1.

Concept of Education
● Education as One of the Basic Rights of the Citizens

EDUCATION
● “Teaching or instructions….in particular to the transmission of knowledge and to
intellectual development,” and in a wider sense as “ the whole process whereby,
in any society, adults endeavor their beliefs, culture and other values to the
young.” - ​The European Court of Human Rights
● “ Feeding a child at school is such a simple thing, but it works miracles.” ​-Drew
Barrymore
● “The most important thing that parents can teach their children is how to get along
without them.” ​- Judy Collins
● “Education is imperative for enhancing agricultural productivity, increasing
transparency in governance, ensuring inclusive development, sustained growth
and promoting active public participation towards an efficient democracy.”
-Kailash Satyarthi

RIGHT TO EDUCATION AND EMPOWERMENT

● SOVIET CONSTITUTION (1963) - ​The first constitution to recognize the right
to education with a corresponding obligation of the state to provide such
education. The constitution guaranteed free and compulsory education at all
levels.
● UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS ARTICLE 26(1) -
Everyone has a right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the
elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory.
Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher
education shall be equally accessible to all, on the basis of merits.
● ARTICLE 26(2) - ​Education shall be directed to the full development of the
human personality and to strengthening of respect for human rights and
fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship
among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the
United Nations for maintenance of peace.
● ARTICLE 26(3)​ - Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that
shall be given to their children.
● ARTICLE 21​ A RIGHT TO EDUCATION The State shall provide free and
compulsory education to all children between the ages of six to fourteen years in
such a manner as the State may, by law, determine.
● CONSTITUTION OF INDIA​ Has devoted itself considerably to the importance
of education.
● ARTICLE 24​ Prohibition of employment of children in factories and risky
occupations- No child below the age of 14 years shall be employed to work in any
factory or mine or engage in any other hazardous employment.
● RELEVANCE OF ARTICLE 24​ The underlying expectation is that the
prohibition would facilitate a child to attend a school up to the age of 14.
● ARTICLE 28​ Freedom to attend religious instruction or religious worship in
certain educational institutions- No religious instruction shall be provided in any
educational institution wholly maintained out of State funds.
● ARTICLE 29​ Protection of interest of minorities - No citizen shall be denied
admission into any educational institution maintained by the State or receiving aid
out of State funds on grounds only of religion , race , caste, language or any of
them.
● ​ARTICLE 30​ Right of minorities to establish and administer educational
institutions of their choice.
● DIRECTIVE PRINCIPLES OF STATE POLICY​ These are contained in Part
IV of the Constitution of India. These are not justiciable but encourage
government to pursue social and economic measures, including, e.g. - to secure
that there is equal pay for equal work for both men and women.
● ​ARTICLE 39(F)​ The State shall, in particular, direct its policy towards securing
that children are given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner
and in conditions of freedom and dignity and that childhood and youth are
protected against moral and material abandonment.
● ​ARTICLE 45​ PROVISION FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD CARE AND
EDUCATION TO CHILDREN BELOW THE AGE OF SIX YEARS The State
shall endeavor to provide early childhood care and education for all children until
they complete the age of six years.
● Article 350​ A Facilities for instructions in mother tongue at primary stage of
education for children belonging to linguistic minority groups.
● ARTICLE 51​ A Fundamental Duties (k) Who is a parent or guardian to provide
opportunities for education to his child, or as the case may be, ward between the
age of six and fourteen years.
● THE RIGHT OF CHILDREN TO FREE AND COMPULSORY
EDUCATION ACT, 2009​ To provide for free and compulsory education to all
children of the age of 6 to 14 years.
● COMPULSORY EDUCATION​ Means obligation of the appropriate
government to provide free elementary education and ensure compulsory
admission, attendance and completion of elementary education to every child in
six to fourteen age group.
DEFINITIONS
1. CHILD, Section 2(c) - Means a male or a female child of the age of 6 to 14 years.
2. RIGHTS OF CHILD Section 3 - Every child of the age of six to fourteen years shall
have the right to free and compulsory education in a neighbourhood school till the
completion of his or her elementary education.
3. FREE EDUCATION - Removal of any financial barrier by the state that prevents a child
from completing eight years of schooling.
4. FREE EDUCATION Section 3 (2) - No child shall be liable to pay any kind of fee or
charges or expenses which may prevent him or her from pursuing and completing his/her
elementary education.
5. INCLUSIVE RIGHT (Section 1 read with section 3) - This right is also available to the
children belonging to disadvantaged groups or weaker sections of the society, or those
with physical, mental or other disabilities.
6. THOSE LEFT OUT (Section 4) - Where a child above six years of age has not been
admitted in any school or, though admitted, could not complete his or her elementary
education, then he or she shall be admitted in a class appropriate to his or her age.
Elementary education beyond 14 years will be continued for a child so admitted.
7. DUTY OF PARENTS (Sec 10) - It shall be the duty of every parent or guardian to admit,
or cause to be admitted, his or her child or ward, as the case may be, to an elementary
education in the neighborhood school.
8. PROOF OF AGE (Sec 14) - The age of a child shall be determined based on his/her birth
certificate. There shall be no denial of admission for lack of age proof.
9. NO DENIAL OF ADMISSION (Sec 15) - At any stage (commencement of academic
years, or within prescribed extended period or even subsequently) a child admitted later
shall complete his studies.
10. PROHIBITION OF HOLDING BACK AND EXPULSION (Sec 16) - No child
admitted in a school shall be held back in any class or expelled from school till the
completion of his/her elementary education.
11. PROHIBITION OF PHYSICAL PUNISHMENT AND MENTAL HARASSMENT TO
CHILD (Sec 17) - No child shall be subjected to physical punishment or mental
harassment. Those who contravene shall be liable to disciplinary action under the
applicable service rules.
12. Role of Punishment in Child Education (Child Punishment) - It is important to tell
children how to distinguish right from wrong at their early ages and punishment is a
fairly acceptable way to make the distinction between right and wrong. For example, if he
litters up in the classroom, he should be asked to tidy up the classroom by himself, as a
punishment.
a. CORPORAL PUNISHMENT - Corporal Punishment of school students for
misbehavior has been banned in many countries. It often involves striking the
 student on the buttock or the palm of the hand with an implement kept for the
purpose, or with open hand.
b. POSITION IN U.S PHYSICAL PUNISHMENT PRIVILEGE OF
ONE-IN-CHARGE - One who is in charge or education of a group of children is
privileged to apply such force or impose such confinement upon on or more of
them as is reasonably necessary to secure observance of the discipline necessary
for the education and training of the children as a group.
c. EFFECT OF EXCESSIVE FORCE - If the actor applies a force or imposes a
confinement upon a child, which is in excess of that which is privileged, a) The
actor is liable for so much of the force or confinement as is excessive; b) The
child has the privilege to defend himself against the actor’s use or attempted use
of the excessive force or confinement.
d. STUDENT BENEFIT THEORY - A principle that allows state funds in USA to
be provided to private-school pupils if the allotment can be justified as beneficiary
to the child.

