The Anatomy of the Philippine Health Care System

I. Introduction
In order to meet the health care needs of target populations, Health care systems are designed and
provided to a certain population.One of the State's responsibility is to have an efficient provision of
health care services, comprehensive and free without exceptions for the whole population in a
manner that can be driven publicly or privately, usually parallel or in various forms of
complementarity regardless of the provision, the production of these services should cover the ever
growing needs of the modern society'.The health care system in the Philippines has underwent
major changes in the past 20 years such as the intervention of various reforms and policies to
provide easy access to health benefits for every Filipino instituted by the government. Efficient and
affordable health services are being handled by most hospitals.However, the Hospital Facilities
when being compared with those in high-end health institutions abroad, are not that close with its
productivity. Although private hospitals in the country have improved technical facilities than the
public hospitals since then?. The onset of developing a premiere healthcare system has become a
struggle in the Philippines.There has been a large number of unsettled cases of different diseases all
over the country and as well as lack of intervention and educating the far flung communities about
health. In the study of Son H., it was observed that the health outcomes in the Philippines are
stagnant after 5 years of decentralization in the health sector. For instance, one factor that explains
provincial differences in antenatal care services as well as in seeking treatment for TB among males
is due to the shortage of BHWs. Sufficient funds, resources, capacities and policy interventions
must be tailored to each region or province. Our Country is in dire need of a systemized healthcare
system that maximizes the benefit for the poor and the rich, most especially for the poor who
needed it the most. Indeed, with all of these phenomena explained, there is a need to study the
challenges being experienced in the healthcare system of the Philippines for this will improve the
quality of health amongst all Filipinos and will elicit inefficiencies. After all, attaining quality
health is a human right. This synthesis paper aims to discuss the challenges towards the Philippine
healthcare system as well as the probable solutions to the challenges being experienced.

II. Social Determinants to Health

The complex circumstances in which individuals are born and live that impact their health is called
Social Determinants to Health. They include intangible factors such as cultural constructs, political
socioeconomic, and as well as place- based conditions including accessible healthcare and
education systems, availability of healthy food and sate environment' he World Health Organization
(WHO defines social determinants of health on conditions like age, birth, life, growth, and work. In
addition. these circumstances are shaped by the distribution of resources at global. national and
local levels including money and power. Societal stratification can be created by these social
circumstances and can be responsible for health inequities among different groups of people based
on gender, ethnicity as well social and economic class.

lII. Need towards Health System Solidity

Health System Strengthening Defined Strengthening the health system is accomplished by more
comprehensive changes to policies and regulations, organizational structures and relationships
across the health system building blocks that motivate changes in services and health outcomes.
6 Health System Building frameworks and their importance
1. Good health services are those which deliver effective, safe, quality personal and non-personal
health interventions to those that need them. when and where needed with minimum waste of
resources.
2. A well-performing health workforce has a responsive. fair and efficient service to achieve the
best health outcomes possIble. given available resources and circumstances.
3. A well-functioning health information system is one that ensures the production. analysis,
dissemination and use of reliable and timely information on health determinants. health
system performance and health status
4. A well functioning health system ensures equitable access to essential medical products,
vaccines and technologies of assured quality. safety, efficacy and cost-effectiveness, and their
scientifically sound and cost-effective use.
5. A good health financing system raises adequate funds for health. in ways that ensure people
can use needed services. and are protected from financial catastrophe impoverishment
associated with having to ay for them. It provides incentives for providers and users to be
efficient.
6. Leadership and governance involves ensuring strategic policy frameworks exist and are
combined with effective oversight, coalition-building, regulation, attention to system-design
and accountability.

IV. Conclusion
The Philippine Healthcare system is a complex system and yet evolving from time to time.
Although there might be challenges to Social Determinants to health, Health system solidity and
Health engagement in development towards issues in equity, Successive reform efforts in these
areas has been improved by the government nowadays in the health system. Even so, problems that
arise in social determinants to health such as social stratification. wherein the lower class gets most
of the diseases compared to the upper class, the government has been doing reforms and
interventions on several projects and publications such as Philippine Coalition on the Prevention
and Control of Non communicable Diseases PCPCNCD, Philippine Association for the Study of
Overweight and Obesity PASOO and Family Medicine Research Group FMRG providing
framework for diseases prevention and control. Collaborations with other colleagues and institute
in the field of medical society has further educated the public towards health conduct awareness.
Strengthening the health system relies on its six building blocks such as good health services. well-
performing health workforce, well- functioning health information system, equitable access to
essential medical products, vaccines and technologies, good health financing system. and as well
as Leadership and governance. And lastly, Equity in health. Equity in health have 2 broad
categories such as equity in health service delivery and equity in health financing services. with the
arising problems with regards to poor access to healthcare facilities and health financing, equity
can be achieved, still through the Universal healthcare law. It includes the Improved Access to
Quality Hospitals and Health Care Facilities and the financial risk protection by offering Phil health
with regards to healthcare expenditures. Hence. the problems being experienced in the Philippine
Healthcare System can be reduced and resolved through the Policies and interventions mandated by
the government to deliver Quality Healthcare service and to delineate health inequity among the
poor.