CARe project ends in El Nido, Philippines

“This project and all your efforts will carry beyond the province of Palawan. Some of the aspects of the project are already being extended to the entire province but I can assure you that the experience here goes beyond the Philippines. Other countries which suffer from rabies will benefit from your hard work and I thank you for that.” These were the words of GARC Policy Coordinator, Dr. Lea Knopf as she addressed the participants and guests during the CARe (Children Against Rabies) Exit Meeting held on January 17, 2013 in El Nido, Palawan.

The culminating event, which aimed to highlight the accomplishments of the CARe El Nido project as it came to a close, was attended by teachers from the 27 public schools in the municipality, rural health midwives, nurses, doctors, as well as representatives from the Municipal Health Office, Provincial Health Office, GARC, and the Local Government Unit (LGU) of El Nido.

The program started with the opening remarks of the Municipal Health Officer, Dr. Cesar Rivera, where he emphasized the LGU’s commitment to support the rabies program in El Nido while the Municipal Rabies Coordinator, Ms. Shiela Gripon reported updates on the animal bite cases in the municipality. She noted in her report that the animal bite cases in the municipality have decreased to 234 in 2012 from the 247 cases in 2011. GARC Asia Coordinator, Dr. Mary Elizabeth Miranda also graced the event and discussed updates on the status of the CARe project. Lastly, representing the LGU of El Nido was Mr. Edgardo Sabenacio who spoke in behalf of El Nido Mayor Hon. Edna Gacot-Lim. An open forum for the participants ensued after the presentations.

The CARe Project, which was implemented from July 2011 to December 2012, is a joint effort of the organization with the municipal government of El Nido, Department of Health (DOH), and Sanofi Pasteur. Through the project, over five thousand school-age children in all 27 public schools in the municipality were given pre-immunization to protect them if they are exposed to rabies.Following the success of its implementation, particularly the component on the integration of rabies education in the curriculum of elementary schools, the provincial government of Palawan has now commenced with the provincial adoption of the curriculum integration. The final version of the teachers’ manual is expected to be used in all elementary schools in the province by June 2014. As part of the El Nido rabies prevention program curriculum integration, monitoring and evaluation is being conducted until the end of March 2013.

Contributed by Dane Medina, Communications Officer GARC, based in the Philippines