LANDMARK JUDGEMENTS
1. SOCIETY FOR UNAIDED PRIVATE SCHOOLS OF RAJASTHAN V. UOI, (2012) 6
SCC 1.
● The goal of universal, primary or elementary education under the RTE Act will
mean right of every child of the age of 6 to 14 years to free and compulsory
education in a neighborhood school till the completion of elementary education
(i.e. class I to VIII).
● The State while granting recognition to private unaided non-minority schools may
specify permissible percentage of seats to be earmarked for children who may not
be in position to pay their fee or charges.
● • RTE Act is applicable only to day scholars, if any, in boarding schools and
orphanages and not to the boarders.
● The State can remove all barriers which make right to education unaffordable.
Fundamental rights have to be interpreted in the light of Directive Principles of
State Policy.
● No reservation can be made in unaided minority schools.
● Unaided institutions can voluntarily take up these responsibilities on principles of
voluntariness, cooperation and concession. Along with positive obligations on
State to provide children with said rights, there is also a negative obligation on
non-state actors not to interfere with realization of the said rights by not resorting
to profiteering, excessive fee capitation fee, mal-administration or cross subsidy
etc.
 ● RTE Act, 2009 is child centric which is distinguished from institution–centric. Its
object is to (a) strengthen social fabric of democracy by providing equal education
opportunities to all children, (b) to remove all barriers impeding right of access to
primary education and (c) to set up an intrinsic regime of providing such a right.
The State has a duty of micro-level financial planning to provide quality
education by resorting to provisions of RTE Act.
● Word ‘free’ in long title stands for removal of any financial barrier by the State.
The word ‘compulsory’ in that title stands for compulsion on State and the
parental duty to send children to school.
2. INTERNATIONAL COVENANT ON ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL
RIGHTS.
● ARTICLE 13 The State parties to the present Covenant recognize that , with a
view to achieving the full realization of this right: a) Primary education shall be
compulsory and available free to all.
● ARTICLE 14 Every state party to the present Covenant which at the time of
becoming a party has not been able to secure in its metropolitan territory, or other
territories under its jurisdiction compulsory primary education free of charge
undertakes within two years, to work and adopt a detailed plan of action for
progressive implementation within a reasonable number of years, to be fixed in
the plan of the principle of compulsory education free of charge for all.
3. CONVENTION ON THE ELIMINATION OF ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION
AGAINST WOMEN
● ARTICLE 10 States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to eliminate
discrimination against women in order to ensure to them equal rights with men in
the field of education and in particular to ensure on basis of equality of men and
women d) The same opportunities to benefit from scholarship and other study
grants.
● RIGHT TO EDUCATION IN BRAZIL A. Brazil spends about 6.1 percent of its
GDP on Education. B. Primary School participation is 94.5 % for males and
95.1% for females. C. Quality of education remains low. 18% of the Brazilian
population is functionally illiterate. D. Right to primary education is a
fundamental right.
● ACCESS TO COMPULSORY AND FREE EDUCATION IS AN
ENFORCEABLE PUBLIC RIGHT The Union, the States and the Municipalities
are all responsible for primary education. They are obligated to spend 25% of tax
revenues on education and, of which, 60% has to be spent on primary education.
● NORWAY
1. Norway spends 6.87% of its GDP on education. School enrollment is
universal in Norway (99.44% in 2012).
 2. Education is compulsory for children between the ages of 6-16 years.
3. Education Act No.61 of 1998 provides for free and compulsory education
at the primary level (primary and lower secondary) for ten years and the
statutory right to upper secondary education for three years.
● PRIMARY GOALS IN EDUCATION
1. Moral outlook
2. Creative Abilities
3. Work
4. General Education
5. Cooperation
6. Natural Environment
● ARTICLE 25.A – RIGHT TO EDUCATION The State shall provide free and
compulsory education to all children of the age of five to sixteen years in such a
manner as may be determined by law.

