Healthcare Scenario of Philippines
The Philippines, officially known as the Republic of the Philippines; is a unitary sovereign and archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Situated in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of about 7,641 islands that are categorized broadly under three main geographical divisions from north to south: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. The capital city of the Philippines is Manila and the most populous city is Quezon City, both part of Metro Manila. Bounded by the South China Sea on the west, the Philippine Sea on the east and the Celebes Sea on the southwest, the Philippines shares maritime borders with Taiwan to the north, Vietnam to the west, Palau to the east and Malaysia and Indonesia to the south.
Demography Statistics
| Population | 112,560,303 as of July 2022 |
| Sex Ratio | 1006 males/1000 females (2022.) |
| Ethnic groups | Tagalog 28.1%, Cebuano 13.1%, Ilocano 9%, Bisaya/Binisaya 7.6%, Hiligaynon Ilonggo 7.5%, Bikol 6%, Waray 3.4%, other 25.3% |
| Religions | Catholic 82.9%, Muslim 5%, Evangelical 2.8%, Iglesia ni Kristo 2.3%, other Christian 4.5%, other 2.5% |
| Languages | Filipino (official; based on Tagalog) and English (official) |
| Literacy | 96.3% |
The Rural-Urban Dichotomy
Fig.1: 47.5% of population resides in Urban Area while 52.5% of population lives in Rural Area.
Economy
The Philippines is considered to be an emerging market and a newly industrialized country, which has an economy transitioning from being based on agriculture to one based more on services and manufacturing. The Philippine economy is the 34th largest in the world, and it’s GDP in 2021 was $394.09 billion USD whereas in as of 2022 it increased to $450.340 billion. Leading exports include electronics and semiconductors, vehicles, clothing, items made of copper, petroleum, coconut oil, and fruits.
The overall labor force participation rate was 65% in May 2022. Employment in the agriculture and industrial sectors was 25.2% and 17.4%, respectively, and the industrial sector’s GDP was 30.7%. In the first quarter of 2022, the services sector accounted for 59.9 % of the nation’s total GDP and 46.98 million employed people. The employment rate was 94.2% in March 2022, the highest level since April 2020.
The country’s unemployment rate dropped to 6% in May 2022. Meanwhile, due to lower charges in basic necessities, the annual inflation rate in the Philippines climbed to 6.1% in June 2022. The daily income for 45% of the population of the Philippines remains less than $2. The economy is heavily reliant upon remittances from overseas Filipinos, which surpass foreign direct investment as a source of foreign currency.
Connectivity
Iloilo Airport is the major International airport in Philippines & the country is well connected to India with flights from major metro cities of India.
Top 5 corporates in Philippines
Growth plan of Philippines
The poverty rate decreased from 21.6% to 16.6% between 2015 and 2020. By 2022, Rodrigo Duterte, the president of the Philippines, plans to bring down the poverty rate to 14%. In the first half of 2021, the population’s prevalence of poverty grew from 21.1% to 23.7%. This is equivalent to lifting about 6 million people out of poverty. Specifically, poverty in agriculture and in lagging regions with high poverty incidence and inequality will be targeted. Individuals and communities will also be made more resilient by reducing their exposure to risks, mitigating the impact of risks, and accelerating recovery when the risk materializes. Moreover, innovation will be encouraged as the country sets its eyes on graduating to a knowledge economy in order to accelerate growth in the future.
The Healthcare Scenario in Philippines
Some Important Health Statistics
| Health expenditures | 893 trillion (2022) , 4.7% of GDP |
| Maternal mortality rate | 90 deaths /100,000 live births (2022) |
| Infant mortality rate | 17.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2022) |
| Birth rate | 19.77 births/1,000 population (2022) |
| Death rate | 6.1 deaths/1,000 population (2022) |
| Hospital bed density | 1.2 beds/1,000 population(2021) |
| Children under the age of 5 years underweight (2019) | 19% |
Philippine health status indicators show that the country lags behind most of South-East and North Asia in terms of health outcomes. Communicable diseases continue to be major causes of morbidity and mortality in the Philippines. Infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and pneumonia are leading causes of death. Malaria and leprosy remain a problem in a number of regions of the country.
