MWO-OWWA CONDUCTS BASIC SKILLS TRAINING  FOR FILIPINO WORKERS IN DMV AREA

PRESS RELEASE

WDC-89-2024

06 November 2024

Embassy Press and Information Section

info@phembassy-us.org

WASHINGTON D.C. – The Migrant Workers Office (MWO), through the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), conducted a seminar-training on Basic Life Support (BLS), First Aid and Basic Helping Skills for 25 Filipino workers under the employ of foreign diplomats and members of international organizations in the Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia (DMV) area on 26 October 2024 at the Philippine Embassy Chancery Annex.

The training aimed to build the capability of the workers to respond effectively in emergency situations with focus on saving lives, promoting recovery, and ensuring an individual’s safety. It also intended to hone their helping skills by teaching them on how to become an effective listener and on how to empower others to make decisions and resolve their issues.

The training was conducted in partnership with the Organization of Filipino Private Staff in DMV (OFPSDMV) and the Philippine Nurses Association of Metropolitan DC (PNAMDC). Ms. Corazon Lydenilla O. Ballesteros, CPR Instructor and Nursing Assistant Director at the Little Sisters of the Poor in Washington, DC, handled the BLS and First Aid sessions. She discussed first aid basics, safety precautions in providing first aid, and the different types of emergencies. She also dwelled on the areas of recognizing life-threatening emergencies, giving high-quality chest compressions, delivering appropriate ventilations and providing early use of AED.

Meanwhile, Ms. Cecilia Gregorio Ascalon, family counselor and faculty member at the Ateneo de Manila University, facilitated the helping skills session. She discussed the essence of being a good listener to help other people especially those live and work abroad by themselves. She also stressed the importance of creating a safe environment where others can be comfortable in relaying their personal thoughts and emotions to them.

The training was the first project of OFPSDMV, a newly established organization whose formation was facilitated by the MWO-OWWA.###