QC launches child care program

The Quezon City government, in a bid to address the mortality and malnutrition problem, has launched a comprehensive child care program for new born babies and children aged two to five in depressed areas of the city.

Mayor Feliciano Belmonte Jr. has directed City Health Officer Dr. Paz Ugalde to immediately implement the program during a executive committee meeting.

"The new born babies and growing children in depressed areas are among the most vulnerable sectors in society," Belmonte said.

Ugalde has briefed the mayor on the implementation of the program, which seeks to promote and health care of babies from 0 to 59 months old and address to mortality rates caused by malnutrition among children aged from two to five years old.

For growing children, the city government will provide food supplements to address the problem of malnutrition, which is common among poor families in the city.

Food supplements duly certified by the Health and Nutrition Council will be provided to the beneficiaries in the city.

Apart from the comprehensive child care for new born babies, the city health department also said they have provided some 132,000 children with vaccine against common viruses.

The health care delivery program for urban poor children is also focusing on dental care education for parents and their children.

Ugalde has cited the need to teach children to brush their teeth regularly to avoid tooth decay which usually occurs in the early stages. She indicated that this is when proper dental care is often ignored. – Perseus Echeminada