DoH sets professionalization of ‘hilots’ as part of RH plan

CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Department of Health (DoH) has included in its strategies in achieving the Reproductive Health (RH) policy by 2015 the training of traditional birth attendants or the “hilot” to become part of the professional medical teams assigned in the rural areas.

The training for the professionalization of the hilots will begin next year, said Dr. Honorata Catibog, head of the family health office of the National Center for Disease Prevention and Control (NCDPC).

Under the Reproductive Health policy of the DoH, all relevant Reproductive Health (RH) services should be available in all DoH-retained hospitals and LGU health facilities by 2015.

The training of the hilots will also enable the DoH to regulate their practice.

According to Catibog, families in many rural areas prefer the care of the hilots versus the midwives in the health centers because of the hilot’s excellent interpersonal skills and caring nature.

“They help deliver the baby but they also help in other things like taking care of the mother. Sometimes, they help bathe the mother, bathe the baby and they even cook,” Catibog told the media in a seminar held here to discuss the milestones in the RH policy of the government and its future plans.

The DoH official acknowledged the lack of midwives in the far-flung areas and revealed that there are only 10,000 to 14,000 midwives in 44,000 barangays in the whole country.

Catibog said the hilots will be taught to craft a birth plan that includes formulating a master list of all the families in her assigned area. She will be responsible in keeping a record of all the pregnant women in the area and in making sure they avail themselves of the government services for pregnant women.

“She will also be taught to do nutrition counseling, family planning counseling, and to give simple messages about health,” Catibog said.

“She will tell the family how to save money even at the first month of pregnancy in order for them to have ample savings when the time for the baby’s birth comes.”

She will no longer be the one who will assist the mother in delivering the baby, Catibog noted. During the counseling, the hilot will help the mother decide which health facility to deliver the baby.

Over the years, the DoH is cutting down on the number of home deliveries to shave the number of maternal deaths and infant mortalities.

Maternal deaths stand at 62 per 100,000 live births while the figure for infant deaths is 25 for every 1,000 live births.

Catibog said the scholarship for the hilots is transferrable to a kin who is deemed most capable of learning the skills of a medical team if the hilot herself is too old to learn or is unavailable for the training. –JENNY F. MANONGDO, Manila Bulletin