CHAPTER 2

RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter discuss about the related literature involve in the study. This also
involves the related study and synthesis extracted from the related literature used.

RELATED LITERATURE

Foreign

Current health care focuses on prevention of illness and maintenance of

health, rather than treatment of disease or disability. Nursing has kept pace with

5thgis change. In 1965, Pediatric nurse practitioner programs were developed

and led to several specialized ambulatory or primary care roles for nurses.

Practitioner programs now prepare PNPs in areas such as school health, acute

care and oncology. Although the curriculum varies, the course content includes

history taking, physical diagnosis, growth and development, health education,

pharmacology, counseling, common childhood problems, and care planning for

individuals and groups. The best approach to prevention is education and

anticipatory guidance. Prevention is involved less obvious aspects of care such

as promoting mental health. One example is not sufficient administering of

immunizations without regarding for the psychological trauma associated with

administering children. (Perspective of Pediatric Nursing, 2005)

Home areas with high germ concentration are the sinks, toilets, doorknobs

and other hard surfaces that people are frequently touch. Thoroughly cleaning

these spots is the most basic step to disease prevention. (U.S Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention, 2008).

Local

Communicable disease is most often the leading causes of illnesses in the

country today. Most often, they afflict the most vulnerable, the young and the

elderly. They have numerous economic, psychological, disabling, and disfiguring

effects to the afflicted individuals, families and communities. What is doubtly

threatening are the emergence of newly discovered diseases and the re-

emergence of old ones. In this situation, the need for information about the

diseases is very vital. (Public Health Nursing in the Philippines, 2007)

According to John Tomarro (USAID), Environmental Health is a branch of

public health health that deals with the study of people preventing illnesses by

managing the environment and changing people’s behavior to reduce exposure

to biological and non-biological agents of disease and injury. it deals with the

disease agents, people and the environment. In the Man-Disease Agent-

Environment link man, by manipulating his environment, is able to prevent

contracting disease by blocking disease agents from entering his body; thus the

disease agents are unable to attack the body.

The first strategy on changing people’s behavior is best exemplified by the

people’s use of safety practices such as use of safety water for drinking and

cooking, hand washing before cooking and eating, washing vegetables properly,
during food preparation, and storing cooked food in the right temperature. These

simply ways of doing food safety practices will prevent people from contracting

especial disease thrigh ingesting contaminating food and water. The second

strategy on preventing the production of the disease agents is shown by the

treatment of wastewater coming from domestic and industrial sources prior to

release in the environment, particularly in the rivers. The third strategy on

increasing a person’s resistance to infectious diseases is clearly demonstrated in

the various maternal and child health programs of Expanded Program on

Immunization (EPI) and Nutrition. The EPI programs purpose is to immunize

children from infectious disease of tuberculosis, poliomyelkitis, diphtheria,

prtussis, tetanus, hepatitis B and measles; and to immunize pregnant mothers

against tetanus inorder to prevent tetanus neonatorum in their newly born infants.

In addition, the Nutrition’s Program’s goal is to provide proper nutrition to children

and mothers and help them become resistant to diseases. (Public Health Nursing

in the Philippines, 2007)

Doubtless, healthy eating is one of the foundations of good health, eating

per se is not the problem, especially if you can eat anything you want; it is eating

sensibly that can prove to be a challenge. Each family has its own nutritional

needs based on aged, sex, activity level and medical conditions, which have to

be taken into account when planning meals for the family. Teaching children

about proper nutrition is important in developing their attitude toward food. If, they

start out eating healthy, they will carry it for the rest of their lives. In general,
anyone on balance diet need not use any dietary supplement. However, for those

with chronic disease needing special diets, or vitamins, or mineral

supplementation, ask a registered dietician to assist in meal planning. Taking to

heart all these nutritional will ensure that your family will maintain a healthy,

positive outlook and get the most out of life. (Health Today, 2007)

