The University of Immaculate Conception will graduate on September 30 a total of 30 former drug dependents who have successfully undergone a six-month rehabilitation program initiated by the school.
“We started small but after this first batch, we shall proceed to the next batch,”Dr. Corazon Mamon Umblero, UIC Community Develpment Service & NSTP Director told the Kapehan sa Dabaw press conference on Monday at SM Annex Ecoland.
She said the graduates, dubbed UIC Friends, comprised of participants from barangays 5A, 6A and 8A, 29 percent of which are females and 69 percent males.
Dr. Umblero said the first batch of UIC Kaduyog Sagip Kinabuhi Program started rehabilitation on April 3, 2017 and which will culminate on September 30, 2017. The six months intensive program implements the phase one of Community-Based Rehabilitation Aftercare Program. The youngest participant in this program is 21 years old and the oldest is 58 years old.
The program is the school’s response to the call of the church through the archdiocese action center for immediate action to the challenge of the government to help counter drugs.
Sister Ma. Marissa Viri, RVM the university’s president, initiated the idea of the program.
“Mismo among president siya jud ang nag-initiate na mag-cascade siya sa among management council padulong sa among deans, padulong sa among mga programs ug sa among mga students,” said Umblero.
What made the program unique according to Umblero is that the whole university was involved.
“Nag tuo kami nga ang recovery sa atong mga friends mahimo lamang kung holistic ang approach,” said Umblero.
The holistic approach began with the physiological component followed by psychological, social, spiritual and economic productivity components.
The medical technology and laboratories, nutrition education program and nursing program have collaborated to create programs for the psychological component.
The health needs of the participants were assessed by the school through the programs offered to aid the psychological component. Issues on health were referred to the city health office.
The psychological needs of the participants were addressed with the Matrix Intensive Out Patient Program, since it is a community based program. For the spiritual component, the school has tapped St. Jude Thaddeus Parish to help out.
The accountancy and business administration programs taught the participants in making basic business plans. The school also provided capital to the reformists who would want to start a business that will be monitored by the school.
The programs aimed to give the participants self-confidence.
“In terms of the implementation, nauna jud and University of Immaculate Conception sa pagkahuman sa 6-months intensive program,” said Director of Community-Based Rehabilitation Aftercare Program (CBRAP) for Persons with Substance Use Disorder, Ronaldo Rivera.
The CBRAP also coordinates with other high education institutions like UIC and Ateneo de Davao University. “Schools are complementing (the CBRAP) through their community extension programs through their National Service Training Program and National Service Reserve Corps programs.
“Walang resource ang mga barangay in the implementation although naa ang health care which comes from the health centers and social welfare but when it comes to the holistic implementation program dili nila makaya without the support of the higher education institution,” said Rivera.
The CBRAP will present the drug reduction demand on the culmination day on September 30 at UIC. “We correlated their abstinence from drug with drug demand reduction,” said Rivera.
Rivera suggested that concerned government agencies should craft policies out of the results of the program.
