Quezon City Research Articles

Effective Technology Integration: Closing the Digital Gap among High School Students

This study investigated the impact of technology integration strategies on digital inclusion among high school students, focusing on reducing disparities in access and digital literacy. Seventy-five out of 1,131 Grade 11 Senior High School students from a private school in Quezon City were surveyed to understand their demographic profiles, barriers to digital access, the effectiveness of digital literacy integration in the curriculum, the support for technology use in classroom activities, and the accessibility and inclusivity of digital resources. The research used a mixed-methods approach to assess digital access disparities and technology integration effectiveness. Quantitative data was used to analyze respondents' demographics and identify technology gaps, while qualitative insights explored contributing factors to digital disparity, ensuring comprehensive evidence and a deeper understanding of the intervention's impact and effectiveness. The findings highlight significant areas of concern, including internet connectivity, financial constraints, and access to digital devices, alongside a need for improved digital literacy, cybersecurity awareness, and teacher training. The results underscore the necessity for comprehensive support mechanisms to promote equitable and inclusive digital learning environments. To address these challenges, the study suggests implementing mechanisms such as financial support for acquiring necessary digital devices, improvements in internet infrastructure, and extensive training programs for teachers to enhance their digital literacy and teaching skills. By doing so, educational institutions can foster a more equitable and inclusive digital learning environment, ensuring that all students, regardless of their socioeconomic status, can access and benefit from technology-enhanced education. This holistic approach aims to bridge the digital divide and promote fairer educational opportunities through strategic technology integration.

Predicting Academic Performance in Mathematics through Online Learning Constructs and Content Proficiencies

This study explores the evaluation of online distance learning as a significant alternative to traditional education, specifically focusing on its application in Grade 11 mathematics education. The research, conducted in six public senior high schools in Quezon City District IV, employs a descriptive-correlational design and involves 873 Grade 11 students attending online classes. Constructs of online learning, including motivation, access and use of technology, perception, self-directed learning, and online teaching approaches, were examined to understand their impact on mathematics academic performance. The findings revealed that students strongly embraced self-directed learning in the online environment, demonstrating high motivation. Positive feedback was observed towards technology use, online teaching approaches, and the overall perception of online learning. Academic performance was generally satisfactory, with diverse achievements in content-based competencies like Functions and Their Graphs, Mathematics of Investment, and Math Logic. Significant low positive relationships were identified between mathematics academic performance and online learning constructs, as well as content-based competencies. Key predictors of mathematics academic performance included motivation, technology access and use, and online teaching approaches. However, the perception of online learning and self-directed learning did not significantly predict academic performance. These findings contribute to a multiple linear regression model explaining 24% of the variance, highlighting the need to optimize online learning for enhanced mathematics academic performance. Recommendations include students enhancing technology skills and self-directed learning, considering specialized mathematics classes, teachers intensifying instruction in crucial areas, and the Department of Education sustaining the Open High School program while simplifying essential learning competencies in General Mathematics. Future research should explore additional online learning factors for a comprehensive understanding of the subject.

Effectiveness of Pomodoro Technique on Memory Retention among Psychology Students in a University in Quezon City, Philippines

The Pomodoro Technique involves allocating 25 minutes to a task followed by a 5-minute break, aiming to enhance productivity. These short breaks, beneficial for memory, aid students in better-recalling information. According to Ritter (2007), the average person's mind tends to wander 15-20% of the time. Among various time management techniques, this experiment aims to determine the Pomodoro Technique's efficacy specifically for memory retention. Understanding memory's crucial role in academic performance, this study aims to address the technique's relevance to students' learning outcomes. The research experiment involves 75 participants from 1st year and 2nd year students at a university in Quezon City, Philippines; the participants were divided into experimental and control groups. The study aimed to assess the effectiveness of the Pomodoro Technique in enhancing memory retention. Time management is pivotal for students, yet procrastination persists as a challenge affecting various aspects of life. The results indicated that the technique did not yield a statistically significant effect on memory retention. It is essential to note that these findings may be influenced by factors such as time restrictions and other variables faced by both researchers and participants, warranting further exploration into the different aspects of the Pomodoro Technique’s application in academic settings.