The rise in non-communicable diseases along with the existing prevalence of infectious diseases indicates the Philippines is in an epidemiologic transition characterized by a double burden of disease. This disease pattern indicates that even as degenerative diseases and other lifestyle-related illnesses are increasing, communicable diseases are still widely prevalent.
Top 20 causes of Mortality in Philippines in 2022
Fig. 2: Causes of Mortality in 2022
The Health System
The Ministry of Health, or the Department of Health, provides national health policies and standards. The provision of health services is overseen by local government units and private sector agencies, both of which are responsible for providing health services to communities. Health services are brought by barangay health units, rural health units, city health offices, municipal or district hospitals, provincial and regional hospitals, and medical centers.
Primary care services
Primary care services are provided by both the government and the private sector. The main providers of primary health care services are the LGUs as mandated by the LGC of 1991. Under this set-up, BHCs and RHUs in the municipalities serve as patients´ first place of contact with the health workers. BHCs are staffed by barangay health workers, volunteer community health workers, and midwives, while the RHUs are staffed by doctors, nurses, midwives, medical technologists, sanitary inspectors, nutritionists and volunteer health workers.
A World Bank study (2000) on the type of services provided by health facilities in the Philippines found that 63% of services provided by government primary care facilities are preventive in nature (i.e. immunization, health and nutrition education, family planning services); 30% are for the treatment of minor illnesses and accidents and other services, such as pre/post-natal care and deliveries, and the remainder are for laboratory services.
Private sector health professionals provide primary care services through free-standing private clinics, private clinics in hospitals, and group practice clinics or polyclinics. They generally cater to the paying population who can afford user fees.
Specialized Ambulatory Care/Inpatient Care
Inpatient care is provided by both government and private health care facilities categorized as secondary and tertiary level hospitals. This type of care is reimbursed by PhilHealth. Filipinos who can afford it receive inpatient care services in private clinics and hospitals that are staffed by specialists and equipped with sophisticated medical equipment. Those who cannot afford private health care go to government facilities that are perceived to be poorly equipped and often lack supplies.
There are also a small number of ambulatory surgical clinics (ASCs) which provide day surgeries and ambulatory procedures. This care is eligible for reimbursement through PhilHealth, although at present there are only 42 ASCs and all are located in urban areas.
Traditional medicine practice
Traditional medicine and complementary and alternative medicines are widely used in the Philippines. Filipino traditional medicine has been in practice for more than a thousand years. Many forms of complementary and alternative medicine introduced from other countries are also used, such as Chinese traditional medicine, acupuncture, herbal medicines, chiropractic, homeopathy, and Ayurveda.
Official Department of Health (DOH) statistics indicate that there are about 1,800 licensed hospitals in the country, of which about 60% are privately owned. Total bed capacity is about 100,000
Density of Health Personnel in Philippines /10,000 Population
| Doctors | 10 |
| Nurses | 8.03 |
| Dentists | 0.56 |
| Midwives | 1.70 |
Major Medical Colleges in Philippines
- Fatima Medical Colleges (OLFU – Medicine)
- University of the Philippines – College of Medicine
- University of Santo Tomas – Faculty of Medicine and Surgery
- Far Eastern University – Dr. Nicanor Reyes Medical Foundation
- Cebu Institute of Medicine
- St. Luke’s College of Medicine
- University of the East – Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Medical Center
- Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health
Major Public Hospitals in Philippines
- The Philippine General Hospital (PGH) – 1500 Beds
This is a tertiary state-owned hospital administered and operated by the University of the Philippines Manila. It is the largest government hospital administered by the university. The PGH is the largest training hospital in the country. It is a mixed-use hospital, with 1,100 beds for indigent patients and 400 beds for private patients, and offers some of the lowest rates for patients and is generally known as the hospital for indigent patients.
2. Philippine Heart Center – 354 Beds
The PHC hospital is a bed tertiary care center. There are twenty-one nursing units, including 53 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) beds, 24 suites, 56 private rooms, a presidential suite, 74 semi-private rooms, 3 adult service wards, and a pediatric service ward. Its design of having 4 petals in each floor represents the 4 chambers of the human heart.
