DOH 11 to intensify IEC in schools vs HIV

of Health 11 (DOH 11) will be reaching out to the parents of grade school and high school students to intensify the campaign against the increasing number of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) case among youth aged 10 to 25 years old.

DOH 11 Regional HIV/ STD Program Manager Maria Teresa C. Requillo, in an interview with Sun. Star Davao, said the department will be meeting with Department of Education 11 (Deped 11) tomorrow, July 20, to talk about various issues and plans, including the integration of HIV education among parents.

Requillo said DOH 11 believes that parents are the primary tool in educating the youth about the importance of safe sex and celibacy before marriage to avoid acquiring any Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) and HIV.

As of January to April 2017, she said, there are already 68 newly infected youth aged 10 to 24 added to the existing 985 from the past years in the region, urging parents to look after and monitor their children's activities outside their homes.

Requillo said social media has been the primary cause of youth's sexual engagement as various sources in the internet provide them the freedom to access pornographic materials and expose them to internet users who influence sexual activities.

"DOH is now delving