De La Salle University – Dasmariñas

Stance expressions and markers are a heated topic in global linguistic research, with style stance adverbs as a core form of stance markers, classified alongside epistemic and attitude stance adverbs. This study employs an AI-powered corpus-based comparative analysis method to probe into 11 top English style stance adverbs in the Chinese Learners of English Corpus, British National Corpus and Corpus of Contemporary American English. AI instruments are applied to optimize corpus data retrieval, statistical analysis and positional distribution mapping and make comparative analyses of their use characteristics and positional distribution of the style stance adverbs between Chinese English learners and native speakers to probe into their interpersonal pragmatic functions and use characteristics. The research findings reveal significant discrepancies: Chinese learners overuse style stance adverbs with a narrow vocabulary range, and misapply spoken-language positional conventions (initial/final placement) in written discourse resulting from insufficient understanding of their structural and functional features in academic contexts. This study deeps and widens stance adverb research and provides guidance for EFL teaching and learners' pragmatic competence improvement.

The Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry in the Philippines has experienced fast expansion which created various job openings that mainly focus on hotel reservation customer service work. The BPO sector needs agents to receive decision-making authority together with complete training and role confidence in delivering better service. The process which companies provide to their customers leads to better customer fairness which supports Sustainable Development Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth. The research also investigates how agents gain empowerment through their positions and deliver equivalent service by performing their duties across three service dimensions which includes outcome-based, process-based and interactional dimensions. This research investigates how job satisfaction affects the delivery of services in organizations and agents who experience empowerment tend to view both results and operational methods as being just and equitable. Different levels of interactional fairness because their organizations support them and their relationships with colleagues at work. Job satisfaction is the primary mediator which leads employees to become involved while delivering services that are both uniform and fair to all customers. The hospitality BPO operations need strategic empowerment initiatives to establish their fundamental operations which result in sustainable success and equal service delivery while building sustainable economic growth.

BackgroundEye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR)-centered psychotherapy is an evidence-based treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), yet symptom trajectories during routine outpatient care vary considerably. Process factors such as therapeutic alliance and treatment intensity may influence outcomes, but their independent and combined contributions in real-world clinical settings remain unclear. This study examined the relationships among therapeutic alliance, treatment intensity, and PTSD symptom change in a naturalistic outpatient context.MethodsThis single-center retrospective cohort study analyzed routinely collected clinical data from adults with a clinician-confirmed chart diagnosis of PTSD based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) criteria who completed EMDR-centered psychotherapy at a single outpatient psychological clinic in the Philippines between 2022 and 2025. PTSD symptoms were assessed using the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) at baseline, mid-therapy, and post-treatment. Therapeutic alliance was measured at mid-therapy using the five-item Agnew Relationship Measure-5 (ARM-5). Treatment intensity was defined as the total number of completed psychotherapy sessions. Linear regression and moderation analyses examined associations between alliance, treatment intensity, and symptom change, adjusting for age, sex, trauma type, and therapy type.ResultsThe sample included 138 patients. Mean PTSD symptom scores decreased from 43.7 at baseline to 37.8 at mid-therapy and 30.0 at post-treatment. Therapeutic alliance did not predict early symptom change (baseline to mid-therapy; β = −0.01, p = 0.878) but significantly predicted overall symptom reduction (baseline to post-treatment; β = 0.61, p < 0.001; R² = 0.245) and late-phase improvement (mid-therapy to post-treatment; β = 0.62, p < 0.001; R² = 0.207). Treatment intensity significantly predicted symptom reduction from baseline to post-treatment (β = −0.21, p < 0.001; adjusted R² = 0.251) and from mid-therapy to post-treatment (β = −0.26, p < 0.001). Moderation analyses showed no significant interaction between therapeutic alliance and treatment intensity across treatment phases (all p > 0.10), indicating independent effects.ConclusionsIn routine outpatient EMDR-centered psychotherapy, therapeutic alliance and treatment intensity independently predict PTSD symptom improvement. Alliance appears most consequential after initial treatment engagement, while greater session completion supports sustained symptom reduction. These findings underscore the importance of fostering a strong working alliance beyond early sessions and promoting adequate treatment exposure to optimize outcomes in real-world trauma-focused care.