3. Ospital ng Maynila Medical Center (OMMC) – 300 Beds
It is a non-profit tertiary, general and training hospital in Malate, Manila, Philippines. It is the laboratory hospital of health science students (students of medicine, nursing and physical therapy) enrolled at the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila, one of the Philippines’ most prestigious universities. Hospital is operated and maintained through taxes paid by Manila residents.
4. National Center for Mental Health – 4200 Beds
Formerly known as National Mental Hospital, was established on 17 December 1928. It was founded in order to accommodate the increasing number of mental patients and other patients with related nervous system conditions. It is a psychiatric hospital occupying 47 hectares of land in the city of Mandaluyong.
5. The Philippine Orthopedic Center – 700 Beds
It is a tertiary special hospital under the Department of Health of the Philippines. The hospital is located at Banawe Avenue corner Maria Clara Street, Santa Mesa Heights, Quezon City. The Philippine Orthopedic Center caters mainly to a patient clientele with Orthopedic, Musculoskeletal problems and Neuromuscular conditions. The Center is also the major referral center for Spinal injuries in the country.
6. The East Avenue Medical Center (EAMC) – 600 Beds
It is a government-owned tertiary general hospital located in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines. Medical services at EAMC include anesthesia, dermatology, E.R. trauma, ENT, OB/GYN, ophthalmology, orthopedics, pediatrics, surgery and urology.
Major Private Hospitals in Philippines
- Adventist Medical Center Manila – 150 Beds
This is an acute care, tertiary & private hospital that is located within Pasay in Metro Manila, Philippines. It was established in July 1929 by a missionary doctor – Horace Hall. It is one of the two constituents, the other being an educational institution, that formed the Adventist Medical Center Manila. The hospital is part of a chain of more than 500 health care institutions worldwide operated by the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
2. Asian Hospital and Medical Center – 296 Beds
Established on March 15, 2002, this is the first private tertiary hospital built in the southern part of Metro Manila. It currently stands on a land area within the vicinity of Filinvest, measuring 17,258 square metres (185,760 sq ft) that both includes the main hospital building and the hospital’s medical offices. It has also been accredited by The Joint Commission in 2013.
3. Capitol Medical Center – 300 Beds
Established in 1970, this hospital is located in Quezon City. The first kidney transplant was done in the hospital on November 1970. The hospital also had national firsts such as the first private hospital to host a center for Spinal Disorder which was established 1977, the first Digital Infrared Thermograph Imaging system acquired in 1983.
4. Makati Medical Center – 600 Beds.
Formerly known as Makati General Hospital, it is a tertiary hospital in Makati. The hospital was founded on May 31, 1969. It is one of the hospitals owned and operated by Medical Doctors Inc., a subsidiary of Metro Pacific Investments Corporation. It has also been accredited by The Joint Commission (JCI).
5. Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital (OLLH) – 230 Beds
It is a private non-profit tertiary hospital located in Santa Mesa, Manila. It is a part of the East Manila Hospital Managers Corporation, a subsidiary of Metro Pacific Investments Corporation. Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital was founded in 1958 by the Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit.
6.St. Luke’s Medical Center (SLMC) – 650 Beds
This is a private health care institution based in Quezon City which operates two hospitals of the same name in Quezon City and Taguig. It was founded by the Protestant Episcopal Americans in 1903 as the second American and Protestant founded hospital in the Philippines. Both hospitals are also accredited by JCI for the Clinical Care Program Certification (CCPC) for the Primary Stroke Program.
Major Diagnostic Centers in Philippines
- Physicians Diagnostic Center, Manila.
- Accuserv Diagnostic Center, Quezon City.
- Hi-Precision Diagnostics, Las Piñas.
- iScan Diagnostic Center, Quezon City.
- First Philippine Imaging & Diagnostic Institute, Inc, Quezon City.
- GP Genesis Dialysis Clinic and Diagnostic Center, Quezon City
Conclusion
In Philippines, majority of hospitals are private owned & most of them provides costly treatment. The distribution of healthcare system is also diverse & most of the private hospitals are located on high economic zone areas resulting in devoid of services to other parts of the country. This scenario is favoring new hospitals to come & provide affordable treatment with improving the healthcare system of the country.
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