Executive Summary

In 2024, the UP Manila National Institutes of Health (UP-NIH)'s Health Promotion Program (HPP) has contributed to local and national initiatives to advance health promotion research, capacity building and active linkage of evidence to policy development and community engagement.

By initiating and managing nine studies on alcohol consumption, food safety, tobacco use, and injury prevention, HPP aims to advance health policy and systems research (HPSR). Furthermore, HPP carried out a thorough scoping review on the healthcare professional competencies and integration of community-driven health solutions using Participatory Action Research (PAR), highlighting important gaps and the potential to enhance equitable healthcare delivery.

Since there is a continuous need to build capacity to conduct PAR projects, the Department of Health's Health Promotion Bureau (DOH-HPB) supports HPP to provide training programs that empower policymakers and health professionals. The goal of the Health Promotion Policy Fellowship Program, co-developed with experts, is to give participants the expertise and skills that they need to support legislative changes that encourage national health initiatives. To help ensure that community-driven health solutions continue to be evidence-based, culturally relevant, and community-owned, the RESHAPE PAR Training Program was updated. These programs demonstrate HPP's dedication to enhancing the health sector's human resource capacities.

HPP also amplified its strategic communication and community engagement efforts to ensure that research findings translate into meaningful public discourse and policy action. In 2024, the program established the Alcohol, Substances, and Addictive Behaviors Community of Practice (ASAB CoP) to create a platform for researchers, advocates, and policymakers to discuss strategies for addressing alcohol-related harms. The "Unbottling the Truth" Webinar Series was launched as a nationwide initiative to disseminate evidence-based knowledge on alcohol consumption and its public health impact.

HPP actively participated in national and international forums, including the National Health Research Forum for Action, the Global Symposium on Health Systems Research (HSR 2024), and the Eastern Visayas Health Summit, reinforcing its position as a thought leader in health promotion.

HPP secured new grants and strategic partnerships that will expand its research and policy initiatives in the coming year. It received funding from the WHO Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research to improve HPV immunization uptake among Filipino adolescents, a British Council grant in collaboration with Glasgow Caledonian University to assess pharmaceutical pollution and antimicrobial resistance, an AHEAD HPSR grant to analyze policies on shifting from punitive to rehabilitative measures for substance use disorder, a DOH CHD4A project to develop and validate a framework for effective HPSR translation and utilization, and additional funding from DOH to implement participatory action research and policy evaluation in health promotion.

As HPP looks ahead to 2025, it will focus on establishing the Institute of Health Promotion, a dedicated center for advancing health promotion policy research, capacity-building, and knowledge translation. The program will also continue its work on Universal Health Care implementation research, expand its efforts in alcohol harm reduction, and foster a stronger network of health promotion advocates, researchers, and policymakers. Through these strategic initiatives, HPP remains steadfast in its mission to shape a healthier and more equitable future for all Filipinos.

Download Pdf