Campus Overview
The UPM SHS, often referred to as the “Tacloban Experiment” and formerly known as the UP
Institute of Health Sciences (UP IHS) is currently located on a 4,083 square meters lot in the
town of Palo, Leyte as shown in Fig. 2.1. This unit was established on June 28, 1976 from the
joint endeavor of the Ministry of Health, The Ministry of Local Government and Community
Development, and the UP System to address the need for scientifically disciplined and medically competent graduates in the rural areas who are committed to the service of the people.
Students accepted to the UPM SHS follow a competency and community-based Step-Ladder
Curriculum. First step is a 77 weeks of training for Community Health Work (CHW) certification
and Midwifery Licensure Examination qualification. Next step is another 55 weeks for a degree in Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), qualifying a student for the Nurse Licensure Examination. The final level of the curriculum is the Doctor of Medicine (MD) program with a yearly interval of didactics, clinical and community experiences for five years. Completion of this step qualifies the student to take the Physicians Licensure Examination.
The UPM SHS has three departments; the Community Health Work, Nursing and Medicine
department. The policies on recruitment and admission to the program offered by the unit
is different from most UP unit. Instead of passing the UPCAT and emphasis on academic
performance, admission is based on the community needs and the willingness of the student to
serve the community. A “Passed” or “Need Tutorials” grading system is employed to ensure
the development of required competencies. Sponsoring communities need to employ their
scholars after graduation. Scholars are required to return service for 2 years for every year of study. Information in this section are from the official website of UPM SHS (http://shs.upm.edu.ph/).
The campus is currently exposed to the following hazards: seismic hazards, landslides, flood,
storm surge, tsunami and severe wind. On the other hand, the location of the UP campus eliminates its exposure to volcanic and landslide hazards; thus not included in the hazard assessment.
