Family planning services part of MHCB’s programs

The Maternal and Child Health Bureau of the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. is reminding the public that family planning services are part of their programs like teen pregnancy prevention education. TaAnn Kabua is the MHCB administrator.

MHCB project coordinator Heather Pangelinan said they are encouraging families and even female teens who are at child-bearing age to avail of the service. She said that, although there’s no available data, teen pregnancy in the CNMI is higher than the national rate.

“We offer contraceptives not only for couples but also for teen mothers so they could prevent further unwanted pregnancies. We also offer free counseling for teen mothers,” said Pangelinan, after speaking in last week’s Rotary Club of Saipan meeting.

The information campaign is part of the 2nd Annual CNMI Women’s Health Month celebration, which began on April 27 and ends on June 3. They are currently in the Women’s Health Week where they are offering free Zumba classes at the Garapan Central Park from 6:30pm to 8pm and at the same time include blood pressure check, and diabetes, cholesterol, and anemia screenings.

The MHCB, together with other partners like the nursing students of the Northern Marianas College, will also set up a Mobile Clinic on Saturday, March 14, from 8am to 12nn at the Marianas Business Plaza is Susupe.

Breast and cervical cancer screenings, diabetes and anemia screenings, family planning, pregnancy test, and domestic and sexual assault counseling are the services to be offered.

They will also hold a women’s softball tournament on Sunday; a Women’s Fit and Wellness Class in cooperation with Latte Built where outdoor fitness classes will be given to all women from 5:30pm to 7pm; the Walk in Our Shoes event on May 27; and Island Sportsfest and Obstacle Race on May 28.

The fit and wellness class will be given by the trainers of Latte Built, and will teach women various exercises that they can perform and learn about nutrition for a healthy living.

The Walk in Our Shoes event is a one-mile race for men that starts and ends at the Garapan Fishing Base. The first 20 men to cross the finish line, carrying a 20-lb sack of rice, will receive a prize. The race event will give men the opportunity to know the feeling of childbearing.

Stand Up Paddling, obstacle course, tug of war, coconut husking and grinding, and coconut throwing are the events to be contested in the Island Sportsfest on May 28.

They also held a health visit—blood pressure check, anemia and diabetes screenings, breast and cervical cancer screenings, family planning, and domestic abuse and sexual assault counseling—at the Nutrition and Assistance Program office in As Lito from May 2 to 5. The NMC-Cooperative Research Extension and Education Service are their partners in the program.