Makati health records bare low mortality rate

Only one out of every 1,000 Makati children dies before they turn five years old. This figure is very low compared to the national child mortality rate of 48 of every 1,000 children released recently by National Demographic and Health Survey.

In a report to Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay, the Makati Health Department said the mortality and morbidity rates in Makati are one of the lowest in the country, as a result of the city’s holistic approach to health care. It added that Makati’s malnutrition rate among pre-schoolers continues to decline.

From a high malnutrition rate of 12.02 percent in 1988, the malnutrition rate was reduced to 5.8 percent in 1992 and 1.1 percent in 1997. Last year, it was pegged at 0.46 percent after weighing 77,024 children.

According to Dr. Lourdes Salud, chief of Makati Health Department, the low infant mortality rate can also be attributed to the city’s expanded program on immunization which has a coverage of 95 percent of infants.

She said the successful implementation of "Garantisadong Pambata" program, a massive free vaccination and vitamins campaign, conducted simultaneously in all barangay health centers and nursery schools, ensured that all children in Makati are protected from diseases such as tuberculosis, polio, diptheria, measles and Hepatitis B.