● Forms of Education
A. Formal - ​is based in the classroom and provided by trained teaching and non-teaching
personnel. It has an approved curriculum, which includes the course outline, the
prescribed number of sessions to finish the lessons and authentic assessments and
outputs.
B. Non-formal ​- is an organized educational activity that takes place outside a formal setup.
It is usually, flexible, learner-centered, contextualized, and even adults can take part in a
non-formal education program.

● Leading the State to Progress

To understand the connection between education and social progress, we distinguish among four
distinct aims of education: ​economic,​ ​civic,​ ​humanistic​, and ​equity promotion​.

Each of these goals can be understood from an individual and collective perspective.

1. Education develops productive skills, and this is valuable for the individual, to advance in the
labor market and for society, to improve and maintain prosperity and compete in a globalized
economy.

2. Education develops civic skills, and this is valuable for the individual, to allow for meaningful
participation in civil society and political life, and for society, to benefit from an informed and
engaged citizenship.
3. Education develops human talents and interests, and this is valuable for the individual,
allowing for personal flourishing, and for society, since the expansion of knowledge and human
achievement are valuable for their own sake.

4. Education can be a vehicle for equity and greater social inclusion, or when absent, poorly
delivered or unfairly distributed, a vehicle for injustice and greater social exclusion.

Some of these connections are obvious. The basic values of human progress include ​well-being,​
freedom,​ ​solidarity​, ​social relations​, ​esteem​ and ​recognition​, and ​cultural goods​. The ​humanistic
purpose​ – developing human talents and interests – facilitates well-being (some might say
actually constitutes well-being), cultivates capacities essential to freedom, promotes esteem and
recognition, and contributes to cultural goods. The ​civic purpose​ – developing civic skills and
dispositions – help establish the basis of social relations, develop bonds of solidarity among
citizens, and encourage esteem and recognition. And insofar as education is a vehicle for equity
and social inclusion, it is an essential mechanism for nearly every value on the list.

Human beings today need to have a specific set of skills to survive in this competitive world as
well as progress. This set of skills can be referred to as ​Education​.

Importance Of Education
Education is important for a country to grow. Whether it is ​economically​ or ​socially,​ education
plays a vital role in the growth of these ​two important factors​.

Here are some important ways in which education helps in a country’s progress.

1. Education helps people become better citizens

Educated people are aware of the socio-economic scenario of the country and can help in
the progress of the country. Whether it is a simple thing like using water sparingly or
taking a bus to work instead of using the bike or car in order to save fuel, the educated
mass somehow or the other knows how to contribute towards the country’s well-being.
One of the reasons for their awareness is because they have been taught these values in
school, colleges and workplaces.

People who aren’t educated don’t have clues about these facts as they haven’t been in a
learning environment.
 2. Education shows the importance of voting
Education helps to decide whom to vote in order to make a difference in the economy of
a country positively. Being educated helps in deciding why to vote for a particular party
over the other. Uneducated people are unaware of the importance of choosing the right
people to vote for. Hence, being educated shows us the importance of voting.

3. Education helps in getting jobs

It goes without saying that unless a person is educated, he or she cannot get a worthwhile
job. Unemployment is a serious obstacle in the development and progress in a country’s
economic status, thus posing a hindrance to the growth of the nation. The economic status
of so many countries in the world is pathetic, due to the lack of educated people who do
not possess adequate skills and thus are unemployed.

II. Concept of Religion

From Union of Church and Government to Separation of State and Church

The role of a Priest during colonization
The infusion of Occidental ideas brought about by the Spaniards in their many
years of administration of the Islands, and especially by the Church, made it possible for
the Americans coming in to begin their work with a people already advanced in
conformity with the ideals of western civilization to a point far beyond that attained by
