Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian said on Monday (May 5) that he wanted to learn from the experiences of the agency personnel who volunteered to be part of the psychological first aid (PFA) responders deployed to assist Filipinos affected by the March 28 magnitude 7.7 earthquake in Myanmar.
“I am thankful that you said yes [to be part of the team] but more than anything, I want to learn,” Secretary Gatchalian said, expressing his gratitude to the eight trained personnel—social workers and a psychologist—from the agency’s Central and Field Offices during a simple awarding ceremony at the DSWD Central Office in Quezon City.
The PFA team members who were personally congratulated by the DSWD chief were Social Welfare Officers Imee Rose Castillo, Rizaline Sta. Ines, Nolibelyn Macabagdal, Joseph Salavarria, Clenson Tibangay, Hidie Mendoza, and Christina Tatoy, and a psychologist, Karen Arvie Gabriel.
Secretary Gatchalian stressed the importance of preparing the DSWD for any eventualities, such as earthquakes or other large-scale disasters.
“I want to learn. What if it happened to us and what should we do,” the DSWD chief told the eight-member response team to Myanmar.
As a way forward, the DSWD chief instructed the agency’s Disaster Response Management Group (DRMG) to form a team that will develop a more coherent approach and module for addressing emotional distress and other trauma-related conditions experienced by individuals following disasters.
“There are so many topics that we can do [aside from psychological first aid]. I want a learning module for everybody. We have to keep on learning,” Secretary Gatchalian said.
Secretary Gatchalian underscored that DSWD personnel across the country must be equipped with the appropriate knowledge and skills to respond to various situations effectively.
“We really need to research this and do it fast. Then arm our people nationwide, at least
bawat region mayroon before we deploy,” Secretary Gatchalian said.
The DSWD chief added: “Specialization ang gusto natin. Hindi dahil social worker ay pwede na. I want a cross-functional team, cross-regional team na magiging taskforce natin for disasters na nakakalat nationwide.”
Secretary Gatchalian also ordered the provision of assistance to all the families of the
earthquake-affected individuals immediately after the election ban is lifted.
“We locate kung nasaan ang kanilang pamilya. Tapos nationwide kailangang mapuntahan and we provide assistance to all. I want a 100 percent success rate of all families,” the DSWD chief said. (YADP)