View source for Community Participation as Means of Citizen Empowerment: An Evaluation of the Communication and Participation Process of Dengue Prevention Programs in Quezon City Communities

'''Abstract'''
 < The Philippine government first experienced wide-scale decentralization in 1991 
with the passage of the Local Government Code (LGC). In the decentralized government, 
the health sector specifically the Department of Health (DOH) saw the most change with 
its resources and responsibilities devolved to the Local Government Units (LGUs). This 
allowed for the managing and planning of health programs to be controlled at the 
community level. One of the endemic diseases addressed at this level is Dengue.  
 Over the years, more and more studies have recognized the importance of creating 
community-based programs and encouraging community participation for the eradication 
of the disease. In the country, the potential for a strengthened community involvement 
was seen at this level through the Barangay Health Management Councils (BHMCs). 
Here community leaders and stakeholders are supposed to take part in the decision
making and implementation processes of their community’s health programs.   
 Through the Integrated Model of Communication for Social Change (Figueroa et 
al., 2002). The Ladder of Participation Framework (Arnstein, 1969), and the model of 
Shared Decision-Making (Potapchuk, 1991), this study establishes and evaluates the 
communication and participation processes that take place in the communities’ 
implementation of Dengue programs. Specifically, communication and participation were 

 
 
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indicated in each program’s stages, namely; assessment, conceptualization, and 
implementation. 
 A case study approach was employed on a total of five (5) selected barangays 
from Quezon City. Five (5) focus group workshops and twenty-four (24) focus interviews 
were conducted with the barangay members who lead in the processes involved in their 
respective Dengue prevention programs. The qualitative approach used in the study 
uncovered the interaction between communication and participation which shaped the 
elements of decision-making, knowledge building, and dialogic communication towards 
citizen empowerment. 
 The findings reveal that communication and participation processes go beyond the 
stages of assessment, conceptualization, and implementation. Dengue programs give as 
much importance in receiving the concerns communicated by its stakeholders, the same 
can be said in their process of shaping the perceptions that revolve around this health 
issue. The lack of mechanisms that foster dialogue and shared decision-making poses a 
great challenge to citizens’ involvement.  
 By evaluating and detailing the processes of Dengue programs in the barangay 
level, this study contributes to the improvement of community-based, participatory health 
programs in the country. >
                                                
[http://iskwiki.upd.edu.ph/flipbook/viewer/?fb=2015-05380-Jarabejo View Thesis]
 
[[Category: < College of Mass Communication > Thesis]][[Category:Theses]][[Category:< BA Communication Research >]][[Category:2019 Thesis]]