any other Oriental people, and made the work of the Americans correspondingly easier.
Any American student of history who fails to give due justice to the great service
performed by Spain and by the Church shows himself to be lacking in a sense of true
values.
Little by little the monastic orders had secured possession of large tracts of some of the
best cultivated lands, which were leased out to tenants on terms profitable to the orders.
As time went on an antagonism to these orders gradually had arisen, traceable to many
sources. One of the most important was the possession of these large tracts of land and
the hold it gave the friars over their numerous tenants.
Gradually, also, the friars had come to exercise almost all the functions of civil
government within the limits of their parishes.​ ​Some idea of how far they had gathered
powers entirely apart from the normal duties of pastors as understood by the people of the
United States, can be had from the following lists of their duties:
In general, it may be said that the reverend parochial priest assists in all the meetings of
the municipal tribunal [council], whether that body meets alone or in conjunction with the
twelve delegates of the principalia. He has the right to intervene in all business conducted
by the tribunal, gives his opinion in regard to the approval of bills presented by the
captain, and advises the town officials whenever occasion offers.
In detail the duties of the parochial priest are as follows: (1) He assists in choosing the
members of the municipal tribunal; (2) he revises the act and makes sure that the officials
are properly elected; (3) he signs the certificate of election; (4) he assists and supervises
the drawing of lots whenever that is necessary to determine who shall go out of office
first; (5) he signs a statement certifying to the result of the drawing of lots; (6) he assists
the municipal tribunal and the twelve delegates in choosing or nominating the cabeza de
barangay; (7) he becomes a member of the provincial council when there is only one
foreign vicar in the province; (8) he assists the tribunal in deciding upon the questions
relating to taxes and imposts; (9) he signs the estimates of permanent receipts and
expenditures; (10) he assists the tribunal in deciding upon the construction of public
works; (11) he assists in making any modification in the estimates of permanent receipts
or expenditures; (12) he assists in deciding upon any extraordinary expenditures of the
tribunal; (13) he gives his opinion on the accounts presented to him by the tribunal before
the same are sent to the provincial council; and (14) he has the power to decide at what
hour the meetings of the tribunal in which he is to take part shall be held.
Since the duties of the parochial priest are only those of advising and inspecting, in any
session in which he takes part, he is not counted in the number of those who must be
present to make the deliberations valid.
In the first report of the so-called Taft Commission, the position of the priest is
further set forth in the following words:
The friar as a parish priest was usually the only man of intelligence and education who
knew both the native dialect and the Spanish language well in his parish. His position as
the spiritual guide of the people necessarily led to his acting as intermediary between
them and the rest of the world in secular matters. In only a few of the parishes was there
any other Spanish representative of the Government of Spain than the friar priest. At first
actually, and afterwards by law, he came to discharge many civil functions and to
supervise, correct, or veto everything which was done or sought to be done in the pueblo
which was his parish.
Some of the civil functions of the parish priest are listed here to show how far he
used his `advisory' position in a way that made him absolute executive head.
He was inspector of primary schools; president of the health board and the board of
charities; president of the board of urban taxation; inspector of taxation; honorary
president of the board of public works; he certified the correctness of the cedula or poll
tax; he was the president of the board of statistics; he was president of the census taking
of the town; he was censor of the municipal budgets; president of the prison board and
inspector of the food provided for the prisoners; he was a member of the board for
partitioning crown lands. In some cases, in the capitals of provinces, he acted as auditor.
He was also counselor for the municipal council. He was supervisor of the selection of
the police force; examiner of the scholars attending the first and second grades in the
public schools; censor of plays, comedies, and dramas in the language of the country.​ ​In
some cases it appears that the friars in fact controlled the Guardia Civil, or insular police.

