Issue No. 69 - March - April 2012 - DOH

Carmona Mayor Roy Loyola leads the Balik-Padyak program. Today, more residents ar using bicycle asa means of transportation and exercise regimen especially in the early morning and late afternoon.As a DOH Red Orchid awardee for smokefree municipality in 2011, Veruela is serious in implementingits anti-smoking campaign.interview of key players, and interview ofbeneficiaries. The finalists were furthertrimmed down to the five (5) winners whoreceived a cash prize of Php 100,000 anda plaque of recognition each. Meanwhile,the three (3) remaining finalists receiveda cash prize of Php 25,000 and a plaque ofrecognition each.The finalists are: Municipality ofSan Jacinto in Masbate; Taft District HealthCenter in Surigao City; and Heaven on EarthVegetarian Wellness Center in Baguio City.And The Winners Are...Local Government Unit CategoryTwo municipalities tied in thiscategory with only 0.12 percentage pointsdifference.Municipality of Carmona,Cavite. This is its second OHLAA. Its programknown as DAHLIA or Direct Access to HealthyLifestyle Intervention and Advocacy includeshealthy lifestyle exercises, regular medicalcheck-up, lectures on lifestyle-relateddiseases, creation of social awarenessthrough health promotion messages andmaterials, supportive facilities like wellnesscenters, and integration of the program to allsectors of the community. Community-basedorganizations and workplaces have adoptedthe DAHLIA program. The program has alsobeen included in the annual investmentplan of the municipality, thus, assured of itssustainability in terms of financial support. Asystem of monitoring, the DAHLIA card, wasdeveloped to ensure regular participationand utilize the same as a tool for evaluationand analysis. The commitment of localofficials is expressed through policiesand laws to include executive orders,memoranda, resolutions and ordinances.Likewise, continuous capability buildingprograms are being implemented toenhance the effectiveness of health workersas implementers. As of now, there are morethan 3,000 active participants of DAHLIAwho benefit from the program and acceptthe responsibility of taking care of theirhealth.Municipality of Varuela,Agusan del Sur. The municipality deeplyfelt the effect of NCDs. Smoking, alcoholdrinking, poor eating habits and the lackof concern for physical fitness were evidentin the rising incidence of hypertension andchronic obstructive pulmonary diseases(COPD) as the top causes of morbidity,while stroke, cardiovascular diseases, COPD,cancer and liver cirrhosis as the top causes ofmortality. The rural health unit was taskedto do healthy lifestyle advocacy down to thecommunity level, but the burden of doingand not being heard by the majority of theMarch - April 2012 I HEALTHbeat 19