Photo by Katherine Jack, August 2019 HIV did not disappear because of COVID-19. In fact, it could get even worse. We’re seeing more positive cases in our clinics since lockdown restrictions have eased up and more people can go out to get tested. Still, many people find it hard to access testing and treatment for HIV. Restrictions to movement of people and supplies are still in place. This could lead
Advocates, health care workers, educators, parents, and civil service organizations can learn a thing or two from how a small organization in Palawan changed thousands of women and young people’s lives. As a professor at Palawan State University, Susan Evangelista witnessed how her students dropped out of school after getting pregnant, usually unplanned. She saw, through her students, that unplanned pregnancies usually derailed young women from what would’ve been a
Almost 200,000 Filipino teenage girls get pregnant every year. Here’s why that’s a problem. by Alicia di Giovanni | Photo: Isabel Corthier When 16-year-old Tina’s* water broke, it was the last thing the ninth grader expected to happen in her high school campus, just a few miles away from the city center. She had thought that she was only seven months pregnant. Because she’d never had an ultrasound, she had
Women and girls in Palawan are once again welcome to visit our clinic for free reproductive health services. Quarantine restrictions have eased up, and essential health facilities are now allowed to reopen. But we’re not letting our guards down. From the moment each of our clients show up at our door until they leave, we apply best practices to prevent COVID-19 from spreading. Each client needs to schedule an appointment
Joy* wanted to meet up in a hidden alley, a few blocks away from her home. Strangers passing by might wonder what sneaky business she’s up to, as a needle pokes into her arm and she breathes a sigh of relief. But she isn’t doing anything illegal—she’s just getting a birth control shot. Like Joy, many Filipina women and girls have to hide the fact that they use contraceptives. Their
Pulling out works all the time. Missing your period while on birth control is unhealthy because it keeps the dirty blood inside your body. Pap smears “clean” the uterus. Birth control pills cause cancer because the actual pills clog the ovaries. As outrageous as these may sound, many people still believe these myths. Wrong information about birth control, family planning and sexual and reproductive health is all too common in
Because of strict COVID-19 lockdown rules, women can’t even visit a health facility or pharmacy two blocks away to get birth control. Meanwhile, contraceptive supplies are dwindling in health facilities due to supply chain disruptions. This could lead to a surge in unplanned pregnancies. An unplanned pregnancy disrupts a woman’s life in so many ways—even more so during a pandemic of this magnitude. With little to no opportunities to work,
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May 2019
Meet One of Our Community Health Advocates
Having a baby when you want it, and are ready for it. This doesn’t sound like much to ask for, but growing up in the Philippines, Annabelle didn’t think she had these choices. Now she know better and educates her community on how they can improve their lives as well.
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Mar 2019
2018 Annual Report
18
Jul 2018
Roots of Health Wins a With and For Girls Award
Roots of Health is honored to receive a With and For Girls Award for our work improving access to reproductive health services and education for young people. The With and For Girls Awards is a global initiative which identifies and supports strong, local organisations working with and for girls. Today we announce 20 grassroots girl-led organisations that are being recognised and awarded for their work in tackling gender discrimination, inequality
