Mayor Osmeña Wants Out-of-School Youths To Do Some Tasks of Village Health Workers

Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña has ordered the stopping of the city government’s PHP5,000 monthly honorarium for some 540 barangay health workers (BHWs) in the city.

Osmena earlier said the city will be able to help more families if it pays out-of-school youths to do some of the tasks of BHWs.

He said some BHWs do not do anything but sit in the barangay hall.

Osmena said he wants to replace them with out-of-school youths who will also be tasked to deliver maintenance medicines to those who need it.

Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) president and ex-officio City Councilor Philip Zafra said the BHWs are trained to provide primary health care services in the barangays.

Zafra said the BHWs are appointed by the barangays and are paid various amount depending on the income of the village, ranging from PHP1,000 to PHP2,500 per month.

The PHP5,000 a month from the city is on top of what the villages pay the BHWs, he said.

Zafra said most barangay chiefs will retain their BHWs because their termination will affect the delivery of health services in their respective villages.

But he said they will have to reduce their working days to just three days per week until the barangay is able to find additional funds to increase their salary. (PNA) LAP/EB/EDS