Hinlo Thesis Advisory Weekly Meeting with Wella Linao

Meeting Overview

The meeting was between Jen Hinlo (advisor) and Wella Linao (student) discussing Wella's thesis on Universal Health Care (UHC) and health outcomes in the Philippines. The discussion focused on restructuring the background section, organizing research content, and planning the methodology approach.

Thesis Structure Guidance

Background Section Organization

Jen recommended organizing the background section in a hierarchical structure:

Start with global situation of Universal Health Care
Narrow to Asia/ASEAN regional context
Focus primarily on the Philippines situation (should have most extensive coverage)
Connect background information to the specific health outcomes being studied

Philippines UHC Content Recommendations

For the Philippines-specific section, Jen advised including:

Time of UHC Act enactment and implementation timeline
Specific health programs under UHC
Present health indicators and outcomes targeted by UHC
Current situation of these indicators (increasing, decreasing, or constant)
Discussion of challenges despite budget allocation and program implementation

Health Indicators Focus

The thesis will examine several specific health indicators affected by UHC implementation:

Tuberculosis incidence and treatment programs
Malaria cases and prevention
Mental health services and suicide rates
Maternal and reproductive health outcomes

Program Evaluation Approach

Jen emphasized the need to evaluate whether government health programs are successful despite funding challenges:

Assess if programs translate to improved health outcomes
Examine budget allocation trends for health programs
Consider barriers like corruption that might affect program effectiveness

Research Methodology

The study will use Interrupted Time Series Analysis (ITSA) to evaluate UHC impact:

Present trend analysis for each health indicator
Compare before and after UHC implementation
Justify ITSA methodology by reviewing previous studies using this approach
Highlight advantages of ITSA for evaluating policy impacts

Literature Review Guidance

For Chapter 2 (Literature Review), Jen advised:

Focus on studies related to UHC and health outcomes
Organize by global studies, Asian regional studies, and Philippines-specific research
Review methods used in previous studies to justify ITSA approach
Identify research gaps to establish the study's contribution

Results Presentation Plan

For Chapter 4 (Results), the structure should include:

Trend analysis for each health indicator (tuberculosis, malaria, mental health, etc.)
ITSA results showing UHC impact on each indicator
Organized with clear subtitles for each health outcome area

Next Steps

Wella to revise background section to emphasize Philippines context rather than global situation
Restructure background flow: global → Asia/ASEAN → Philippines
Add more explanation about health programs under UHC in Philippines
Include current health indicators and outcomes in background section
Connect research gap to justification for using ITSA methodology
Complete Chapter 2 focusing on related studies about UHC and health outcomes
Structure Chapter 4 with trend assessment for each health indicator
Prepare for upcoming exam on Friday