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DOH LAUNCHES FAMILY PLANNING
HOTLINE The Department of Health (DOH) today announced that it shall be launching FamPlan Hotline, a contact line for family planning matters, which it is sponsoring along with other agencies concerned with responsible parenthood and family planning issues. Working with other agencies, we hope this will be an effective mechanism for giving advice to couples and individuals that have concerns about their fertility and reproductive systems. This would include such concerns as their fertility, number of desired children, reproductive tract infections, and cancers, as well as the various accepted modern methods of family planning. The hotline is designed to provide very good counseling from expert counselors in a situation where the caller can be anonymous. Advice can be given regarding further follow-up with their doctors, Secretary Dayrit disclosed. The health chief added that the new hotline would not be confined alone to voice calls like most of the existing hotlines. "It is some sort of a breakthrough. This hotline will be using various forms of mass communication. It will not just be accessed through the telephone but also through electronic mail (email) and text messaging as well," Secretary Dayrit explained. The Secretary said that FamPlan Hotline is also a fine vehicle to advocate the four pillars of the state’s family planning policy: informed choice, responsible parenthood, respect for life and birth spacing. Collaborating partners of the DOH in this project include the Commission on Population, FriendlyCare Foundation, Inc., Well Family Midwife Clinic, and Social Acceptance Project-Family Planning. This partnership is developing a client-friendly approach by making information accessible through text, email, and phone calls. "By promoting responsible parenthood, we empower all Filipino families with the ability to chart out brighter futures for themselves by rationally deciding when and when not to have another baby, and applying effective methods to attain their fertility intention," Secretary Dayrit stressed. Health experts handling the hotline said that FamPlan can be accessed for information and referral from 10 in the morning to 10 in the evening, Mondays to Saturdays. For the voice line, the hotline landline number is (02) 5220176. For SMS (text) messages, the hotline is accessible at 0917-8326756 (Globe telecom). Another cellular number on the Smart system will soon be activated. Access to FamPlan through electronic mail is through the address: famplan@info.com.ph To ensure accurate information, FamPlan has computer-assisted databases for caller information, knowledge resource, and referral. It is also using sophisticated search functions for its computer-assisted text replies. |