OBJECTIVE: This study evaluates the effectiveness of the Medical Pool Placement and Utilization Program (MedPool PUP) of the Philippine Department of Health whose purpose is to augment the medical resource requirements of public hospitals. 

METHOD: Mix method was used to gather data through a questionnaire survey sent by fax, email or postal mail. Beneficiary hospitals were selected and key informant interviews done to both the executive officers and the deployed medical pool physicians to further gain insights on the results of the survey. 

RESULTS: A total of 75 public hospitals were beneficiaries of the MedPool PUP covering all hospital categories- Level 1, Level 2, Level 3 and Level 4 hospitals. Fifty-one hospitals responded to the survey. Justifications for requesting deployment include: a) need for additional physicians (43%), b) need for a medical specialist of a given clinical specialty (23%), c) need for accredited specialists to maintain a residency training accreditation (23%), d) need for substitute doctors while their regular doctors undergo training (8%) and e) need for a trainer of a specific medical specialty (2%). Almost all deployed doctors have finished a residency training program belonging to a medical specialty. Although the work descriptions covering the deployment of the MedPool doctors are focused on providing medical care to the patients, the contributions to the achievements of the hospitals s by the MedPool doctors go beyond these. They are also involved in medical training of other doctors, many are also given additional assignments in clinical administration and researches. Some also get involved in outreach services. Many exceptional contributions to the hospitals were given by the deployed doctors. In 12 out of 16 (75%) hospitals visited, the doctors deployed were able to introduce new clinical services such as heart surgery, ophthalmology, renal transplant, hepato-biliary surgery, automation of clinical laboratory procedures, among others. This is the primary basis for this study to conclude that the MedPool PUP is effective.

CONCLUSION: The effectiveness of the MedPool PUP has been shown to go beyond augmenting the medical staffs of public hospitals in providing services. The doctors it deployed have contributed significantly in improving the clinical services by introducing new specialty services and enhancing existing ones. It is recommended that MedPool PUP be continued and strengthened to fill the needs of public hospitals based on a system of priorities. 

Medical Staff ; Physicians

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVE

Periodontitis is highly prevalent worldwide, and previous investigations have reported increased prevalence and severity among elderly. Regular monitoring of dental health, which includes periodontal conditions, has been recommended by the Philippine Department of Health, as basis for the development and updating of policies and laws that will address the public health problem of periodontal disease among the ageing Filipino population. Therefore, this present study aimed to determine the prevalence and severity of periodontal disease among Filipino older adults who participated in the Focused Interventions for Frail Older Adults Research and Development Program (FITforFRAIL) study.

METHODS

This study on the periodontal status of Filipino older adults is a cross-sectional substudy of the FITforFRAIL research of the Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health, University of the Philippines Manila. Participants aged ≥ 60 years were from four identified geographical regions in the Philippines. Three hundred sixteen completed oral health assessment, which included full mouth periodontal recording, and 183 participants were eligible for inclusion in the periodontal component. Periodontal diagnoses were determined using the Centers for Disease Control-American Academy of Periodontology (CDC-AAP) case definitions for surveillance of periodontitis and the 2018 European Federation of Periodontology (EFP)/AAP classification. Descriptive statistics (frequency, percentage, and mean) were used to report the sociodemographic characteristics and periodontal diagnoses of the participants. The clinical periodontal measures used to indicate the extent and severity of periodontitis were presented as mean [standard error (SE)] or percentage (SE).

RESULTS

Using the CDC/AAP case definitions, majority (97.3%) were diagnosed with periodontitis, with 33.3% having severe periodontal destruction. On the other hand, based on the 2018 EFP/AAP classification, all participants had periodontitis and most (94.5%) presented with severe disease. Moreover, using the latter classification system, the percentage of severe periodontitis was observed to increase with age. Among the young-old, 93.1% had severe disease, while 94.1% of the middle-old and 100% of the oldest-old were found to have severe destruction.

CONCLUSION

Based on the results of the study, the prevalence of total and severe periodontitis is high among this sample of Filipino older adults. Future studies for regular monitoring of the oral health of Filipino older adults are recommended.

Human ; Middle Aged: 45-64 Yrs Old ; Aged: 65-79 Yrs Old ; Geriatrics ; Aged ; Periodontal Diseases ; Prevalence ; Philippines