Building capacities for universal health care in the Philippines: Development and implementation of a leadership training program for public health nurses

@#Achievement of Universal Health Care (UHC) in the Philippines requires capable health workers who can navigate changes and lead in the local implementation of health system reforms. Public health nurses are in a strategic position to lead in UHC implementation as they constitute the largest cadre of health workers in the public health setting, and core concepts of UHC intersect with principles of public health nursing practice. This paper aims to describe the development and implementation of a leadership training program for public health nurses in the Philippines, in response to UHC. Document reviews of training reports and evaluations, including course site data analytics, and evaluation of the training program were done for the four cohorts of the course. The University of the Philippines Manila College of Nursing, with support from the Department of Health, responded to the increased demand of the Philippine health system for public health nurses with strong foundations and advanced skills by designing and offering a leadership development course specific to PHNs. From November 2019 to March 2022, a total of 183 participants from 17 regions completed the training. With the COVID-19 pandemic and dynamic changes in governance, the experiences of the project highlighted the need for flexibility in delivering the training program, updating module contents according to the latest developments, and improving course duration and evaluation. Barriers to course engagement and completion must be addressed for PHNs, their workplaces, clients, and the health system to benefit the most from the training.

Production, recruitment, and retention of health workers in rural areas in the Philippines

@#<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Objective.</strong> This study aimed to examine capacities and initiatives of the local government units (LGUs) in the Philippines in producing, recruiting and retaining human resources for health (HRH).</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Methods.</strong> This 2-phase, descriptive, cross-sectional study employed multiple methods such as key informant interviews (KIIs), focus group discussions (FGDs) (for Phase 1) and surveys (for Phase 2) in rural municipalities across the country. Phase 1: We employed qualitative methods to develop a quantitative questionnaire in 22 purposefully selected municipalities. An exhaustive enumeration of responses from the guide questions of the FGDs and KIIs were then translated into a questionnaire. Phase 2: We administered the survey questionnaire from phase 1 to another 67 municipalities to obtain a greater representation of the intended study population as well as quantify results from the qualitative methods. We analyzed data with descriptive statistics.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Results.</strong> Initiatives in HRH production were mainly on provision of scholarships. Active recruitment was not done due to lack of available pool of applicants, lack of vacant positions, financial constraints leading to utilization of deployment programs and temporary nature of employment. Recruitment was influenced by budgetary constraints, political biases, dependency on deployment programs and other hired temporary HRH, and set health worker-to-population ratios. Initiatives to retain HRH were largely financial in nature based on pertinent policies. The capacities of LGUs to produce, recruit, and retain needed HRH were strongly dependent on the internal revenue allotment (IRA), along with their local income.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Conclusion.</strong> Rural municipalities in the Philippines have initiatives to produce, recruit, and retain HRH. However, these are not enough to meet the needed number of competent and highly motivated HRH that are expected to respond to the unique needs of the rural municipalities. Strategies to increase the capacity of LGUs, address the shortage of HRH, and increase motivation of HRH are recommended.</p>

Fostering partnerships between the academe-government and community in the COVID-19 pandemic response in the Philippines

@#This paper describes the COVID-19 response efforts through strategic partnerships of a nursing school in the Philippines. The roles of the academe through teaching as well as continuing education and community extension services programs were particularly harnessed. Existing academe-government-community partnerships were leveraged, and personal networks mobilized to provide support on risk communication, community engagement, and capacity building. Challenges and limitations encountered serve as points for improving the academe's strategies and activities. The lessons from this undertaking highlight the crucial role of nursing schools as relevant resources in COVID-19 pandemic response initiatives. Partnerships and networks built prior to the pandemic are instrumental in providing the space and opportunities for faculty and student nurses to aid in strengthening the local response. Recommendations are outlined to enhance current roles, strategies, and activities of the academe in the COVID-19 pandemic and lay future directions for Philippine nursing schools given the increasing incidence and severity of disasters in the country.

