Some 956 newly trained barangay health workers (BHW) are set to be deployed in two provinces of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) as part of the region’s commitment to enhancing healthcare services.

Dr. Kadil Sinolinding Jr., chief of the BARMM’s Ministry of Health (MOH), said the new batch of health frontliners is expected to start serving villages in the provinces of Maguindanao Norte and Maguindanao Sur this week.

“The BHWs have completed their orientation training and are ready to go,” Sinolinding said in an interview Wednesday.

He said the BHWs are spouses of decommissioned Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) rebels, who are set for deployment starting Thursday.

The BHWs are now equipped with the skills and knowledge needed to carry out their duties as health education and promotion officers at the barangay level, as mandated in Republic Act (RA) 11223 or the Universal Healthcare (UHC) law, he added.

The deployment of former combatants’ spouses as BHWs is part of the ongoing decommissioning process.

“Their hiring, under RA 7883, or the ‘Barangay Health Workers Benefits and Incentives Act of 1995,’ is a strategic move to strengthen health education and medical services at the grassroots level,” Sinolinding said. (PNA)