DOH: Period tracker app launched for Filipino girls’ menstrual health

A local period tracker application has been launched by the Department of Health (DOH) and concerned agencies to help provide young Filipino girls with accurate information about their menstrual health.

The “Oky Philippines” period tracker app, which was introduced last Friday, is free to be downloaded from Google Play Store, and will be available in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

In localizing the app, DOH said a team consulted with girls living in different contexts in the Philippines, including indigenous peoples, out-of-school children, and children with disabilities.

“The results from the talks underwent vetting by adolescent health experts from government agencies and development organizations. Oky Philippines also includes content relevant to the Islamic culture, co-created with adolescents in the Bangsamoro region,” the agency added.

The Australian government, meanwhile, also provided support for the localization of the app in the Philippines as part of its AU$ 48 million Indo-Pacific Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights COVID-19 Surge Response.

DOH officer-in-charge Maria Rosario Vergeire said that through Oky Philippines, adolescent girls would learn to make informed and healthy choices for their own good.

“We recognize the need of adolescent girls to access accurate information about their  menstrual health. We are happy to have the Oky Philippines app as a new digital platform that can help them make informed, healthy choices for themselves,” she said.

According to the Department of Education (DepEd), 8 out of 10 public schools provided girls access to sanitary pads in the School Year 2020-2021. This was an improvement from SY 2017-2018, when only 60% of public schools provided menstrual hygiene products.

Based on its draft curriculum for K-10 (Kindergarten to Grade 10), DepEd plans to teach learners lessons on sexual and reproductive health rights starting at the Grade 4 level.—AOL, GMA Integrated News