Objectives: The study aimed to determine the perception of program administrators and students on the implementation of return service agreement (RSA) in the Philippines. It examined the different components of, and opportunities, and challenges in the implementation of RSA of selected institutions. Methods: Key informant interviews using a topic guide were conducted with ten program administrators and student representatives from selected institutions implementing a return service policy. Interviews were transcribed and responses in Filipino were translated to English. Open coding and focused coding were performed to identify categories and themes from the interview transcripts. Results: Addressing human resource for health (HRH) needs of the country is a common rationale behind RSA implementation among the institutions sampled for the study. A notable difference in implementation arrangements is the manner of rendering service. Majority of RSA programs require promisors to be employed in any part of the Philippines in need of health workers, while other RSA programs recruit students from rural areas in order to deploy them later on in their hometowns. There is also an apparent lack of institutionalized mechanisms for job placement for students to fulfill their return service obligations. One challenge in most institutions is the need for a formal monitoring and evaluation scheme for the policy. Conclusion Integration of the voice of stakeholders is critical in the conceptualization, development, and implementation of RSA policies. This will ensure that issues attendant to operationalization are mitigated if not outrightly avoided.

BACKGROUND: The Philippines has, mandatory service policies to address the insufficiency and maldistribution of human resources particularly for health services. Despite being perceived as an appropriate intervention to bridge the aforementioned HRH gaps, the past and present implementations of such programs in the country have never been formally studied.

OBJECTIVE: This paper aimed to present the history of mandatory service programs in the Philippines, look at their natures, and see how their different implementations relate to each other.

METHODOLOGY: Using a qualitative document analysis method, administrative issuances and reports relevant to past and current implementations of mandatory service policies in the Philippines were obtained and reviewed.

RESULTS: Mandatory service programs have been implemented in the country by institutions from both the private and public sectors as early as 1968. The focus of such has been mostly for government positions and specialized professions including physicians and scientists. While extensive efforts have been made through the years, the policies demonstrated fragmentation and recurring gaps in implementation. Such gaps include the lack of enabling policy mechanisms, formal monitoring and evaluation, and program institutionalization.

CONCLUSION: The historical narrative of return service programs in the country is a potential source for the development of an overarching mandatory service policy framework for human resources in the Philippines, one that is specific to the context and setting of the country. By articulating policy issues identified, this paper provided a stepping-off point for future mandatory service program policy planning, implementation, evaluation, and institutionalization in the Philippines.

Workforce ; Institutionalization ; Physicians

Background: Workplace bullying is defined as frequent, ongoing, and detrimental incidence of unreasonable acts/behaviors directed towards an individual. The consequences of bullying to individuals often lead to absenteeism, resignation, job dissatisfaction, and suicidal ideation making it a major public health concern. This organizational issue, when not addressed, will greatly affect the workflow in any organization. There is a paucity of literature on this problem in the Southeast Asian countries Objective: This study aimed to describe the extent of workplace bullying among employees of a public higher education institution. Methodology: The researchers used a descriptive, cross-sectional study design. Survey questionnaires in Google Form were emailed to all employees with a 35.96% participation rate. The survey instrument asked participants to indicate their awareness about any bullying behavior in their unit and to specify the typical profile of bullies and victims they know of. Responses to quantitative variables were summarized using the mean and standard deviation, while qualitative variables were reported as frequency and percentage distribution. The software used for analysis were Microsoft Excel and EpiInfo 7. Results: At least one-third (36.94%) of survey respondents indicated that they witnessed a form of bullying in the workplace with more awareness seen among faculty members and permanent employees. The most common type of bullying observed in the workplace was criticism in public. Notably, this type of bullying was similar across employee categories. The predominant reactions of victims of bullying include feeling of fear and loss of trust, and confiding to a friend or co-worker. Conclusion The phenomenon of bullying has been witnessed by the employees and reported to have adverse effects on victims. Informational campaigns coupled with anti-bullying policy and programs are necessary to promote employee well-being.
Occupational Stress ; Universities ; Occupational Stress ; Philippines