The 1987 Philippine Constitution

Two major historical events shaped the principle of the separation of church and
state: the bourgeois democratic revolutions, which began in Europe, and the founding and
shaping of the American nation.

The bourgeois democratic revolutions were an assertion of the sovereignty and

individual rights of the people. It stood against the claims of divine right of the
monarchies as well as feudal bondage. Sovereignty resides in the people meant that the
government derives its mandate from the people. And people have individual rights;
among the important ones are freedom of belief and the freedom to practice this belief
through association and expression. There are, of course, other fundamental rights such
as right to life, due process, freedom from torture, universal suffrage, among others.

The principle of the separation of church and the state is based on these two
fundamental premises.

First, the government derives its mandate from the people and not from the
church, which, during feudal times, bestowed upon the king the divine right to rule the
people (This was why it was the bishop who used to crown the king or queen.). Based on
this principle of divine right, the state and the church propagated the belief that going
against the king meant going against God, the consequence of which was eternal
damnation.

Second, the people have the fundamental right to practice one’s beliefs. This was
a reaction to the official religion being imposed upon the people by the monarchy.

The provision of the 1987 Philippine Constitution regarding the separation of

church and state was patterned after the provision in the US Constitution. Article II,
Section 6 of the Philippine Constitution declares that: “The separation of Church and
State shall be inviolable.”

Freedom of Religion in the Philippines

Article III, Section 5 provides that: “No law shall be made respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. The free exercise and
enjoyment of religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference,
 shall forever be allowed. No religious test shall be required for the exercise of civil or
political rights.”

The ​Supreme Court of the Philippines​, ruling in 2003 and 2006 in the landmark
case of ​Estrada vs. Escritor,​ established the doctrine of benevolent
neutrality-accommodation. The 2006 ruling, penned by former ​Chief Justice​ ​Puno​,
explained benevolent-neutrality in the context of ​U.S. jurisprudence​ as follows:

Under the benevolent-neutrality theory, the principle underlying the First

Amendment is that freedom to carry out one’s duties to a Supreme Being is an
inalienable right, not one dependent on the grace of legislature. Religious freedom is seen
as a substantive right and not merely a privilege against discriminatory legislation. With
religion looked upon with benevolence and not hostility, benevolent neutrality allows
accommodation of religion under certain circumstances.