Factors Affecting Teachers Retention in a Non-Graded Private Educational Institution: Input to an Enhanced Retention Strategies

This study provides an analysis of teacher retention at a non-graded private educational institution in Quezon City, utilizing data from exit survey forms to departing teachers over the last three school years, starting from AY 2020-2021 to 2022-2023. The study focuses on the perceptions of departing employees regarding various factors that could influence teacher retention, grounded in Frederick Herzberg's Hygiene and Motivation factors. These identified factors hold the potential to assist the school in retaining proficient teachers by crafting a comprehensive rewards program, enhancing overall satisfaction levels, and deterring them from seeking employment elsewhere. The research methodology involves a descriptive study employing baseline data and the results of an exit survey instrument completed by seventy-two teachers who left during the past three academic years. The findings indicate that more than half of the turnover was due to voluntary resignations (56%), while (44)% were a result of management-initiated separations. Teachers' decisions to leave were generally driven by the accumulation of a number of factors. Among those who resigned, the primary reasons cited were the pursuit of better opportunities, improved work conditions, and higher compensation. Departing teachers generally expressed satisfaction with both motivation and hygiene factors, underscoring the need to make improvements in areas related to professional growth and development, as well as compensation and benefits. The findings suggest that a teacher's decision to stay is contingent on individual motivation, and the institution may consider designing a tailored retention strategy that integrates these insights into the five components of a total rewards program.

Analyzing the Factors Affecting Case Disposition Efficiency in The Office of Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office

Analyzing the Factors Affecting Case Disposition Efficiency in The Office of Quezon City Prosecutor’s Office

Malignancy in Thyroid Nodules with Bethesda III Category on Repeat Fine Needle Aspiration Biopsy.

This study aimed to evaluate the risk of malignancy for nodules repeatedly classified as Bethesda category III on fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB). A chart review on a series of 59 patients seen with thyroid nodules who underwent both initial and repeat FNAB at the Diabetes, Thyroid and Endocrine Center of St. Luke's Medical Center, Quezon City was conducted. The Thyroid Registry was utilized to collect each patient's demographic and clinical characteristics, ultrasonographic features of thyroid nodules along with the cytopathologic and histopathologic results. The subclassification of atypia of undetermined significance/follicular lesion of undetermined significance (AUS/FLUS) were retrieved from the cytopathology reports using the institution's electronic Healthcare-Results Management System. A total of 59 adult patients with thyroid nodules were included. Nodules which were initially AUS/FLUS turned out to be malignant on repeat FNAB in 38 patients with a prevalence of 64.41% (95% CI: 50.87-76.45%). There was no significant difference with regards to clinical, ultrasonographic and cytopathologic features of malignancy between benign and malignant nodules. Findings of this study support surgical intervention as a reasonable option after a repeat Bethesda III classification on FNAB. However, the small sample size warrants confirmation in future studies with a representative sample of patients.

Assessment of hospital deceased organ donation potential at St. Luke’s Medical Center–Quezon City

Assessment of hospital deceased organ donation potential at St. Luke’s Medical Center–Quezon City

A SOR Model Study on Millennial Parents in Quezon City: E-store Image, Shopping Value, and Purchase Intention

