- CHERYL G. CRUZ
A crisis intervention facility will soon be established in Bacolod City after the Sangguniang Panlungsod passed on third and final reading this afternoon, Sept. 20, an ordinance that aims to provide a 24-hour, 7-days-a-week action center to immediately act on cases of individuals and/or families in crisis situations.
Authored by Councilor Em Ang, the Crisis Intervention Facility Ordinance seeks the allocation of P13.12 million for the construction and/or renovation of an appropriate site, as well as the salary of a psychologist, who will be the center administrator, and for the maintenance and other operating expenses in the first year of operations.
Ang thanked “Dr. Edwin Miraflor of our City Health Office for urging and guiding me throughout the creation of this ordinance”.
She said crisis situations encompass a spectrum of circumstances, brought about by a problem or an emergency, with which a person may find difficulty in coping without needed intervention.
“The local government of Bacolod is mandated by the Constitution, and entrusted by Bacolodnons, to safeguard the health and well-being of every person under its care,” the ordinance stressed, adding that the administration of Mayor Alfredo Benitez has declared health as one of its priority programs.
The facility shall provide a 24/7 hotline for crisis intervention and counseling, a homely atmosphere for clients as well as play place for minors, and shall consolidate programs on drug rehabilitation, mental health, crisis support, alcohol abuse, etc., and other functions as may be prescribed by the city mayor./CGC
