The University of the Philippines College of Education through its Health Education Area and the ASEAN Training Center for Preventive Drug Education (ATCPDE) welcomed delegates from Sahmyook University in Seoul City, South Korea last January  9, 2017. Dean Marie Therese A.P. Bustos, in her welcome message, emphasized that discussing about health matters is the best way to start the year.

The whole-day event was co-sponsored by the Dangerous Drugs Board and was attended by their staff, ATCPDE members from the academe, CHED and DepEd, and Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency staff. The South Korean delegation headed by Prof. Cheong Kim, comprised of 3 faculty, 12 undergraduate students and 2 Filipina PhD students specializing in Addiction Studies.

The resource person, Prof. Pyung Ahn Kim facilitated a lecture-workshop on Healthy Lifestyle Brief Intervention. He introduced the NEWSTART Model, a naturopathic method for living a healthy and drug-free life. NEWSTART is an acronym for nutrition, exercise, water, sunlight, temperance, air, rest and trust in God. It is based on the principle that nature restores the person and internal terrain is the core of the solution to people’s health concerns. After explaining the model’s philosophy and principles, he proceeded with the healthy lifestyle brief intervention questionnaire, a tool for assessing one’s health behaviors. All participants were asked to answer the questions and interpret the results based on the healthy lifestyle signal and wheel. The rest of the session was devoted to further explaining the details of the model to attain homeostasis.

After the session, participants shared the value of the model and its application on their personal and professional lives. They emphasized how using NEWSTART will positively impact their health and well-being.