SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union, April 12 (PIA) - A maximum amount of P999,999 in research fund will be provided for every qualified health research proposal for 2024, the Region 1 Health Research and Development Consortium (HRDC) says during its first quarter management committee meeting in Baguio City on April 12.

The statement comes after the consortium received a total of 16 capsule research proposals for possible funding this year.

The researches were submitted by professional and budding researchers from member institutions of the R1HRDC within the consortium’s window of proposal submission from Jan. 1 to March 15, 2024.

The researches received are aligned with the National Unified Health Research Agenda (NUHRA) and the Region 1: Ilocos Region Health Research Priorities 2023-2028.

Dr. Jose B. Orosa III, Chairperson of the R1HRDC’s Research Management Committee (RMC), says the 16 research proposals were subjected to a rigorous review by the committee during the first phase of review last March in order to ensure their viability for research implementation in the region and their subsequent health use not just in the region but in other areas of the country later on.

“There is a lot of polishing that needs to be done for the proposals and the top ten shall be presented to the R1HRDC later this year,” Orosa III added, underscoring the importance of peer review in the process of approving health research proposals in the R1HRDC.

After the first phase of review of the submitted proposals, each researcher will undergo oral presentation in front of R1HRDC member institutions later this year for further checking of the proposal’s validity for health and its applications in Region 1 and beyond.

Among the proposals currently being checked include a research titled: Comprehensive Assessment of Maternal Health Profiles and Quality of Life Among Ilocano Teenage Mothers: Developing a Framework for Post-Partum Interventions by Dr. Shiela Navasca of the Northwestern University in Ilocos Norte.

Other research proposals include a research titled: Determinants of Health, Risk-factors, Causes and Challenges in Health Care Delivery in Services with the Increase Maternal Mortality Rate in Region 1 by Dr. Led Karen R. Zamudio of the Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University (DMMMSU) in La Union.

Among the researches from the 2023 call for proposals that has been approved by the consortium and is currently on the data gathering phase include a study titled: Implementation of A Hearing Screening Protocol for School-Aged Children Enrolled in Special Education in Selected Public Schools in llocos Norte by Dr. Joy C. Alvarez of the Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical Center (MMMH&MC).

The said research has an approved budget of P497,187.50 and is targeted for completion and presentation of research results in 2024.

Another research approved that has a budget of P957,304.70 is the Tissue Repair Progression in Alcohol-Fed and Drug-Induced Male ICR Mice Using Freeze-Dried Pomacea canaliculata Slime and Bovine Milk by Dr. Doreen Domingo of the Ilocos Training and Regional Medical Center (ITRMC) in La Union. (JCR/MJTAB/CCMT, PIA La Union)