This study investigated the factors affecting the perceived shopping value and online purchase intentions of Filipino millennial parents in Quezon City, specifically in the context of e-stores selling baby and child-specific products. Using the Stimulus-Organism-Response model, the researcher used a causal research design to explore the relationships among e-store image attributes, perceived shopping value, and online purchasing intentions. The research utilized an adapted survey questionnaire administered to the respondents through a Google Form. The 400 participants, chosen through purposive sampling, were Filipino millennial parents with prior experience shopping at baby and child-specific specialty e-stores. Findings revealed that only security images significantly affected utility value, while design, order fulfillment, customer service, and security images significantly affected hedonic value. Also, a hedonic value significantly affected online purchase intention and mediated the relationship between e-store image and purchase intention. Four variables design, order fulfillment, customer service, and security had a direct positive relationship with online purchase intent. Thus, the study concluded that specific factors of e-store image significantly affect Filipino millennial parents’ shopping values and influence their online purchasing intentions. The study’s findings contribute to an underexplored area in the literature by emphasizing the unique context of Filipino millennial parents. It provides valuable insights for e-commerce targeting this demographic. It offers recommendations on practices and further research, such as a deeper exploration of hedonic value’s influence on purchase intention and cross-platform comparisons, which were also provided.

Presence of blaCTXM-1, blaCTXM-9, and blaTEM-1 Genes in Extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli Isolates from Hospital Wastewater

BACKGROUND: Extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli (ESBL-EC) are selectively proliferated in the human gut, excreted through feces, and deposited through wastewater lines, with hospital wastewater acting as a major reservoir of antibiotic resistance genes and resistant bacteria, thus pose adverse effects to human health. This study aimed to determine the presence of blaCTXM-1, blaCTXM-9, blaTEM-1, and blaSHV-1 genes in ESBL-EC in wastewater from selected hospitals in Manila and Quezon City, the Philippines.METHODS: Influent and effluent in twelve hospital wastewater treatment plants were collected, screened for cefotaxime-resistant E. coli, and examined for the ESBL production through phenotypic characterization using conventional bacterial identification, disk diffusion method, and VITEK® 2 Compact system and genotypic identification of ESBL-EC blaCTXM-1, blaCTXM-9, blaTEM-1, blaSHV-1 genes using multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR).RESULTS: Conventional bacterial identification methods and the VITEK® 2 Compact system results showed that both influent and effluent samples were positive for ESBL-EC at 33.3% and 16.7%, respectively. Multiplex PCR results revealed that various E. coli isolates were of ESBL-EC blaCTXM-1, blaCTXM-9, and blaTEM-1 genes. Multi-drug resistance was observed among all ESBL-EC isolates with resistance being highest against ampicillin, cefuroxime, ceftazidime, ceftriaxone, cefepime, piperacillin, and aztreonam.CONCLUSION: As the study revealed the presence of ESBL-producing bacteria, efforts must be made to ensure the prudent antimicrobial use with possible emphasis on antibiotic rotation accompanied by intensified infection prevention and control in hospital settings.KEYWORDS: antimicrobial resistance, beta-lactams, blaCTXM, blaTEM, extended-spectrum beta-lactamase, E. coli, hospital wastewater

Urban nutrition situation in the slums of three cities in Asia during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Urban-poor households are disproportionately food insecure. The Status and Determinants of Food Insecurity and Undernutrition in Poor Urban Settings (SDFU)cross-sectional surveys were conducted in 2020-2021 to assess the impacts of COVID-19on food security and diet quality among urban poor women of reproductive age (WRA)and children under 5 (CU5)in Jakarta, Quezon City, and Yangon. Data, collected on food insecurity and child and maternal diet quality using Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing (CATI),were compared with prepandemic surveys. Prevalence for food insecurity and diet quality indicators were computed. Eight in 10 households in all three cities reported reduced incomes, with 6 in 10 worried about food the previous year. Over 10% of households in all cities substituted nutrient-dense (ND)foods with cheaper alternatives; yet less than 50% of children 6-59 months ate sugar-sweetened beverages or sweet and savoury snacks. Compared with baseline, women's minimum dietary diversity (MDD)in the three cities was significantly lower (up to 30% lower in Yangon and Jakarta), while the prevalence of children (6-23 months) meeting MDD was lower by 17.4%-42.5% in all cities. MDD was attained by >40% of children (24-59 months) in Yangon and Jakarta but only 12.6% in Quezon City. To improve food security and diet quality, multi-sectoral interventions are needed, including distributing ND foods and cash assistance to vulnerable households with CU5 and WRA and delivering targeted nutrition training to encourage appropriate complementary feeding practices and purchasing and consumption of ND foods.

