Integrated Maternal, Neonatal, Child Health/Family Planning (MNCHN/FP): Regional Projects in Visayas (VISAYASHEALTH)
Country: Philippines
The PRIMEX Regional Technical Advisors (RTAs) for Regions VI, VII, and VIII, as well as a Capacity Building Specialist (CBS), performed a multitude of tasks, including the following: (i) Strengthening governance at the provincial and municipal levels through building the capacity of provincial and municipal officials to introduce local policies to support the implementation of FP and MCH programs and organize technical exchange programs to share their experiences and lessons learned with other local government units (LGUs); (ii) Training and capacity building of DOH Centers for Health Development (CHDs) and PhilHealth regional health offices to: (a) support efforts of LGUs in FP and MCH program implementation, (b) strengthen the clinical skills of LGU health care providers, and (c) carry out monitoring and technical supervision of municipal health care providers; (iii) Improving the quality of FP and MCH services through: (a) building the capacity of health care providers to generate demand for FP and MCH services utilizing community health workers and volunteers and organize special events to reach out to women with unmet needs for FP and reproductive health (RH) services and offer a wide range of high-quality services to those who needed them; (b) providing technical assistance to facilities at the municipal level to obtain PhilHealth accreditation for FP and MCH services; (c) strengthening the skills of provincial hospital health staff in providing surgical methods of contraception; and (d) introducing the Program for Young Parents, which was a highly successful intervention to address the problem of teenage pregnancy; (iv) Improving the financing of FP and MCH services by: (a) conducting advocacy activities aimed at securing financial support from LGU officials for FP and MCH programs; and (b) building the capacity of LGU health care providers to access funds from PhilHealth through the outpatient benefits package for FP and MCH; (v) Improving the quality of records and reports and utilizing digital technologies to improve the quality of FP and MCH services by: (a) introducing and promoting data quality checks to enhance the quality of FP and MCH records and reports; (b) developing and introducing mobile phone applications to strengthen the clinical skills of health care providers; and (c) developing and introducing the utilization of GIS mapping technologies to improve the allocation of resources and identify areas needing special attention and care; (vi) Improving logistics management through: (a) assisting the provinces and municipalities in conducting regular inventories of their stocks and forecasting their needs as basis for requesting for supplies from DOH and procuring FP and MCH supplies; and (b) building the capacity of provincial program staff to conduct regular monitoring of the supply chain and institute redistribution of FP and MCH supplies to avoid stockouts at the health facility level; and (vii) Promoting gender equality by: (a) introducing and promoting gender-friendly facility initiatives which empower women to make decisions and choices regarding their fertility desires and aspirations; and (b) training and building the capacity of health staff at the regional, provincial, and municipal levels to become more gender-sensitive.