BONTOC, Mountain Province – Fifty members of the Kabataan Kontra Droga at Terorismo (KKDAT) have signed in for the Basic Life Support and Standard First Aid Training.
The activity is initiated by the Bontoc Local Government Unit (LGU) through the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) in coordination with the Local Youth Development Officer and Bontoc Emergency Response Team (BERT).
In accordance with the health protocols, the training was divided into two batches. The first batch was scheduled on December 7, 2021, until December 8, 2021 while the second batch was on December 9-10, 2021 at Samoki Valley Inn Extension, Barangay Samoki, Bontoc Mountain Province.
According to Local Youth Development Officer – Designate Ross Kiat-ong, the purpose of the activity was to capacitate the youth on the necessary skills that can be applied during emergencies.
“The youth are the force multipliers in times of natural disasters or emergencies, thus, they need to be equipped with proper skills to provide proper first-aid care whenever they need to,” he mentioned.
Kiat-ong added that the training is in response to the request of the members during the Youth Leadership Summit held in Barangay Maligcong last October.
Meanwhile, Sangguniang Bayan member Jerome Tudlong who represented Bontoc Mayor Franklin Odsey gave an opening message.
In his message, he lauded the efforts of the Bontoc LGU through the concerned offices in disseminating useful information and promoting skills development.
Further, he encouraged the participants to stay motivated and inspired as they learn new skills.
“I encourage everyone to take this training as an opportunity to learn new skills which may be useful in the future since the youth now are lucky to have such opportunity for learning more skills than before,” he said.
Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Officer I Meilynne Shalom Ayan, explained that the training covers lectures and demonstrations on Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), Foreign Body Airway Obstruction (FBAO), First Aid, Elastic Bandaging, Triangular Bandaging, Splinting, Extrication, and Spine Board Management, and Basic Knot Tying.
In a separate interview, Bontoc Mayor Franklin Odsey remarked that increasing levels of awareness and developing disaster preparedness of the youth would contribute to minimizing risks and further injuries in times of emergencies.
“Equipping the youth with the skills and knowledge useful during emergencies would greatly contribute to lowering the number of injuries and casualties and in strengthening the disaster preparedness of our municipality,” he added.
The lecturers are LDRRM Officer I Meilynne Shalom Ayan, LDRRM Officer I Henrietta Claire Lingbanan, and LYD Officer-Designate Ross Kiat-ong while the trainers are the lecturers and the members of the BERT. By Christy Mae Che-es
