In a bid to provide indigent children with special needs the care, support, and opportunities they deserve, the City Government of Davao on Friday launched the Davao City Special Needs Intervention Center for Children (DCSNICC).
The newly inaugurated DCSNICC is a state of the art facility that caters to children with special needs, aged 0-6 years, providing free intervention and special education services.
The project was initiated by then mayor, now Vice President Inday Sara Duterte and was continued by Mayor Sebastian Duterte.
First in Mindanao, the center has five-floors with areas for various services. Its services include Developmental Pediatric Consultation, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy, Special Education, Audiology services, Social Work Services, and Parent and Caregiver Training.
The facility also has a sensory gym, playground, intervention and transition program area, mess hall for parents, and also an aquatherapy area.
The facility is currently operating from 8 am to 5 pm on weekdays.
Davao City Councilor Antoinette Principe, the proponent of City Ordinance No. 0230-20, Series of 2020, which led to the establishment of the facility said in a speech during the inauguration that the center promises to be a one-stop-shop.
The center caters to children with the following disabIlities Intellectual Disability, Global Developmental Delay, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Speech or Language Impairment, Specific Learning Disorder, Physical Disability, Visual Impairment, Hearing Impairment/Hearing Loss, Sensory Delays, and cognitive delays.
“This center promises to be a one-stop shop state of the art facility that will be offering programs and services, such as comprehensive assessment and evaluation to come up with diagnosis,” Principe said,
She said that the services will be available to bonafide children with special needs from indigent families in Davao to prepare them for success and a high quality of life in the mainstream society.
The center will foster holistic development of children with special needs by offering them access to comprehensive intervention programs and skills development opportunities, specifically to meet their unique needs.
Special early intervention also prepares the child for basic education for DepEd managed Sped learning centers.
“During the critical period of zero to 6 years of a special child, close monitoring – physically and psychosocial – is required and this is what the Davao City Special Needs Intervention Center undertakes to provide,” Principe said.
According to City Social Welfare and Development Office Head Joy Dayaday, the city has hired 42 personnel, including specialists, to man the center.
“We will be accepting enrollees dinhi sa DCSNICC para makita nato pila gyud kabook ang atoang bata nga mag -enroll. Basically ang atoang i-cater diri kadtong indigent, primary gyud indigent kay tungod kini libre. Naa ta’y social worker, naa tay mga therapist naa gyud mga specialist nga mag-assess sa mga bata para mahibal-an ang ilang disability ug paunsa sila mahatagan og intervention. (We will be accepting enrollees at the DCSNICC so that we can check how many will enrol. Basically, we will cater here– indigent, primarily indigent because the services will be offered for free. We have social workers, therapists who will assess the children to know their disability and also the needed interventions),” Dayaday said.
The launching on Friday, however, is considered the soft opening as they are waiting for more equipment to arrive, however, the enrollment and assessment of children to be catered to by the facility will start March 22, 2025.
To apply, residents may contact CSWDO at (082) 395-3500. CIO
