By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

Provincial government-run Teresita Lopez Jalandoni Provincial Hospital (TLJPH) in Negros Occidental’s Silay City has established its Family Planning Training Center (FPTC).

The FPTC is a major strategy by the provincial government to sustainably address continuing needs for family planning training.

Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said local government units in the province will benefit from the newly-established training center.

Lacson pointed out the importance of education in order to create awareness of family planning.

The FPTC at TLJPH is also the first to be certified by the Department of Health.

TLJPH head Dr. Mary Ann Maestral said the Provincial Health Office (PHO) is now accepting applications from individuals who would like to undergo training starting today.

Among the courses being offered are family-planning competency-based training; progestin-only subdermal implant insertion, removal and replacement; postpartum and interval intrauterine device insertion and removal; and no scalpel vasectomy.

The training program, under the supervision of Dr. Marc Franco Herman Leong, is open to doctors, nurses and midwives.

Maestral said the FPTC can help address the growing number of teenage pregnancies in Negros Occidental.

PHO’s data in 2022 showed that of the 39,411 pregnant mothers in the province, 6,026 were teenagers.

The number of teenage pregnancies dropped to 5,271 in 2023./DGB, WDJ