Chapter I
1.1 Introduction
One immediate issue that the world must address is the rising number of people impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. As the number of Covid-19 cases rises, so is the demand for healthcare. In the Philippines, many healthcare workers are jeopardized because they lack the necessary assistance while being deployed on their work. In light of that, they are not provided with a sufficient budget to properly execute their tasks and meet their needs while on the front lines. Following that, numerous difficulties are placed on a pedestal—dilemmas impacting their mental, physical, social, spiritual, and emotional wellbeing. Withal, they have made significant sacrifices in order to serve and provide for their patients, even at risks of losing themselves. (Rocamora, 2021)
According to a September 2021 Rappler news report, healthcare frontline workers at General Santos City Dr. Jorge P. Royeca Memorial Hospital (DJNRMH) were instructed to wear diapers to maintain their PPE (personal protective equipment) owing to financial insufficiency. As a result, numerous healthcare staff were forced to quit. Furthermore, healthcare workers lost their employment as well as their means of subsistence. Commensurate with this, the experiences of healthcare professionals are not just their own, but also those of their family members. According to a 2020 research (Shreffler et al., 2020), persons with families who work in healthcare are also disadvantaged. As a result, the kin has the ability to carry the distress that healthcare workers carry. As healthcare frontline workers risk their lives in the medical industry, the vulnerabilities that their families face are exponentially increasing.
In General Santos City, there are numerous students who have kin that are deployed as healthcare frontline workers. Consequently, students who have relatives —subjected to healthcare will reflect the population that has kin in this study. Following that, a sample will be drawn from that demographic to learn more about the lived experiences of students with a healthcare frontline family (kin).
Accordingly, the researchers will conduct a study on the lived experiences of students who have families who are healthcare frontline workers in order to detect the challenges, experiences, and narratives that students who have relatives (kin)—employed on the frontline face. Further, one potential area of focus in this study is the lived experiences of students who have relatives who work in healthcare front lines. In general, the researchers intend to undertake a phenomenological study to determine what it takes to be a healthcare worker’s kin, their sacrifices, the experiences they have had, and the stories they can tell. Following that, an analysis will be carried out based on the replies given.
1.2 Theoretical Background
This study will be anchored on three (3) theories for a better understanding of the participants’ points of view and experiences. These theories will be the Attachment Theory of John Bowlby, Terror Management Theory of Biernat and Danaher, and Lazarus and Folkman’s Cognitive Stress Model.
Attachment Theory of John Bowlby
The Attachment theory helps to explain relationships and bonds of people, mainly focusing on long-term relationships such as a child-parent relationship or that of romantic partners. It is said that the most impactful bonds are those formed at the earliest of life by children with their caregivers. While it was commonly believed that attachment was a learned process, Bowlby opposed and suggested that there is an innate drive within children to form attachments and bonds with caregivers. In order to form this attachment, there must be nurturance and responsiveness demonstrated by the caregiver towards the child. These could be demonstrated through feeding, cooing, hugging, or cleaning the child. With these provided, the child gets a sense of security since the caregiver is shown to be dependable with their needs.
Terror Management Theory of Biernat and Danaher
People are naturally afraid of mortality salience (death). When fear is present, there are existing coping mechanisms by people in order to combat this feeling. The Terror Management Theory (TMT) explains how our behaviors and way of thinking are influenced by that fear. It is proposed in this theory that people immerse themselves in cultural worldviews to negate the terrorizing feeling of their self-awareness of mortality. Some people who become really terrified exhibit behaviors like trying not to think too much of it. From there, denial, avoidance behavior, and some unhealthy habits may root from it as a way of coping (The Uncanny Fear of Loss).
Lazarus and Folkman’s Cognitive Stress Model
According to Lazarus and Folkman (2013), stress is a condition or sensation that occurs when a person feels that the “demands surpass the personal and social assets the individual can mobilize.” Although earlier studies typically focused on one cause of stress at a time (i.e family death or loss of personal belongings), recent studies show that a cause of stress can precede, occur alongside, or emanate from other stressors, amplifying its physical and emotional consequences. A stressor’s personal impact is also determined by one’s coping resources and tactics. When confronted with a problem, people use their coping resources, which can be personal and environmental characteristics (Pearlin et al., 2005). The most significant resource is social support, which includes instrumental, emotional, and informational assistance.