The ruling went on to cite a ​U.S. Supreme Court​ decision which had held that if
prohibiting the exercise of religion is merely the incidental effect of a generally
applicable and otherwise valid provision, the First Amendment has not been offended.
Though concurring in the decision, Justice ​O'Connor​ dissented strongly from the
rationale, arguing that a compelling state interest test should have been applied

III. Concept of Health

Filipinos Concept of Health and Illness

Health is a combination of maturated processes or development in correspondence to the ability

to function properly, to be active. Being either PAYAT or TABA are not considered as healthy,
but not necessarily ill. Health cannot be translated as a mere absence of fever, pain or even
generalized feelings of malaise. It is also loaded with notions of social interactions.

Filipinos way of addressing Illness

No matter what ailment, it is considered as mild/slight at first notice. Patient is rarely given
treatment during this stage.
The gravity of the sickness will only be taken into notice when patient starts to suffer more and
more.
If one complains of pain or great itching, this is the first stage of malaise. If symptom continues
over a considerable period of time accompanied by the intensifying of the symptom, the patient
and the family sees the sickness as serious.
If patient starts to stay in bed than continuing with his daily routine, this is considered as another
stage of severity.
Filipinos consider CRYING as the surest indicator of severity

Pre-Spanish Era
Ancient Filipinos regarded health as a harmonious relationship with the environment,
both natural and supernatural. Like most indigenous peoples, our ancestors put faith in nature not
only for physical but also for spiritual sustenance. Belief in the power of both the animate and
inanimate world was central to their way of life. It was also a way to life. Ailments were believed
to be caused by disharmony with the spiritual world, and restoring health meant appeasing the
gods through incantations, dances and ritual offerings that ranged from food, to clothing, to
blood sacrifice. At the center of these rituals was the babaylan, mediator between the physical
and spiritual worlds. Usually female, the babaylan was considered as their healer, priestess and
leader. Such was her sway that to this day, echoes of this shaman figure remain in folk traditions
that have survived centuries of foreign rule.
Malaria has been present in the Philippines for centuries. The leaves of the Anonas were
used as a topical and applied to the stomach of children suffering from indigestion.

Spanish Era
The San Lazaro Church and Hospital represents early medical healthcare in the Spanish
era. As the Spanish were not accustomed to the climate, food, and other challenges of living in
the Philippines, Spanish soldiers succumbed to a number of diseases and were treated in
hospitals specially created for their welfare.

Other Medical Institutions

Other medical facilities were built by the Spaniards during 400 years of colonization.
Aside from the military hospital of Manila, another was erected in the Presidio de Zamboanga.
The Hospital of San Jose was built in Cavite in 1591 by the Order of San Juan de Dios for the
care of sailors. Another institution was built in Cañacao in 1871 and was managed by the Sisters
of Charity. The Hospital of Basilan, built as a naval hospital, was quite unique in the Orient as it
was built entirely on the water.

Epidemics
It was in 1574 that another smallpox, also called bolotong, became the first recorded
epidemic in the history of the country. It spread to provinces as far as Cagayan, Samar, and Leyte
and killed over 30,000 Filipinos by the 1760s. In 1789, a vessel from China traveling to the
Ilocos region was believed to be the probable source of an epidemic that soon spread to Manila
and its neighboring provinces. In response to this crisis, King Carlos IV of Spain decreed the
introduction of the smallpox vaccine to the Spanish colonies, including the Philippines, though
an expedition led by Dr. Francisco de Balmis that began on April 15, 1805. While the rest of
Europe was still arguing about the merits of the vaccine, developed only a decade before by Dr.
Edward Jenner, the King was able to procure the vaccine for his subjects overseas.

