Custom «Health Promotion Program Design» Essay Paper Sample

Background and demographics

Filipinos originate from the Republic of Philippines. They constitute of approximately 80 million of the Philippine population, which is the largest ethnic constitution in the Philippines. With a total population of 92 million, Philippines ranks 12^th in terms of population size globally. Approximately 11 million Filipinos reside outside the Philippines.  The population growth of Philippines currently rates at 1.95 per cent measured between 2005 and 2010 (Woods, 2006). The mean age in Philippines is 22.7 years. The population composition consists of 60.9 per cent being individuals of age between 15 and 64 years. The life expectancy of the Filipinos on birth is approximated at 71.38 years; the males have a life expectancy of 68.5 years while the females have a life expectancy of about 74.5 years.  According to the Philippines National Statistics office data, rate of literacy in Philippine is approximately 93.4 per cent. There is an equal literacy rate among males and the females (Woods, 2006).

The Health care system of the Philippines

The health care system of the Philippines is currently dominated by the private sector. The health care expenditures only constitutes of approximately 6 per cent; indicating the little involvement of the government in the delivery of health care. The government expenditure directed towards the delivery of health care has been on the decline in the recent years (Woods, 2006).

The total number of physicians in Philippines is estimated to be 90400, meaning that 835 Filipinos are served by one physician. There are approximately 480,910 nurses and approximately 43,200 dentists in the Philippines. Estimations depict that for every 770 Filipinos, there is one hospital bed. The significant problem facing the Philippine healthcare system is the retention of the medical practitioners, because most of the nursing graduates go look for work outside the country (Woods, 2006).

Cultural characteristics of the Filipinos

The cultural orientation of Filipinos is the integration of both Eastern and Western cultures. The Filipinos show signs of characteristics of people found in Asia, particular those having a Malay origin. The language spoken mostly is the English language due to profound effects from the United States. The principal religious orientation of the Philippines is Christianity, with 90 per cent of the Philippine population being Christians. The profound Christian denomination is Roman Catholic. There are instances of Philippine traditional religions, although their practices are somewhat related to Christianity (Woods, 2006).

The proposed health promotion and disease prevention plan

Currently, the healthcare delivery among the Filipinos is not effective so as address the healthcare needs of everyone in an appropriate manner (Woods, 2006). This justifies the need to revise the health care promotion and disease prevention plan for the Filipinos. The main objective behind the implementation of proposed health care promotion is to enhance the delivery of heath services among the Filipinos and constantly monitor the performance of the new health program using appropriate performance parameters.

The planning phase

Planning usually involves making a number of decisions, which may entails making strategic decisions and general decisions basing on the information gathered regarding the population that the health promotion plan is to be implemented (Green & Kreuter, 1999). The various planning approach that will be deployed include strategic planning, health promotion program planning and finally operational planning.  Planning is imperative prior to the implementation of the health promotion and disease prevention plan. Planning essentially involves the plan of program execution, starting from information gathering to implementation of the health promotion and disease prevention program. The planning phases for this program outlined in the following steps (Keith & Green, 2010).

a) Pre-planning: involves identification of potential stakeholder and making necessary decisions based on the data gathered concerning the population of interest, which in this case, are the Filipinos. The pre-planning phase also plays a significant role in ensuring the participation of stakeholders.

b) Assessment of situation: involves the justification of the need to implement the health promotion and disease program basing on the data gathered and the inefficiency of the healthcare delivery among the Filipinos.

c) Establishing goals and objectives of the program

d) Identification of strategies, required resources and activities that the program requires

e) Establishment of performance indicators

f) Review of the health promotion and disease prevention plan.

The proposed plan of approach will be impact based planning model, which is a systematic approach methodology directed towards health care promotion and disease prevention program.  The methodology principally focuses on laying priorities based on the needs that have been identified during the analysis phase. The methodology also focuses on the feasibility of the proposed strategies (Green & Kreuter, 1999). The choice of this model was arrived basing on the following reasons:

a) It puts into consideration the values and ethics that play a significant role during the decision-making process.

b) It offers a reasonable approach to program planning and effective allocation of resources to the various activities during the implementation of the program.

c) The methodology emphasizes on the evaluation procedures and health indicators in order to facilitate the evaluation and monitoring of the effectiveness of the program.

