Taguig City bagged the Galing Pook Award for Ating Dibdibin, its innovative breast cancer control program.
Launched in 1993, the Galing Pook Awards is “a pioneering program that searches and recognizes innovative practices by local government units. LGU finalists with outstanding initiatives are carefully selected and winners are recognized in a very prestigious awarding ceremony.”
Organizers of the Galing Pook Awards announced the 10 winners on Oct. 24.
Taguig Mayor Lani Cayetano (center) with city officials (Photo from the Taguig City government)
Out of the 147 entries from 111 local governments, Taguig was chosen as one of the 18 finalists and emerged as one of the 10 winners for the Galing Pook Awards 2024.
Ating Dibdibin, established in partnership with the ICanServe Foundation in 2012, is a community-based initiative focused on early detection and treatment of breast cancer. It has been institutionalized through local ordinances and employs a patient navigation system, which has become a model for other local government units.
With trained barangay health workers acting as patient navigators, the program ensures that breast cancer patients receive guided support throughout the healthcare continuum, including free diagnostic services, treatment, and psycho-social support.
“We believe every breast cancer patient deserves a second chance at life. Every home deserves a happy, healthy mother, sister, or daughter. We continue to intensify our efforts to keep families together. Ating Dibdibin ang laban sa breast cancer,” Mayor Lani Cayetano said in her presentation before the Galing Pook 2024 judges on Oct. 23.
The Taguig City government said the Ating Dibdibin program has achieved remarkable milestones:
- It has helped increase Taguig’s breast cancer screening rate to 8.48 percent, nearly quadrupling the national average of 2.3 percent.
- It has contributed to a significant reduction in breast cancer mortality in the city, cutting the rate to 17 percent, compared to the national average of 36 percent.
- The mortality reduction is attributed to early detection, community support, and patient-centered healthcare services provided by Taguig.
Taguig’s success was judged on several criteria, including positive results, people’s participation, innovation, and sustainability.
“The City of Taguig remains committed to providing the best. We will soon open a bigger breast cancer center to accommodate more patients. We will upgrade equipment, continue to provide quality cancer care, and provide a more holistic survivorship and supportive care for patients,” said Cayetano.
The 10 winners of the Galing Pook Awards this year are:
This year’s Galing Pook Awards finalists are:
Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro: Puerto Galera Waste Water Management
Balanga City, Bataan: Balanga Community-Based Ecotourism Zone
Quezon City: Quezon City Birth Registration Online (QC BRO)
Ormoc City: Saving Kan: A Love Story In Ormoc Bay (Marine Mammal And Reptile Rehabilitation Center)
Valenzuela City: Safe Spaces: Strengthening Child Protection in Valenzuela City
Kapalong, Davao del Norte: Kapalong College of Agriculture, Sciences and Technology: The First Local College in Davao Region
Pandi, Bulacan: Pag-asa sa Bagong Bahay
Bataan Province: Breathing Life into the Ayta Magbukun: A Collaborative Initiative for Language Restoration in Bataan
Cabagan, Isabela: Project TOPI (Teaching Opportunities Prioritizing Illiteracy)
Taguig City: Ating Dibdibin Program
The winners of the Galing Pook Awards (Photo from Galing Pook Awards on Facebook)
The Galing Pook Awards was organized by the Galing Pook Foundation, in partnership with SM Prime Holdings, Inc., Department of the Interior and Local Government-Local Government Academy, Landbank of the Philippines, Philippine Airlines, the government of Canada, and the United States Agency for International Development through the Cities for Enhanced Governance and Engagement (CHANGE) Project.