Health
Health & Education
Philippines Educational System
“Education in the Philippines” (n.d.) states that the educational system of the Philippines is heavily influenced by the United States, who colonized the country from 1898 to 1946. Due to U.S. occupation, English became the primary language of instruction and a public school system, modeled after the United States school system, was established (“Education in Philippines,” n.d.).
Formal education previously consisted of 11 years of school; however, due to poor academic performance and declining literacy rates, schooling was increased to 13 years as part of the 2013 Basic Education Act (Macha, Mackie, & Magaziner, 2018).
18 percent of the entire student population in the Philippines are forced to attend extremely overcrowded public schools [Photograph]. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://images.app.goo.gl/q5a1VYiFzHq7xPyV8
According to Macha, Mackie, & Magazine (2018), in an attempt to increase academic performance and retention rates, the spending budget on education increased significantly and is the second-largest item on the national budget. Allocations for education were USD $10.26 billion (Macha, Mackie, & Magaziner, 2018).
As a result of school reform, primary school completion rates rose from under 70% in 2005 to more than 83% in 2015 (Macha, Mackie, & Magaziner, 2018). UNESCO Institute of Statistics (UIS, 2017) stated that drop-out rates for children also decreased from 992,346 in 2009 to 424,228 in 2017. Literacy rates for those 15 years and older have increased to 98.18% (UIS, 2017).
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Number of out-of-school children. [Graph]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://uis.unesco.org/en/country/ph
Literacy rate among the population aged 15 years and older [Graph]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://uis.unesco.org/en/country/ph
Link between education & health
According to Skolnik (2016), health and education are related in three ways: 1) the health and education of parents affect that of their children, 2) malnutrition and education can affect children’s school performance, and 3) education helps people prevent and manage illnesses. A study conducted in the Philippines found that “better-educated mothers are able to keep their children healthy, even in locations without a safe water supply” (Skolnik, 2016, p. 58).
CNN Philippines (2019) reported that the 2019 World Economic Forum ranked the Philippine’s health 102nd in the world (para. 6). In addition, the Philippines has been ranked low academically in comparison to other Southeast Asian countries due to chronic underfunding, but within the past decade, spending on education has dramatically increased (Macha, Mackie, & Magaziner, 2018). The increased allocation of funding has led to the recent educational system reforms which may be able to help boost overall health in the future.
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Education enables people to make use of health services and discourages individuals from engaging in unhealthy behaviors (Skolnik, 2016). By increasing education levels, especially in poor communities, policymakers can contribute to increasing knowledge and positive health outcomes. Hoffmann & Lutz (2019) conducted a study in the Philippines and found that an additional year of schooling increases the probability of having a healthy lifestyle by about 3.5% (Hoffmann & Lutz, 2019).
Public education spending has risen rapidly in recent years [Graph]. (2016). Retrieved from http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/250991468565146322/pdf/106948-REVISED-PH-PETS-QSDS-Note-1.pdf
"Education enables people to make use of health services and discourages individuals from engaging in unhealthy behaviors."
Health & Economics
economic status
The Philippines is a lower-middle-income country and has a poverty rate of 21.6% (Asian Development Bank, 2019). The World Bank (2018a) reports that, in the Philippines, the income per person is USD $3,102.70. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is USD $330.91 billion, and the percentage of GDP spent on healthcare is 4.39% (World Bank, 2018a).
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Compared to the Philippines, the United States is a high-income country with a poverty rate of 11.8% (Semega, Kollar, Creamer, & Mohanty, 2019). The United States is also significantly higher in income per person, GDP, and percentage of GDP spent on healthcare. The World Bank (2018b) reports that, in the United States, the income per person is USD $62,794.60. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is USD $20.544 trillion, and the percentage of GDP spent on healthcare is 17.07% (World Bank, 2018b).
GDP (current US$) - United States, Philippines [Graph]. (2018). Retrieved fromhttps://data.worldbank.org/indicator/NY.GDP.MKTP.CD?locations=US-PH
Health & Health expenditure
According to Deluna & Peralta (2014), health outcomes can be predicted by GDP per capita and public health expenditure. The Philippines’ GDP per capita has an average growth rate of 11% and health expenditure has an average growth rate of 6.49%. This is consistent with the “reduction of infant mortality rate by 1.64% on average, under-five mortality rate by 1.76% and the increase in life expectancy with an average growth rate of 0.17%” (Deluna & Peralta, 2014). An increase in GDP per capita and public health expenditure is correlated with an increase in health outcomes.
Current health expenditure (% of GDP) [Graph]. (2016). Retrieved from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.XPD.CHEX.GD.ZS?locations=PH
Life expectancy at birth, total years (years) Philippines [Graph]. (2017). Retrieved from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SP.DYN.LE00.IN?locations=PH
Health & Labor Productivty
Skolnik (2016) asserts that health has a significant impact on worker productivity. Studies have shown a correlation between healthy workers and increased labor productivity (Skolnik, 2016).
Previously, the correlation between health expenditure and health outcomes was explained. To illustrate health and productivity in the Philippines, a graph depicting health expenditures is compared to a graph depicting labor productivity growth (see below). The graphs are closely aligned. Further, when health expenditure is low, labor productivity decreases the following year. Similarly, when health expenditure is high, labor productivity increases the following year. These may suggest that that health expenditures and labor productivity growth are positively correlated.
Current health expenditure (% of GDP) [Graph]. (2016). Retrieved from https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.XPD.CHEX.GD.ZS?locations=PH
Philippines's Labour Productivity Growth from 1985 to 2018
Philippines' labour productivity growth from 1985 to 2018 [Graph]. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/philippines/labour-productivity-growth
"An increase in GDP per capita and public health expenditure is correlated with an increase in health outcomes. "
References
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Asian Development Bank. (2019). Poverty in the Philippines. Retrieved from https://www.adb.org/countries/philippines/poverty
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Deluna, R., & Peralta, T. F. (2014). Public health expenditures, income and health outcomes in the Philippines. Retrieved from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/bc1c/acb9835ba25d550193d2fad12b6626a5fb1d.pdf?_ga=2.85995035.2048278086.1581119277-513020382.1581119277
Education in Philippines. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.studycountry.com/guide/PH-education.htm
Hoffmann, R., & Lutz, S. U. (2019). The health knowledge mechanism: Evidence on the link between education and health lifestyle in the Philippines. The European Journal of Health Economics, 20(1), 27-43. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10198-017-0950-2
Macha, W., Mackie, C., & Magaziner, J. (2018). Education in the Philippines. Retrieved from https://wenr.wes.org/2018/03/education-in-the-philippines
Semega, J., Kollar, M., Creamer, J., & Mohanty, A. (2019). Income and Poverty in the United States: 2018. Retreived from https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2019/demo/p60-266.html
Skolnik, R. (2016). Global Health 101 (3rd ed.). Burlington, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.
UNESCO Institute of Statistics. (2017). Philippines. Retrieved from http://uis.unesco.org/en/country/ph
World Bank. (2018a). Philippines. Retrieved from https://data.worldbank.org/country/philippines?view=chart
World Bank. (2018b). United States. Retrieved from https://data.worldbank.org/country/united-states?view=chart