Coping Strategies among Filipino Cancer Patients Undergoing Radiation Therapy in Two Tertiary Care Hospitals in the Philippines: An Analytical Cross-Sectional Study.

The process of coping is central in the lives and experiences of cancer patients. Foreign literature on coping strategies among cancer patients is largely qualitative in nature, in the form of thematic, grounded theory, and phenomenological analyses. Of the quantitative research that has been done, many have found varying degrees of association between certain coping strategies and improved quality of life and decreased emotional distress. However, knowledge on how coping varies and is associated with the patient's demographics, disease characteristics, among other factors remains in its infancy. This is especially true in the Philippines. A total of 210 Filipino patients more than 18 years of age, with histologically confirmed diagnosis of cancer, receiving radiation therapy at St. Luke's Medical Center-Quezon City or St. Luke's Medical Center-Bonifacio Global City from April 2022 to December 2022, were made to answer the Filipino Coping Strategies Scale (FCSS). The FCSS is a self-administered, 37-item, 4-point scale that measures the degree to which the respondent uses particular coping strategies categorized into one of nine domains: cognitive reappraisal, social support, problem-solving, religiosity, tolerance, emotional release, overactivity, relaxation and recreation, and substance use. Religiosity is the primary coping strategy in this patient population, with a composite score of 3.9214 out of 4 (SD = 0.1688). The second most utilized coping strategy is problem-solving (composite score = 3.6310; SD = 0.3162). The third most common coping strategy is cognitive reappraisal (composite score = 3.5524; SD = 0.4062). This is closely followed by relaxation and recreation (composite score = 3.5343; SD = 0.3734). The fifth most utilized coping strategy is social support (composite score = 3.3140; SD = 0.5790). Calculation of independent samples t-test revealed no statistically significant difference between the coping strategies in terms of hospital (i.e., St. Luke's Quezon City or St. Luke's Bonifacio Global City), sex, metastatic status, and intent of radiotherapy. Calculation of analysis of variance (ANOVA) likewise revealed no statistically significant difference in terms of age, marital status, religion, educational attainment, estimated monthly income, primary cancer diagnosis, days elapsed since primary cancer diagnosis, Wong-Baker Faces (WBF) pain rating, and Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status. The most commonly utilized coping strategies in our patient cohort are religiosity, problem-solving, cognitive reappraisal, relaxation and recreation, and social support, regardless of demographic and disease-related characteristics. To the proponents' knowledge, our research is the first to study the coping strategies of Filipino cancer patients in a quantitative manner. Doubtless, further research is needed to shed light on this crucial but barely yet untouched aspect of cancer care.

Work-Related Burnout on Psychological Well-Being among Public School Teachers: Resilience as Moderating Factor

<p style="text-align: justify;">Education being one of the cornerstones of the Philippines, teachers may experience pressure and burnout from carrying the workload and responsibilities of being second to parents being the steppingstone for the development of young children. This study used a moderation analysis research design to examine if resilience moderates the relationship between work-related burnout and psychological well-being. Using a non-probability purposive sampling technique, over 233 Filipino public elementary school teachers from Quezon City, Philippines, participated. Results revealed a substantial negative relationship between psychological well-being and work-related burnout, and a positive relationship exists between resilience and psychological well-being. Furthermore, linear regression analysis showed that work-related burnout negatively predicted psychological well-being. Moreover, this study found that resilience does not moderate the association between work-related burnout and psychological well-being among public elementary school teachers.</p>

Tensegriture: Integrating Tensile Integrity into Furniture to Reduce Earthquake Damage

