W-DARE in Action for Year2
A series of workshops have been conducted by the W-DARE team hand-in-hand with key partners as thrusts for the project’s Year 2 – Intervention Phase. On October 14-17, 2014, the Department of Health (DOH) conducted a Pilot Testing on Training of Health Workers on the Provision of Disability Inclusive Health and Rehabilitation Services at Primary Health Care Facilities in Tanza, Cavite. The W-DARE team was invited to give inputs on the Referral System and Hidden Issues modules for the training manual that was developed and was pilot tested during that event.
In November, delegates from Ligao City (the project site in Albay) were invited to visit Quezon City (the project site in NCR) as a Knowledge Exchange Visit activity, stipulated as an intervention of the project to strengthen partnership between the two project sites. Two doctors from the City Health Office of Ligao, a social worker from the City Social Welfare Development, the Ligao City PWD Federation president and a Community Rehabilitation Worker (CRW) of the Office of Persons with Disability Affairs (OPDA) of Ligao City composed the visiting delegates. Sexual and reproductive health endeavors of Quezon City, as well as SRH activities of Likhaan – an NGO partner of the project— were shared with the Ligao group. Disability-related undertakings of the Q. C. government were also highlighted. W-DARE Principal Investigator Cathy Vaughan and researcher Alex Devine of Melbourne University joined the activity.
As a kick-off activity for 2015, the team conducted a Disability and Gender Sensitization Workshop held at the Oriental Hotels and Resorts, Legazpi City, Albay on January 7-10. It was participated in by the Planning, Social Welfare, and City Health offices of Ligao City; Barangay Captain Paulba along with her health committee Kagawad, and a barangay DPO representative; the Head Medical Doctor of the Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital (BRTTH) and the head of its Public Health unit; the Dean of the Bicol University College of Medicine; a representative of the Simon of Cyrene Community Rehabilitation and Development Foundation Inc.; and a representative from DOH Region 5.
On January 22-25, 2015, a Peer Facilitator Training for the W-DARE Participatory Action Group (PAG) was held at the Sequoia Hotel in Quezon City. The training was facilitated by Ms. Devine and Laura Temminghoff, also from Melbourne University. Facilitators and co-facilitators of the proposed Participatory Action Group (PAG) were thoroughly trained for its establishment in identified communities in Quezon City District 2 and in Ligao City. The PAG aims to disseminate proper SRH information among women with disabilities in the identified communities, and to improve their health-seeking behaviors, especially involving access to sexual and reproductive health services. There were five (5) identified PAG teams – the visually-impaired, deaf, mobility-impaired, parents of children with autism, and psychosocial disability team. The respective facilitators and co-facilitators had the same disability/advocacy as their teams.
Another Disability and Gender Sensitization Workshop was held on February 4 to 6 at the Cocoon Boutique Hotel in Quezon City, attended by representatives of Quezon City offices – the City Health Department, Gender and Development Resource and Coordinating Office (GADRCO), Protection Center (QCPC), Persons with Disability Affairs Office (PDAO), Social Services Development Department (SSDD), Quezon City PWD Federation, and Barangay Batasan representatives. Dr. Carol Sobritchea of the University of the Philippines Center for Women’s Studies (UPCWS) – a highly regarded partner of the project – acted as the facilitator of the workshop.
Quezon City delegates visited Ligao City on the last week of February to complete the Knowledge Exchange Visit between the two project sites. Q. C. participants were composed of three City Health Department representatives, one Persons with Disability Affairs Office (PDAO) representative, and one from the City PWD Federation. The delegates were warmly welcomed and given a tour of the city, with emphasis on how the city government provides health services to persons with disability. Delegates from Quezon City appreciated the high level of awareness and sensitivity of the city toward persons with disability.