Key stakeholders for the healthcare promotion and disease prevention program

The significant stakeholder is the Philippines Government, since one of the objectives is to enhance the participation of government in the delivery of health services and other disease prevention schemes. The various Non-Governmental organizations found in Philippines. The administration of the various public and private hospitals in Philippines will also play a significant role in ensuring that the program is a success.

Population of interest

In a broader perspective, this health promotion and disease control program is aimed enhancing personal health of the Filipinos and increasing health awareness among them. In a narrow perspective, the health promotion and disease control program lays an emphasis on increasing awareness of the prevalence of HIV/AIDS and Cardiovascular diseases.

Goals and objectives of the health promotion and disease prevention program

Goals offer a framework for the planning of the health promotion and disease prevention program. This implies that it is imperative that the established goals depict the needs of the population of interests. In addition, they should be outcome oriented in order to facilitate the process of their evaluation. It is essential to note that goals should remain static and not subjected to adjustments as compared to strategies (Green & Kreuter, 1999).

The first goal of the health promotion and disease prevention is to increase the government involvement in the delivery of healthcare services among the Filipinos. It is evident that there is little government involvement in the healthcare system. Therefore, the health promotion program aims to increase government involvement in order to increase the efficiency of the delivery health care among the Filipinos through increased government funding and helpful healthcare policies that can help in the retention of medical practitioners (Woods, 2006).

The second goal of the program is to increase the Filipinos awareness towards the various prevalent diseases and the ways in which they can combat them. The program will lay much emphasis on HIV/AIDS and Cardiovascular diseases because they account for most of the deaths related to ailments among the Filipinos. This will aim at increasing the wellness programs that will in turn foster personal health.

The third goal of the program will be to enhance equity in the distribution of healthcare resources to the Filipinos irrespective of their geographical location, social statuses, levels of income or any other variable that is deemed to result social differences.

The fourth goal of the program is to implement a health promotion program that will be well adapted to the local needs of the Filipinos in terms of the social, economic and the political systems of the Filipinos.

The fifth goal of the program is to foster partnership among the various stakeholders to maximize on the available potentials that each stakeholder can contribute towards facilitating the success and effectiveness of the program.

Objectives

a) To reduce the number of deaths related to cardiovascular diseases from 25 per cent to 10 percent during the first six months of implementation, and subsequently eliminate such deaths among the Filipinos in the course of the program.

b) To reduce the prevalence of HIV/AIDS among the Filipino from the current rate of 12000 to 5000 during the first six months of implementation and subsequently eliminate cases of HIV/AIDS among the Filipinos.

Strategies and Resources

The strategies deployed during the implementation of this program will be aimed at ensuring the effectiveness of the program (Green & Kreuter, 1999). The following are the proposed strategic actions that will be undertaken towards the implementation of the health promotion program.

a) Counseling and personal skills development: will entail working with individuals and groups in order to help them acquire skills that they need to improve their health and prevent them from acquiring other diseases.

b) Mobilization of the community: this strategy is primarily aimed at mobilizing the communities to work together with the aim of improving the general health of the community through avenues such as community projects.

c) Work in partnership with other organizations that deliver health care services in the Philippines. This will entail the sensitization of the various hospitals and organizations that are associated with the delivery of health care towards their participation in attempting to reduce the prevalence of HIV/AIDS and cardiovascular diseases.

Developing indicators

Indicators are used to evaluate the success of the program, and they are based on articulated goals and objectives of the project. The following is an outline of the indicators for the health promotion and disease prevention program.

a) A reduction in the number of deaths associated with cardiovascular diseases

b) A reduction in the prevalence of HIV/AIDS among the Filipinos

c) Increased government involvement in the delivery and participation of healthcare services among the Filipinos

Effects of the health promotion plan on health care delivery settings

The proposed plan will not have an effect on most of the health care delivery elements, because it is primarily aimed at increasing awareness and focuses on disease prevention. However, it will have an effect on the acute care settings. In this case, the program will significantly affect the delivery of health care to patients undergoing cardiovascular treatments in the sense that it will foster faster discharge; this means that it will enhance the effectiveness of acute health care. In cases that are minor, the expenditures for the patient will be incurred.

The program will also have an effect on the delivery of management and integrated care, especially for the case of HIV/AIDS. This is because HIV/AIDS requires intense care and patient management, the policies implemented will mean that the various organizations that deliver health care services be fully responsible for the management of patients.