Press Release/16 June 2008

The Department of Health (DOH) today called on all concerned agencies and potential allies to work together for a shared responsibility of reducing child injury and improving the health of schoolchildren.

As mandated under Presidential Proclamation No. 1307 declaring every 3rd week of June as ‘National Safe Kids Week’, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo enjoins all stakeholders to harmonize their efforts on child injury prevention.

This year’s theme, “INGAT BATA! Always Think of Child Safety: Safe Homes, Safe Schools, and Safe Community”, stresses on the creation of conditions conducive to injury prevention, which is the responsibility of all sectors. These sectors include public works and highways, transportation, health, education, industry, private sector, non-government organizations, families, schools, workplaces and communities.

According to Health Secretary Francisco T. Duque III, there were about 25 deaths due to injuries for every 100,000 children aged 18 years below. These injuries are vehicular accidents, falls, poisoning, violence and assaults, drowning and animal bites. Those who survived the injuries are faced with varying degrees of disability.

It should be noted that only recently, two children from Tondo and Marikina were reported to have died from poisoning by mistakenly drinking cleaning fluid for jewelry from a plastic bottle.

Duque noted that these injuries could have been prevented if only proper preventive measures were in place, making kids safer in schools, homes, and communities.

Presently, the National Electronic Injury Surveillance System is in its pilot implementation at the Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center, Philippine Orthopedic Center, East Avenue Medical Center, Quirino Memorial Medical Center, Philippine General Hospital, Davao MedicalCenter, Vicente Sotto Medical Center, and Paulino Garcia Medical Center.

Also, to provide necessary advocacy support, the Philippine Child Survival Strategy and Plan of Action for 2008-2010 included injury prevention and control, and deworming as part of the 8 essential child survival package of interventions. The other interventions include immunization, skilled birth attendance, breastfeeding, complementary feeding at 6 months of age, Vitamin A supplementation, among others.

Another health problem that needs to be resolved is the prevalence of worm infections among school-age group. Recent data disclosed that there were five out of ten schoolchildren positive for intestinal worms. The ill-effects of intestinal worms are malnutrition, increased vulnerability to other infections, decreased mental capacity, as well as growth retardation.

To control intestinal parasitism, the DOH, in partnership with the Feed the Children, UNICEF, WHO, and other stakeholders supports the mass deworming campaign for children 1-12 years old twice a year through the Integrated Helminth Control Program,

To address the issue of child injury, the DOH, in partnership with concerned stakeholders, formulated the National Policy and Strategic Framework for Child Injury Prevention and Control. Five priority areas which include road traffic injuries, poisoning, falls, burns, and drowning, will be undertaken by the health sector for immediate action.