Few furniture designs are built around the concept of withstanding earthquakes. This capstone project aims to integrate tensegrity into furniture to replicate the earthquake safety measures used on larger scales with seismic isolation and withstand earthquakes better than traditional furniture. The researchers tested the product at the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), located at Diliman, Quezon City. The researchers made use of the institute’s earthquake simulator to have the earthquake intensities scaled accurately. They made use of true experimental research design, which gave them access to the scientific method in making the designs for the furniture. The researchers conducted the experiment in four phases, denoted as the research phase, the design phase, the experiment phase, and the evaluation phase. The results showed that the calculated t-value of 35.317 is greater than the critical t-value of 2.56. This meant that tensegrity-integrated furniture is significantly more earthquake-resistant than traditional household furniture. Measures such as adding weights to the structure’s base increase further increase its stability. Tensile integrity integrated into furniture is a modern take on earthquake safety measures, similar to existing ones like seismic isolation. And with the proper setup and more improvements, its earthquake resistance factor can save lives.

Impacts of Digitization of Business Permits and Licenses in District 3 Quezon City

This study aimed to determine the Impacts of Digitization of Business Permits and Licenses in District 3 Quezon City in terms of service satisfaction on time efficiency, reliability, cost-effectiveness, and convenience in business permit and license application of the business owners as the respondents of the study. The researchers used a descriptive method of research instruments to gather vital data from 380 business owners and guided the researchers in determining the result of the study. The researchers found that the respondents were very satisfied with digitizing business permits and licenses.
 It was recommended by the researchers that in order to enhance e-governance, the Business Permit and Licensing Department must include alert/reminder messages thru Short Message Service (SMS) in informing the status and deficiency of business permit and license application documents submitted by the business owners. Furthermore, there must be a system integration of all departments involved in processing business permits and licenses to ensure complete compliance in order not to hamper the business owners’ applications.

Normal sulcation and gyration in neonatal cranial sonography from 24 weeks gestational age until term: a pictorial essay.

Cranial ultrasound remains the most practical and available imaging modality for evaluating the brain of neonates. This is a pictorial essay on preterm (≥24 weeks) and term neonates who had an unremarkable cranial ultrasound in the first week of life at St. Luke's Medical Center Quezon City and St. Luke's Medical CenterGlobal City from January 2017 to December 2021. We present two images for each landmark week of gestation in this retrospective multicentric review. The first image is in the coronal plane depicting the foramen of Monro and the third ventricle and the second image is in the sagittal plane at the level of the caudothalamic groove. The goal is to create an easy-to-use reference for the typical appearance and progression of the normal sulcation and gyration of the neonatal brain on ultrasound, depending on the weekly gestational age. Having a reference atlas matched for gestational age is a helpful tool for screening a myriad of pathologies and is expected to help clinicians and radiologists involved in the care of neonates monitor the development of the brain.

Exploring the active-empathic listening behaviors of the Quezon City local government social media at the time of the pandemic

Organizations have substantially taken to social media their attempts to address the communication gaps caused by COVID-19. This investigation sought to explore how a local government unit’s social media page practiced and manifested active-empathic listening in response to the communication challenges brought about by the global health emergency. Although this study recognizes that active-empathic listening is a dimension already integrated in local interpersonal contexts, there is still a need to contextualize listening behaviors exchanged in social media in consideration of the local government unit’s crisis communication practices. Press releases from Quezon City’s official Facebook page were selected and analyzed using content analysis anchored in Bodie’s Active-Empathic Listening Scale. The study discovered that more than half of all key phrases and sentences that exhibited listening behaviors in the press releases manifested sensing behaviors – they reflected active-empathic listening through being sensitive and receptive to public opinion, acknowledging that their constituents were being sought and heard, and verbalizing empathy. A number of messages also demonstrated the responding listening dimension, with statements denoting proactive measures done to address the citizen’s concerns. Only a few messages were found to have exhibited processing listening behaviors which are messages aimed to verbalize the cognitive processes of hearing and remembering. By successfully integrating dimensions of active-empathic listening, Quezon City – through its Facebook page – managed to not only deliver public health information but also extend empathy, social support, and responsiveness to its constituents. The study’s findings ultimately suggested how local government units can utilize social media to incorporate relational initiatives to make crisis communication more empathetic and interpersonal.

