by Mindanao NBS Zonal Meeting and Planning Workshop Held in General Santos City
The Department of Health – Center for Health Development (DOH-CHD) SOCCSKSARGEN, through its Newborn Care Program led by Ms. Rohainnah M. Mua, RN, MPA, Newborn Care Program Regional Coordinator, successfully hosted the Newborn Screening Mindanao Zonal Meeting and Planning Workshop on November 3–7, 2025, at the Greenleaf Hotel, General Santos City.
The five-day event gathered newborn screening coordinators, program managers, and partner institutions from across Mindanao with the shared goal of strengthening the comprehensive implementation of the Newborn Screening (NBS) Program and fostering collaboration among the regions.
The activity aimed to promote efficiency, effectiveness, and excellence in NBS implementation by recognizing each region’s accomplishments and best practices, addressing challenges and program issues, and integrating updates from the Newborn Screening Center–Mindanao (NSC-Mindanao), Center for Human Genetics Services (CHGS)–Mindanao, and Newborn Screening Continuity Clinics (NBSCCs). It also served as a venue to identify strategies to overcome bottlenecks and enhance service delivery across different levels of implementation.
Highlighting the event was the presentation of regional accomplishments and best practices by the coordinators from Zamboanga, Northern Mindanao, Davao, Caraga, BARMM, and SOCCSKSARGEN. Each region shared its progress, challenges, and innovative approaches to improving NBS service delivery and coverage. The NBS Continuity Clinics also presented their 2024 accomplishments and updates, represented by the NBSCC units from ZCMC, NMMC, BPMC, SPMC, DRMC, ADPNH, and CRMC. These presentations provided valuable insights into regional variations in performance and paved the way for identifying strategies to further enhance program implementation.
A significant part of the activity were the facility visits held on November 5, 2025, at the SOCCSKSARGEN General Hospital in Surallah and Polomolok General Hospital in Polomolok, South Cotabato. The visits aimed to observe the actual implementation of newborn screening services and follow-up care at the facility level. Participants witnessed best practices in NBS Continuity Clinic operations and engaged with hospital staff to discuss challenges in specimen handling, data quality, and coordination. The learnings gained from the visits provided practical insights that can be replicated in other areas to improve newborn screening service delivery.
The succeeding sessions focused on feedback from facility visits, planning workshops, and presentation of regional action plans. Through these collaborative discussions, the regional teams identified concrete strategies to achieve the national targets of 95% coverage and less than 1% unsatisfactory rate by 2030. Participants also emphasized the need to harmonize data reporting systems, strengthen coordination with NBS Continuity Clinics, and sustain continuous capacity-building initiatives for NBS focal persons and facility staff.
Throughout the five-day activity, participants actively engaged in discussions and planning workshops that aimed to reinforce the network of NBS implementers across Mindanao.
The Newborn Screening Mindanao Zonal Meeting and Planning Workshop served as a valuable platform for learning, collaboration, and program improvement. By providing opportunities for experience sharing, consultation, and strategic planning, the activity reaffirmed the collective commitment of the Mindanao’s NBS teams to strengthen service delivery, ensure quality newborn screening in every facility, and ultimately protect every Filipino child’s right to a healthy start in life.
