Research Details

Documentation of the Leading Diseases in the Province of Ilocos Norte (Study 1)

Erle Stanley Damaso, Lea Agbigay, Nathaniel Alibuyog

Category: Study

Status: Completed

Duration: March 3, 2014 - December 31, 2015

Additional Information

Project: Documentation and Analysis of the Climate-Related Health Impacts in the Province of Ilocos Norte (Project)

Related Studies:

Brief Description

This is the Study 1 of the project "Documentation and Analysis of the Climate-Related Health Impacts in the Province of Ilocos Norte".

Documentation and identification of the top/leading diseases in the Province of Ilocos Norte are being done. Data of the morbidity and mortality rates are gathered from the different RHU's in the locality. In consonance, weather data are collected from PAGASA stations. The sets of data are analyzed for their association/relationship using time-series analysis tools.

Locale of the Study

The entire municipalities in the Province of Ilocos Norte are the target sites. Specifically, RHU's from each town are being visited wherein the needed data (morbidity and mortality rates: annually, monthly, ages of those afflicted, gender commonly affected) vital to the study were being gathered.

Data collection

Secondary data such as the prevalent diseases, particularly the morbidity and mortality rates for the last 10 years are being gathered. Further, weather data will also be taken, again for the specified time frame that is from 2001 until 2010. These sets of data will then be analyzed for their relationship/association using or employing the time-series analysis tool, thus drawing a link between the diseases and weather condition/data. Moreover, to validate further the results of the analysis and to have a more comprehensive and detailed representation/picture, monthly morbidity and mortality rates and monthly weather data from 2011 to 2012 were being gathered along with the ages and the gender of those afflicted to determine which group is more vulnerable. The leading or the top 10 diseases for the last 10 years will be identified and be mapped out or distributed as CVD cases, respiratory cases, etc.

Major Activities include:

  1. Field work as: compilation/gathering of the annual/monthly morbidity and mortality rates from the different RHU's in the Province of Ilocos Norte
  2. Collection of the annual/monthly weather data from MMSU-PAGASA weather station from the years 2001-2010
  3. Encode/validate/assess the data gathered
  4. Produce and come up with the 10 leading diseases in Ilocos Norte and the 10 leading causes of death for the last 10 years
  5. Segregate the respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and other climate-related diseases only for the purpose of doing the analysis linking human health and weather extremes
  6. Relate/associate/draw a link between the relationship of climate change/variability and human health
  7. Have an analysis between the aforementioned sets of data using the time-series analysis as tool in drawing a link connecting climate and diseases, particularly respiratory infections and cardiovascular diseases
  8. Prepare and make a report for presentations in different fora

Expected Output

  • the leading/top diseases and ailments that had afflicted the people of Ilocos Norte for the last 10 years are identified and properly documented
  • association or the relationship between weather and diseases are analyzed
  • result of the study disseminated to the municipalities concerned for the education campaign (information dissemination) and for policy formulation
  • measures and strategies should be produced to prevent and address disease outbreaks