Risk factors and predictors of tumor recurrence among breast cancer patients in a tertiary government hospital in the Philippines.

7 Background: This study aims to identify the risk factors and predictors of tumor recurrence of breast cancer patients using the local data available in the Breast Care Center in East Avenue Medical Center, Quezon City, Philippines. Methods: A chart review of 529 charts was done at the Breast Care Center between 2011–2017, and 474 charts were included. Demographics and Clinicopathologic features were gathered from the chart. Cox-proportional hazard regression was used to compute hazard ratios [95% confidence interval] of the different variables to compare the recurrence rates. Results: Breast cancer subtypes are as follows: 246 (52%) patients were HR+/Her2-, 52 (11%) were HR-/Her2+, 81 (17%) were HR+/Her2+, and 95 (20%) were HR-/Her2-. The mean age at diagnosis was 50 years old. The median BMI was 25 kg/m2. Most have hypertension (HTN) (21.7%) and diabetes mellitus (DM) (7%). The most common histology was invasive carcinoma NOS (92.6%), and 42.5% had a lymphovascular invasion. Only 6.7% received neoadjuvant systemic therapy, the rest had adjuvant systemic therapy. Mostly underwent modified radical mastectomy (92.8%). The most common cytotoxic agent used were cyclophosphamide (96.14%), doxorubicin (87.13%), docetaxel (53.37%), and 5-fluorouracil (37.87%). In the her2+ subtype, only 19.54% received trastuzumab. Among breast cancer subtypes, HR-/Her2+ has the highest tumor recurrence (15.38%), and HR+/Her2-, HR+/Her2+, and HR-/Her2- had 8.54%, 7.41%, and 11.96% had tumor recurrence, respectively. The median time to recurrence was 47, 24, 39.5, and 47 months with HR+/Her2-, HR-/Her2+, HR+/Her2+, and HR-/Her2-, respectively. The most common site of recurrence were bone (39%) and local recurrence (32.37%). Contralateral breast recurrence occurred in 2 patients with HR-/Her2+. In univariate analysis, HTN (HR 0.34 [0.13, 0.85], p=0.022), DM (HR 2.55 [1.19, 5.48], p=0.016), stage IIIA (HR 3.78 [1.04, 13.73], p=0.044), IIIB (HR 9.11 [2.46, 33.68] p=0.001), IIIC (HR 12.59 [3.50, 45.22], p<0.001), positive lymph nodes (HR 1.07 [1.02, 1.12] p=0.002), and patients who received doxorubicin (HR 0.44[0.23, 0.86], p=0.015) were statistically significant for tumor recurrence. In multivariate analysis, HTN (HR 0.32 [0.11, 0.94], p=0.038) and doxorubicin (HR 0.30 [0.13, 0.70], p=0.005) have the strongest effect for decreasing recurrence rate and DM (HR 7.45 [2.85, 19.46] p<0.001) and locally advanced stage (IIIB) (HR 10.97 [2.51, 48.06], p=0.001) were associated with greater risk of recurrence. Conclusions: In this study, we determined the risk factors and predictors of breast cancer tumor recurrence in a tertiary government hospital in a third-world country like the Philippines. Certain co-morbidities (HTN and DM), locally advanced stage at diagnosis, and systemic treatment received (doxorubicin) significantly affected tumor recurrences with breast cancer in our setting.

Clinical outcomes of soft tissue sarcoma in the Philippines: A single-center experience.

