the Philippines’ blueprint in the next 20 years. By the end of 2040, it is hoped that the country will have a "very low poverty rate, and also the young will become successful, accomplished, healthy, and achieve their full potential."
Comm. Galban noted that, although the national fertility rate went down significantly from 4.1 to 2.1 pregnancies per women from 1993 to 2017, consolidated data of POPCOM also showed a 63% increase in the number of pregnancies of women ages 10-14 years old from 2011 to 2018. According to him, this sector is “more vulnerable to challenges because they are not aware of the difficulties, particularly of the part of being a mother or the ramifications of being pregnant early on” which sometimes means that they have to stop school or not going back to school at all. Furthermore, he tackled the different Philippine population management programs challenging the youth especially those who are involved in health engagement, health policies, and health programs to look and see how they can collaborate and work together along with POPCOM. Relevant to the current pandemic situation, he mentioned that among the programs, Adolescent Health and Development, particularly on the issue of mental health is given much attention as this certain group lost their typical support system which they usually get from schools, religious groups, communities, and the like has been disrupted. Comm. Galban then left a challenging yet inspiring statement saying “The youth are done waiting for the world to change and the world is now waiting for the youth to change it.”
Dr. Walani discussed preconception health which she defined as optimizing a woman’s health to promote a future healthy pregnancy regardless of pregnancy plans. She also emphasized the fact that a mother mostly intervenes once she knows that she is pregnant weeks or months later the child was actually conceived; realizing that this is actually too late since the development of most vital parts happened on its first few days and weeks. Dr. Walani also advised couples to communicate with their partners by saying “talk to your partner, talk about health, don’t shy away from the idea of planning for the pregnancy. Don’t shy away from the idea of being healthy.”
Dr. Padilla stressed that preconception health involves not only the women in their reproductive age but also the men since it’s a partnership and a life-course approach that is not only limited during pregnancy. She gave the participants a challenge to reflect on: “Why is it despite the programs we have in the government, despite the programs we have at the local health center, why is it that we’re still getting women who get pregnant at the wrong time and they’re not ready for the pregnancy and of course their problems with the babies; adding, “Be responsible. Start with yourself”. Dr. Padilla also emphasized that people are still part of the solution to the problems related to preconception health since the government alone can’t do it. There may be laws and programs available yet these are not clear and “packaged” programs that emphasize the value of preconception health in the country.
Furthermore, she presented three collaborative strategies for promoting preconception health in the country. First is the academic strategy which involves the training of Genetic Counselors. Next is engaging the Youth through VYLH-Philippines where she acknowledged the efforts of the youth network as one of her major arms in reaching out to the community outside the university. The third is community research and engagement which the Institute of Humana Genetics-NIH, UP Manila has spearheaded. She also commended the Community Youth Project conducted by volunteer youth leaders and their partners which has received funding from a national grant competition.
In the said webinar, majority of the participants (56%) came from the age of 15-20 years old, followed by the 21-25 years old (30%), 26-30 years old (6%), and the remaining were from ages 31-35 and 35-up (6%). Majority of these participants also came from different partner organizations through #YouthForPH.
These demographics show that different age groups, especially the youth, are interested in learning about preconception health. The challenge now is on how to jumpstart and keep the momentum rolling in our advocacy for Preconception Health given the current pandemic. This is where we believe the youth can intervene, especially the social and technological savvy ones, in making the advocacy for Preconception Health digital and far reaching.#
Words by Shane Paul Baula, RN
Edited by Jasper Jover and RPascual
