PRO-Health presents monitoring findings to central health department

25 June 2024

G-Watch held a national-level problem-solving session with the Department of Health (DoH) last June 19 at the DoH Central Office to initially discuss and address the findings and recommendations of PRO-Health. 

Present were DoH officials and staff from 

  • Health Policy Development and Planning Bureau - Health Planning Division;
  • Disease Prevention and Control Bureau, particularly the Oral Health and Nutrition Care Division and Mental Health Program Division;
  • Health Promotion Bureau - Policy Planning Standards and Research Division; and 
  • Health Human Resource Development Bureau

The G-Watch Center team presented the consolidated findings of PRO-Health monitoring that covered 257 health units in 13 localities all over the country with 1,3644 citizen-beneficiary and 794 health worker respondents. They also shared PRO-Health's working reform agenda. 

 

The possible areas of cooperation between DoH and PRO-Health identified in the fruitful and substantive discussion include: 

  • clarifying the standards on services and personnel for every type of community-based health units
  • exploring how the PRO-Health network can help in government information, education and communication (IEC) efforts to promote health rights and health-seeking behavior
  • continued exchange of information on mental health situation and efforts
  • mapping and strengthening of civil society groups/ actions in health multi-sectoral bodies  
  • linking up with other national government agencies that can respond to the PRO-Health monitoring findings, such as PhilHealth, Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) and Congress

PRO-Health or Promoting Rights Organizing for Health aims to strengthen transparency, participation and accountability in public health governance by building coalitions and alliances among citizens, groups and communities around health rights issues, and by facilitating learning and problem-solving among accountability frontliners and rights defenders to come up with pro-people and bottom-up solutions to systemic barriers and hurdles to reproductive, maternal, newborn and adolescent health services. It is a strategic approach to accountability in health co-implemented by G-Watch and Accountability Research Center (ARC) with other civil society organizations and local governments.