1.3 Research Questions
The researchers aim to conduct a phenomenological study regarding the lived experiences of students with kin/s who are healthcare professionals during the pandemic. Through this general objective, the researchers also intend to answer the following specific questions/problems:
What are the lived experiences of students with kin who are healthcare frontline workers?
What are the hurdles faced by these students, how do they cope with these hurdles, and what are the biggest sacrifices they have made?
Were the students with kin who are healthcare frontline workers affected? If so, how did their kin affect their:
i. physical health;
ii. psychological health
1.4 Hypotheses
Null HypothesisH0 – The students are not significantly affected by their kin’s experiences.
Alternative HypothesisHa – The students are significantly affected by their kin’s experiences as exhibited in the following ways;
i. deteriorating physical and mental health
ii. their sacrifices made and hurdles experienced
1.5 Significance of the Study
The phenomenological study about the lived experiences of students with kin who are healthcare frontline workers in General Santos city amidst the COVID-19 pandemic has the purpose to explain and to increase the knowledge about what are the lived experiences of students that have kin who are frontline healthcare workers. The results of this study will benefit the following:
1. School Administrators and Staff, as it is a must for them to know their students’ health, either in a physical or psychological manner. This study will help them to assess the health of the students affected.
2. Parent/s or Guardian/s, since they are the ones closest to the student, they will know what they can do if the student’s health is becoming alarming. And so, if they are the ones causing adverse health effects to the student, considered as their child, they can easily take health security measures for their child.
3. Future Researchers, this research study will be a useful reference for future researchers who would plan to make a cure, rehabilitation program, or treatment for those affected students.
4. Students, through this study, they can gain knowledge about the condition of their classmate/s with a relative (kin) who is a healthcare frontline worker. As such, they can do a few things to assist in the evaluation of their classmate’s health.
1.6 Scope and Limitations
This study is conducted primarily to understand and describe the lived experiences of students with close relative/s (preferably those who may encounter close contact) that are healthcare workers during the pandemic. This study is purely descriptive and shall only focus on their experiences specific to their relations with healthcare workers and shall exclude any other experiences.
This study will cover the lived experiences of students, specifically teenagers in the age bracket of 13-19. This will not include elementary school students or in higher education. The researchers will create a sample size of 7 students from the population: high school students in General Santos City with kin/s who are healthcare frontliners during the pandemic. The duration of the data collection will be approximately 2 months.
The researchers of this study plan to employ a phenomenological approach in the methodology. The respondents will be given an online questionnaire that will hold the primary questions prepared by the researchers. To further fortify their answers, the researchers will also conduct an online interview. Due to this, the study is presented with its own limitations.
This study is limited only to high school students in General Santos City with kin who are healthcare professionals. It does not encompass students in other educational categories and levels. It also does not include other lived experiences of the respondents not related to the health workers. This study will also not cover the students’ physical parameters and specific institutions enrolled in.
This study is pursued only to understand and describe the lived experiences of the students and answer the problems and research questions. In line with this, it is not advisable to establish cause and effect relationships based on this study alone.
In the nature of a phenomenological study, the sample size is smaller, therefore it is not recommended to conclude and create inferences based on this study for the generalized population.
Finally, the scope of this study is the lived experiences of students with kin who are frontline workers during the Covid-19 pandemic.
1.7 Definition of Terms
COVID-19 – an respiratory disease in humans caused by a coronavirus, capable of producing symptoms ranging from mild to severe and death in some cases, especially in elders and those with health conditions. It was originally identified in China in 2019 and officially became pandemic in 2020.
Front-line Workers – employees within essential industries who must personally show up to their jobs, even if they are at risk of being exposed to the coronavirus.
Healthcare – A line of work which involves the activity or business of providing medical care/assistance.
Healthcare Front-line Workers – employees within the healthcare industry who must personally show up to their jobs.
Kin – one’s family and relations.
Pandemic – an outbreak of a pandemic disease.
Pandemic Disease – A disease prevalent over a whole country or the world.
Physical Health – A state of the body that is free from sickness or injury.
Psychological Health – a state of the mind that refers to the health of someone’s emotions and behaviors.
Quarantine – a state of isolation in which people or animals that have arrived from other places that are potentially exposed to infectious or contagious diseases are placed.