Normalizing advanced practice in public health nursing in The Philippines: A foucauldian analysis

@#<p style="text-align: justify;">This study provides a closer look to the possibility of having advanced practice in public health nursing by analyzing the power relations between nursing practice and social structures. Representatives from the public health sector, national authorities, and the private sector were invited in a round table discussion. Transcriptions were coded and later on categorized and analyzed drawing upon the concepts of Foucault. Foucauldian analysis hands an important insight on how social structures and institutions can steer the creation of an advanced practice in public health nursing in the Philippines. Various social institutions view the relevance of a master's prepared nurse according to their societal roles and functions. Requisite competencies of a master's prepared nurse in public health nursing include fulfilling the role of a clinician, leader and manager, supervisor, and a researcher. PRBON, CHED, DOH, and nursing schools need to work together to define the knowledge of an advanced practice in public health nursing, to implement appropriate surveillance mechanisms, and to establish a compliant practice.</p>

Role of the nurse in newborn screening: Integrating genetics in nursing education and practice

@#<p style="text-align: justify;">Nurses are key players in the newborn screening (NBS) program. The inherited nature of the conditions included in the NBS panel means that nurses should be competent in integrating genetics in their practice. However, studies suggest inadequate preparation of nurses in incorporating genetics in their practice. This article aims to discuss how nurses can capitalize on existing population-based genetics programs such as newborn screening to enhance their clinical practice through genetics. An overview of the newborn screening program in the Philippines is provided as well as a discussion on the roles of nurses in genetics in the context of NBS, and a brief discussion of future directions of the Philippine newborn screening program and how this may impact nursing education and research.</p>

university of the Philippines Manila position statement on proposed house Bill no. 292, “An act imposing excise tax on sugar-sweetened beverages by inserting a new section 150-A in the national internal revenue Code of 1997, as amended”

@#<p style="text-align: justify;">The Philippines, with a maximum personal income tax rate at 32%1 and a corporate income tax of 35%,1 has one of the highest income tax rates among the Association of South East Asian(ASEAN) member states.2 The new administration is now campaigning to lower the ceilings on capital and personal income tax, through a proposal originally passed in September 2016, and amended in January 2017, following public and private sector opposition for its immediate imposition.3 In its Explanatory Note, House Bill No. 292, "An Act Imposing Excise Tax on Sugar-Sweetened Beverages by Inserting a New Section 150-A in the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as Amended," cites this as the reason for imposing an, "excise tax of ten pesos (Php 10.00) on sugar-sweetened beverages, the rate of which shall be increased by four percent (4%) every year thereafter effective on January 1, 2017."4 According to the proposed bill, "this measure is proposed to provide additional revenue collections for our country," further claiming that, "this house bill is timely in its submission as one of the new administration's policies to pursue reforms in income tax rates.</p>

Preconception genetic counselling in a Filipino couple with Family History of Trisomy 18

@#Preconception genetic counselling offers an opportunity for prospective parents to understand and adjust to the medical, familial, and psychosocial implications of genetic contributions to pregnancy outcomes. In this paper, we will illustrate how preconception genetic counselling made a difference to a Filipino couple with a previous child diagnosed with Trisomy 18.

Parent-child communication about congenital adrenal hyperplasia: Filipino mothers' experience

@#<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>BACKGROUND:</strong> Family communication facilitates coping a genetic condition by ensuring accurate understanding of the illness,its inheritance pattern,associated recurrence risk and risk perception.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>OBJECTIVE: </strong>This paper explores Filipino mothers' experience in communicating information about congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) to their children.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>METHODS:</strong>Descriptive qualitative design was used.families affected with CAH were recruited  via a CAH support group.Semi-structure interview with mothers were done on the following topics:content and understanding information  communicated,reasons for communicating,and changes and adjustments in the family.Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>RESULTS:</strong>Five families consisting 11 individuals ,including four mothers,were interviewed.finding revealed that while mother are open to communicate with their child about CAH,this is often triggered by question from the child.Mother find it challenging to discuss about the condition  and when they do discuss,this is most often done to facilitate better understanding among the siblings.There is an attempt to explain inheritance of CAH but this is also limited to the mother's understanding.</p><p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>CONCLUSION:</strong>The findings of the study provide guidance to health professional on how they can support parents,particularly mothers,in discussing CAH with their children.</p>