Health Care under Americans

The Americans provided for better healthcare by building more hospitals and
implementing measures to prevent the spread of diseases. During this time, formal medical
education and more medical benefits were given d to Filipinos.
When the US mandated a mass smallpox vaccination program in the Philippines in 1917, about
25 million shots were given to Filipinos. An estimated 163,000 Filipinos came down with the
disease after the vaccination, and 75,339 of them died from it.
Through a bloody revolution, the turn of the century brought an end to almost 400 years of
Spanish rule. General Emilio Aguinaldo who had led the Filipinos in reclaiming their freedom,
declared independence from Spain on June 12, 1898 and established a revolutionary government,
one that included a Bureau of Public Health

The Filipinization of Health Services

During the battle for liberation of Manila, the Philippine General Hospital could not
handle the casualties alone. Thus, the US Army converted an old school building into a make
shift civilian hospital, the North General Hospital. Following the name of its first director, it was
later named Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center. The Americans built the University
of the Philippines College of Medicine and Surgery in 1905 using the blueprint of the best
medical school at that time, the Johns Hopkins University.
The Present time
Some illnesses are more than just physical. More health professionals are starting to
recognize the important role of social relationships in determining health and disease. Syndrome,
slowly becoming a popular term in medical literature but still reflects the need to delimit the
qualifiers used by the western-oriented medical system. Some illnesses/ailments cannot and
should not be immediately appropriated into biomedical or psychiatric pathology.
Some physicians quickly label some problems as medical, when some are actually more
philosophical in nature.
Ex. A person pondering on the meaning of his/her life = depressive order = need for
anti-depressants. Few health professionals have the ability to see that some “problems” may
actually be part of a healthy process of an individual’s mental, emotional, and social
development. Therefore, immediately attaching medical labels and treatment on such conditions
may be detrimental as it medicalizes life’s processes

HEALTH AS A BASIC HUMAN RIGHT

Everyone has the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, which
includes access to all medical services, sanitation, adequate food, decent housing, healthy
working conditions, and a clean environment.

● The human right to health guarantees a system of health protection for all.
● Everyone has the right to the health care they need, and to living conditions that enable us
to be healthy, such as adequate food, housing, and a healthy environment.
● Health care must be provided as a public good for all, financed publicly and equitably.

The human right to health care means that hospitals, clinics, medicines, and doctors’ services
must be accessible, available, acceptable, and of good quality for everyone, on an equitable
basis, where and when needed. The design of a health care system must be guided by the
following key human rights standards:

Universal Access: ​Access to health care must be universal, guaranteed for all on an equitable
basis. Health care must be affordable and comprehensive for everyone, and physically accessible
where and when needed.
Availability:​ Adequate health care infrastructure (e.g. hospitals, community health facilities,
trained health care professionals), goods (e.g. drugs, equipment), and services (e.g. primary care,
mental health) must be available in all geographical areas and to all communities.
Acceptability and Dignity:​ Health care institutions and providers must respect dignity, provide
culturally appropriate care, be responsive to needs based on gender, age, culture, language, and
different ways of life and abilities. They must respect medical ethics and protect confidentiality.
Quality​: All health care must be medically appropriate and of good quality, guided by quality
standards and control mechanisms, and provided in a timely, safe, and patient-centered manner.
The human right to health also entails the following ​procedural principles​, which apply to all
human rights:
Non-Discrimination:​ Health care must be accessible and provided without discrimination (in
intent or effect) based on health status, race, ethnicity, age, sex, sexuality, disability, language,
religion, national origin, income, or social status.
Transparency:​ Health information must be easily accessible for everyone, enabling people to
protect their health and claim quality health services. Institutions that organize, finance or deliver
health care must operate in a transparent way.
Participation:​ Individuals and communities must be able to take an active role in decisions that
affect their health, including in the organization and implementation of health care services.
Accountability​: Private companies and public agencies must be held accountable for protecting
the right to health care through enforceable standards, regulations, and independent compliance
monitoring.

The Human Right to Health is protected in:

● Article 25 of the ​Universal Declaration of Human Rights
● Article 12 of the ​International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
● Article 24 of the ​Convention on the Rights of the Child
● Article 5 of the ​Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination
● Articles 12 & 14 of the ​Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women
● Article XI (11) of the ​American Declaration on Rights and Duties of Man
● Article 25 of the ​Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
United Nations committees ("treaty bodies"), comprised of independent experts, oversee the
implementation of particular human rights treaties. These committees oversee the treaties by,
among other things, receiving government and civil society reports on the implementation of the
treaties, making comments to the government reports, and issuing general comments about the
treaties or specific right contained therein.