Eight of the 10 leading causes of morbidity in the Philippines are

infectious in nature. Among them are pneumonia, diarrhea, bronchitis, influenza,

tuberculosis, malaria, chicken pox and measles. However, advances in the fields

of medicine, health technology and health care delivery have reduced the

number of deaths due to these communicable diseases. A few communicable

diseases like pneumonia and tuberculosis continue to cause a significant number

of deaths across the country and persist to be among the 10 leading causes of

mortality. It has been proven that most communicable diseases can be prevented

and controlled, or even eradicated successfully by appropriate strategies and

technologies such as immunization, improved sanitation and personal hygiene,

better nutrition, early treatment and steady supply of antibiotics made available at

the community or at first level health facilities. The eradication of poliomyelitis in

the Philippines and the continuous decline in the incidence of measles, tetanus,

diphtheria and pertussis were brought about by the successful nationwide

immunization campaign undertaken over the years. Improved sanitation, better

nutrition and appropriate management with oral dehydration resulted in the

reduction of deaths from diarrheas, while early diagnosis and treatment with
appropriate antibiotics resulted in the reduction of deaths from pneumonia,

especially among children. Although the burden of communicable diseases

continues to decline in the past decades, the burden on the cost of public health

care is still heavy and the financial strain on the family of those affected is also

still considerable. The fight against communicable diseases has not yet run its

full course, and the economic and social cost will remain high in the coming

decades. However, with the availability of cost-effective health technologies and

strategies for prevention and control, it is projected that over the coming years

more children will grow into adulthood with less risk from fatal infections and less

people will die from communicable diseases. Elimination of certain

communicable diseases, such as the vaccine-preventable diseases, leprosy,

malaria, filariasis and even tuberculosis, as major public health problems is

possible by improving the quality of public health work, patient care and disease

surveillance, and providing adequate and efficient resource allocation. As the

health sector eliminates certain communicable diseases as major public health

threats, it becomes more necessary to intensify disease surveillance and health

promotion activities. Pursuing such goal has become necessary so that the

health sector may, in due course, focus its efforts and shift its limited resources

towards the prevention and control of emerging burdens of disease, most of

which are non-communicable in nature. Concerted efforts by the national and

local governments, the private sector and other stakeholders play a crucial role in

providing financial, technical and political support to national and international

initiatives to rid the world of deadly but preventable communicable diseases.

(FHSIS 2002).

In 2008–2009, WHO technical cooperation with the Government is

expected to focus on the following WHO strategic objectives. Strategic objectives

are to reduce the health, social and economic burden of communicable diseases

and to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. The Office-specific Expected

Result are policy and technical support provided to national counterparts to

maximize equitable access to all people to vaccines of assured quality, including

new immunization products and technologies, and to integrated other child

survival interventions; effective coordination and provision of support to national

counterpart to retain certification of poliomyelitis elimination leading to

simultaneous cessation of oral polio vaccination; to support the Elimination of

Lymphatic Filariasis by 2010 in the Philippines; country support in diseases

control based on epidemiological situation for STH; country support in diseases

control and elimination provided based on epidemiological situation; to further

reduce burden of leprosy in the Philippines; to utilize health information for

evidence-based health policy development and informed decision making;

programmes for the prevention and control of dengue and other neglected

diseases integrated at the regional and country levels; to achieve the minimum

capacity and function required by International Health Regulations (2005) related

to advocacy, National IHR Focal Point, national legislation and points of entry; to

achieve minimum capacity required for preparedness, detection, assessment of

and response to emerging diseases by implementing the Asia Pacific; to provide

support in strengthening national capacity for communicable disease surveillance

and response for the control and prevention of communicable diseases

especially EIDs and implementation of the IHR 2005; to establish laboratory

networking and coordination with partner institutions and agencies as support for

EID rapid response and containment; development and implementation of

integrated/coordinated policies on HIV/AIDS/STI, malaria and TB; and country

support provided to strengthen partnerships in AIDS, TB and Malaria prevention,

treatment and care preventions as well as their scaling up (2008–2009

PROGRAMME BUDGET PHILIPPINES).

RELATED STUDIES

Foreign

Hand washing which is done properly, is one of the best weapons against

germs and bacteria. Some simple steps are stated to do it right such as lathering

up well for 20-30 seconds, using plenty of soap; using lot of friction to get rid of

dead skin and dirt that harbor germs; rubbing all areas of the hand, including the

arms, in between fingers and under the nails; rinsing thoroughly and dry hands

well. If you are in the public restroom, don’t touch any part of the sink with your

clean hands; and the last is after drying, using paper towel to turn of the faucet.

(Christian Obmerga, 2008)

Local

According to Romella C. Acuitia, it doesn’t take a genius to see that many

people’s today aren’t healthy. Indeed, while modern science has shed enough

light on diseases and their prevention, it doesn’t seem enough to keep the

world’s population fit for much of their lives. Experts say that staying healthy

shouldn’t be this complicated. But it must be said that keeping to the disciplined

road of good health is hard with temptations strewn along the way. Finally,

prevention bats cure anytime. In the special report of vaccination, it proved that it

is best to save more money if we will immunize our child against dangerous but

preventable common childhood diseases.