160 Background: Soft-tissue sarcomas (STS) are a heterogeneous group of uncommon tumors that account for less than 1 percent of all adult malignant tumors. Data are scarce in the Asia-Pacific region, especially in the Philippines. This study aims to evaluate the epidemiology and clinical outcomes of STS from a private tertiary hospital in the Philippines. Methods: All adult patients treated at St. Luke’s Medical Center (SLMC), Quezon City and Global City, between January 2010 and December 2020 were reviewed. Continuous variables are described in median and categorical variables are described in count and percentage. Kaplan-Meier curves for OS and RFS were compared by the Log-Rank test. Results: One hundred eighty-seven patients diagnosed with STS were eligible for the study. The median age at diagnosis was 53 years old; the majority were male (54.55%). The most common histologic subtypes were liposarcoma (19.79%), pleomorphic sarcoma, undiff (16.58%), and leiomyosarcoma (11.76%). Most were diagnosed with localized disease (90.9%), with the lower extremities (44.39%) as the most common primary site. The median tumor size was 10.3 cm, primarily high grade (46.52%). Nodal involvement on diagnosis was 4.28%. Twelve patients (6.42%) presented with de novo mets; lung (45%) was the most common site. The majority had surgery (81.82%) on the primary tumor, with 56.86% achieving R0. Eighty patients (42.78%) had radiotherapy; the majority were given post-operatively (N=60). Sixty-three patients (33.68%) received systemic therapy. Out of 170 patients with localized disease, 70 (40%) had disease recurrence, mostly local recurrence (57.14%). The 3-year OS and RFS were 58.67% and 55.20%, respectively, for the entire cohort; for localized disease was 95.06%. There was a statistical difference in OS between distant vs local recurrence (23.28% vs 49.11%) (p<0.001), nodal involvement (p=0.041), surgery (p<0.001), and radiotherapy (p=0.001). Conclusions: Most STS seen in SLMC is localized disease but with lower rates of resection than in other countries in the Asia-Pacific region. The histological subtype and primary anatomical site are similar to other data. The low survival rate may be attributed to the site of recurrence, nodal involvement, and treatment pattern received.

Understanding Stakeholders’ Perspective on An Innovative Business Model for Pediatric Immunization Records: A Single Case Study

The purpose of this qualitative case study is to explore the potential value of an innovative business model on pediatric immunization record management which will serve as the basis for the development of a digital platform for the use of pediatric consultants and medical secretaries at a private secondary hospital in Quezon City. The study utilized a qualitative case study involving the pediatric consultants and medical secretaries of a private secondary hospital in Quezon City. Qualitative data for this study were gathered through in-depth, semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, documents, journaling, and observations. Results have shown that pediatric consultants and medical secretaries follow only one way of arranging patients' records which is through alphabetical order using the surname. Many clinics and hospitals still rely on paper-based medical records to document patients' information. All participants shared the same difficulties and sentiments when it comes to the problems they have in the current way they deal with immunization records. Based from the statements of the participants, results revealed that pediatric consultants and medical secretaries support and are in favor of the use of a web-based record management system. However, some participants stated their apprehensions for the security of patient information. Further study that focuses on formal training is recommended to increase the confidence of the healthcare workers in utilizing digital record management systems and intense exploration of the potential challenges in adapting a digitized records management system must be conducted.

Employment Status of Students from a Local University during the Covid-19 Pandemic

Working while taking classes is one of the most frequently cited reasons cited by university dropouts. As the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of teleworking by employers, online employment opportunities have increased. Given that the scenario allows students to work while studying online, determining the number and extent of employed students is an important area of research. This study aims to document the employment profiles of undergraduate students of Quezon City University. A total of 7,050 responses were received during the survey period. According to the findings of the study, approximately 15% of the students are employed full- or part-time. At the time of the survey, 64% of the working students who responded in the survey are working on-site, while 24% are working from home. Meanwhile, 50% of these working students are extremely satisfied with their current employment situation, while 44% are somewhat satisfied. In general, the majority of respondents are pleased with their current employment situation. Despite the fact that only two out of ten respondents are working students, the school administration must still pay close attention to this issue. The development of policies that will assist these students is required. For future studies, it is also important to examine employment patterns among undergraduates and how these patterns vary over time and based on student characteristics.