Health Care Delivery System in the Philippines
Health Service Delivery Profile
Philippines
2012
Compiled in collaboration between
WHO and Department of Health, Philippines
Philippines health service delivery profile
Demographics and health situation
Positioned on the western edge of the Pacific Ocean, on the south-eastern rim of Asia, the Philippines is the second-largest archipelago on the planet, with over 7,107 islands In 2010, the population of the
Philippines was 92.3 million, with a growth rate of 1.9% per year. There are 80 provinces, 138 cities and
1,496 municipalities and half the population (50.3%) live in urban areas, and of that, 44% live in slums.
Both urban and rural poverty are high but steadily decreasing. The population is highly fragmented across the islands and with 180 ethnic groups. Malays make up the majority and there are tribes of indigenous peoples in mountainous areas throughout the country. The majority of the population is
Christian and there is a Muslim minority concentrated in the south.
Table 1. Key development indicators in the Philippines
Key development indicators
Human development index
Gini coefficient
Total health expenditure
GDP per capita
Proportion of population below poverty line
Literacy rate (male/female) (%)
Life expectancy at birth
Infant mortality rate
Maternal mortality rate
Measure
0.644
44.0
3.8% GDP
USD$2,370
26.1%
84.20/88.70
68.7 years
22 per 1,000 live births
221 per 100,000 live births
Year
2011
2000-2011
2009
2011
2009
2008
2011
2011
2011
Health service delivery is based on a Western biomedical model of health initially introduced during the
Spanish colonial era and strengthened during American colonization. This Western system is superimposed on a pre-existing alternative model of health care based on a mix of folk and herbal medicines, religious beliefs, and traditional practices that has persisted throughout the country. Indicators of health status have steadily improved since the 1970s.
Philippines
2012
Compiled in collaboration between
WHO and Department of Health, Philippines
Philippines health service delivery profile
Demographics and health situation
Positioned on the western edge of the Pacific Ocean, on the south-eastern rim of Asia, the Philippines is the second-largest archipelago on the planet, with over 7,107 islands In 2010, the population of the
Philippines was 92.3 million, with a growth rate of 1.9% per year. There are 80 provinces, 138 cities and
1,496 municipalities and half the population (50.3%) live in urban areas, and of that, 44% live in slums.
Both urban and rural poverty are high but steadily decreasing. The population is highly fragmented across the islands and with 180 ethnic groups. Malays make up the majority and there are tribes of indigenous peoples in mountainous areas throughout the country. The majority of the population is
Christian and there is a Muslim minority concentrated in the south.
Table 1. Key development indicators in the Philippines
Key development indicators
Human development index
Gini coefficient
Total health expenditure
GDP per capita
Proportion of population below poverty line
Literacy rate (male/female) (%)
Life expectancy at birth
Infant mortality rate
Maternal mortality rate
Measure
0.644
44.0
3.8% GDP
USD$2,370
26.1%
84.20/88.70
68.7 years
22 per 1,000 live births
221 per 100,000 live births
Year
2011
2000-2011
2009
2011
2009
2008
2011
2011
2011
Health service delivery is based on a Western biomedical model of health initially introduced during the
Spanish colonial era and strengthened during American colonization. This Western system is superimposed on a pre-existing alternative model of health care based on a mix of folk and herbal medicines, religious beliefs, and traditional practices that has persisted throughout the country. Indicators of health status have steadily improved since the 1970s.