Launched in August 2010, the BTE- Parañaque, Philippines program – a unique partnership between Johnson & Johnson (Philippines), World Vision Development Foundation, Parañaque City Health Office, Parañaque National High School (PNHS), the University of the Philippines Manila (UPM), and the University of the Philippines Manila School of Health Sciences (UPM-SHS) – strived to inspire and motivate young people from underprivileged communities to pursue post-secondary education and health-related careers.
Parañaque National High School (PNHS), with partners from Johnson & Johnson, World Vision, and national agencies, launched the BTE program to increase the number of participants that enrolled in higher education and pursued healthcare careers. PNHS junior- and senior students participated in a series of opportunities, including health career seminars, Red Bag sessions, “BTE Immersions,” scholarships, professional development, and mentoring/guidance sessions.
The program also included a scholarship for a select number of BTE students, enabling these students to attend the University of the Philippines Manila School of Health Sciences (UPM-SHS) and obtain a Community Health Worker (CHW or midwifery) degree. This degree is part of UPM-SHS’s stepladder curriculum, where students initially enroll in and obtain a CHW degree and have the option to continue their education until a degree in medicine is achieved. UPM-SHS incorporated a “return to the community” service agreement, which required all BTE scholarship students to work in the Parañaque community for each year of post-secondary education. This requirement has an important community benefit, increasing the community’s health manpower ratio.
