The Davao City Teen Center, under the City Health Office’s Population Division, continues to offer various services and assistance to the youth sector.
The facility is a safe haven for the youth since 2022, and also caters not only to the youth from the city but also those coming from neighboring cities and provinces.
The facility is open from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. from Monday to Friday.
Adolescents aged 10 to 24 years old may visit the Davao City Teen Center on Pelayo Street, Davao City, or the community-based teen centers, school-based teen centers, and rural health centers.
Interested adolescents may also reach the facility through the Population Division’s Official Facebook Page: City Population Office of Davao
The Davao City Teen Center offers services to the youth including counselling services for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) as well as for family planning for adolescents who are sexually active.
The facility also offers counselling for mental health and assists in the referral of clients to their partner agencies such as the Southern Philippines Medical Center (SPMC) and the Mental Health and Wellness of Davao City.
Norie Mae David, Population Division’s Adolescent Reproductive Health Program Coordinator, in an interview with the City Information Office said that the teen center aims to help address the issues and concerns of the youth sector to ensure that they aren’t put in drastic circumstances.
“Ang tumong gyu’d ani is ma-address nato particularly kadtong issues and concerns sa atoang kabatan-onan though ang cases sa teenage pregnancy nagababa man siya but still when you consider teenage pregnancy, it’s not okay (The purpose of the center is to address the issues and concerns of the youth, and although the cases of teenage pregnancy is decreasing, considering its circumstances, it’s still not okay),” she said.
David also bared that their office tailor fits the services they offer to the needs of adolescents to ensure that their clients receive the right services and assistance they need.
Currently, there are 33 certified adolescent-friendly health facilities in the city.
David added that for this year, their office is planning to conduct more capacity-building activities for services providers and adolescents to further the efficiency and effectiveness of the existing teen centers in the city.
Barangays are also urged to establish their own teen centers in order to assess and address the concerns and issues faced by adolescents within their areas of responsibility. CIO