Health workers (HWs) set an example for vaccine recipients, convey vaccine benefits and risks and interface with patients at increased risk for complications in pandemic settings. We explored HWs' acceptance of and recommendation for COVID-19 vaccine with and without previous receipt of seasonal influenza vaccine (SIV) in nine countries. In 2023-2024, cross-sectional surveys among HW were conducted in Bangladesh, Cote d'Ivoire, Ghana, Laos, Lebanon, Morocco, Philippines, Thailand and Tunisia. Country researchers used a standard protocol and questionnaire to assess beliefs, perceptions and acceptance around SIV and COVID-19 vaccine and likelihood of recommending these vaccines to patients. Pooled findings were stratified by the presence or absence of a national HW SIV recommendation. Generalised mixed effects models were used to characterise the relationship between receipt of SIV and COVID-19 vaccine acceptance and recommendation, adjusting for WHO region, sex and duration of employment. Our analysis included 12 296 HWs from nine countries representing four WHO regions: African, Eastern Mediterranean, Southeast Asian and Western Pacific. Five countries had a national HW SIV recommendation (61% of HWs surveyed) prior to COVID-19 vaccine introduction. More than 90% of HWs reported completing the COVID-19 vaccination series, whereas intention to continue receiving annual COVID-19 vaccine was lower (61%). HWs who received SIV in the last season compared with those who did not were more likely to have received one or more COVID-19 booster doses (adjusted OR (aOR) 2.63, 95% CI 2.27 to 3.04) and to have recommended COVID-19 vaccine to patients (aOR 1.53, 95% CI 1.29 to 1.82). Prior experience with SIV was associated with HW behaviour and recommendations regarding COVID-19 vaccination. Intention to continue receiving COVID-19 vaccines remains a challenge; ongoing training and education for vaccination staff could be beneficial. HWs play a critical role in the successful delivery of new and existing vaccines, particularly in a pandemic setting.

This qualitative systematic review will explore the barriers and facilitators of the use of digital adherence technologies for tuberculosis treatment. The review will focus on the human factors that support the use of these technologies in tuberculosis treatment. More than 10 million people are infected with tuberculosis every year. Failure to adhere to the treatment regimen is the key reason for the disease's continuing burden worldwide. Numerous efforts have been made to address non-adherence to treatment, including the use of digital adherence technologies. However, recent studies on such technologies show conflicting findings about their effectiveness. This review will consider studies reporting on patients and health care workers and the use of digital tools for tuberculosis treatment adherence. The review will include studies that focus on drug-sensitive tuberculosis, drug-resistant tuberculosis, and latent tuberculosis infection, as well as studies on patients with tuberculosis and common comorbidities, such as diabetes or HIV. This review will follow the JBI methodology for qualitative systematic reviews. PubMed, Embase (Ovid), Scopus, and Emcare (Ovid) will be searched for published studies. Searches will also be conducted for gray literature. Two reviewers will independently conduct study selection, critical appraisal, data extraction, and data synthesis. The ConQual approach will be used to assess confidence in the findings of the meta-aggregated data. There will be no date or language limitations. PROSPERO CRD42025645171.

End-stage renal disease (ESRD) signifies the final stage of chronic kidney disease (CKD), often necessitating kidney transplants or hemodialysis for survival. Hemodialysis imposes significant limitations on patients' daily lives, potentially leading to psychological issues. Prior studies have examined hemodialysis patients' experiences and quality of life, but the Philippine context, particularly among young adults, remains understudied. This research aims to describe the lived experiences of young adult hemodialysis patients, understand their perceptions of life-and-death risks, and explore changes in their quality of life and mental health. The study employed descriptive phenomenological research with thematic analysis, involving five young adult patients undergoing hemodialysis. Themes such as difficulty understanding their situation, dealing with life’s difficulties, life of uncertainty, and psychological impacts emerged from the data which provided insight into the experiences of young adult patients. Understanding these experiences can enhance care, support, and overall quality of life for young adult hemodialysis patients.

The increasing prevalence of mental health concerns in the Philippines underscores the need for innovative strategies to support psychological well-being, particularly in contexts with limited access to clinical professionals. This qualitative case study explored the care practices of non-practicing mental health professionals and the factors influencing their decisions not to pursue clinical roles. Ten participants were purposively selected, all holding valid professional credentials and working in education, research, or community outreach. Information was collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using thematic analysis to identify patterns in participants' experiences. Findings revealed two primary barriers to clinical practice: practical needs, such as financial responsibilities and family obligations, and career efficiency, which reflects the lengthy, resource-intensive pathways and limited incentives in the profession. Participants' care practices were captured in themes: Insightful Engagement, Ethical Reservation Establishment, Reverence for Choices, Practical Wisdom Application, and Compassionate Resonance. These themes illustrate how non-practicing professionals provide meaningful support through ethical guidance, relational presence, and contextual wisdom, extending care beyond formal clinical settings. Limitations include the small, context-specific sample, reliance on self-reported data, and exclusion of actively practicing professionals. Recommendations highlight the importance of institutional support, targeted training programs, integration of mental health literacy in educational curricula, and community-based initiatives to leverage non-practicing professionals' skills. This study contributes to understanding alternative pathways for promoting mental health, emphasizing the role of non-clinical professionals in bridging service gaps and fostering empathetic, ethical, and context-sensitive care.