Risks Everyday.docx

Anna Marie Eunice C. Dinglasa

Grade 12 – Sison

September 13, 2018

DRRR Assignment Risk Factors of my Everyday Life

Risk factors cannot be avoided in our everyday lives. Whether we like it or not, we are exposed to risks. Without us knowing, these exposures develop into risk factors that might be harmful to us. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), “a risk factor is any attribute, characteristic or exposure of an individual that increases the likelihood of developing an injury or a disease.” This means that anything can be a risk factor. In this paper, I will define the different risk factors that I encounter every day. Risk factors do not necessarily mean that they are the causes of dangers or any harmful event that might happen to us. These risk factors might be a description of how often and how possible will a certain disease or danger occurs to us. It may be a matter of correlation rather than causal because in identifying the risks to a certain phenomenon, we are analyzing the number of people who were affected and the number of people who are exposed to the phenomenon (Case & Haines, 2013). Every morning, I wake up early and prepare to go to school. I usually wake up at 5:00 am and do my morning routine afterward. After that, my family and I would leave the house together. My parents would accompany me to school if there is time, but sometimes if it is past 7 am already, I ride a motorcycle. I spend more than 10 hours at school every day, and after that, I would go to my father’s office, and we go home together. My daily routine is very stressful and boring, and I know that the risk factors are present. So, in this paper, I would identify the risk factors that I encounter daily in our community and our house, and the risk factors that are present on a personal level. The risk factors that I will analyze in our community is based in our location and the people, while the risk factor that I will analyze for myself only is solely based on myself, and my practices.

I will divide the factors according to the following classifications: a) Physical

e) Political

b) Psychological

f) Biological risk factors that

c) Socio-cultural

either affect or not affect

d) Economic

them

Risk Factors at our House and our Community Our house is located at Barangay Kalunasan, a mountainous barangay in the 2nd district of Cebu City. Kalunasan is the place of Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) and Bureau of Jail Management (BJMP). The location of our house is located at the back of the said jail centers. Our house is part of a small village that has definite slopes in the area, and it is near the boundary of barangay Guadalupe and barangay Kalunasan. The village where our house is located is on the mountainside, which explains the high elevation in the area. Although the area of our house is mountainous, there are only a few agricultural lands present within a close perimeter to our house. A few meters away from our house, at the lower part of the village, there is a nearby river called the Guadalupe River. Luckily, our house is far from the roads, so there would be no passing cars and no noise from cars. There are a few establishments near our house, but these are huge establishments. So here are the risk factors present in our house that belongs to our community: Physical Risk Factors: Physical risk factors are those that are exposed in our community physically, and that it could have a major physical effect whenever something would happen. The risk factor is dependent on the area where it is located, and how it affects the people in our community. o High elevation (Risk factor and Hazard) The high elevation of our area is very dangerous since it would be very slippery when it rains especially if the sole of your shoes is not in a perfect shape, one needs to use

the railings. The steep slope is very hazardous because one might feel that he/she cannot control him/herself from going down, etc. To simply describe our area, it is dangerous but familiarity is the key as time passes by. Aside from a slippery walkway, it is very dangerous for people who have respiratory problems such as asthma, etc. When we transferred to our current house, my asthma is very critical because it was very hard for me to go up, so I needed assistance or sometimes, I ride my uncle’s motorcycle just to go up. So, people with asthma or other respiratory problems, the location of our house is not so good. It is also dangerous for people who are not familiar with the area. It is very dangerous for very young people and old people because going up requires strength and reserved energy to reach the topmost area in our village because there is no other way but to go up, rather than go down and walk the long way. The high elevation is an obvious risk because, in our place, motorcycles would go down to park right outside their houses, so they would go down a steep slope. Also, if there comes a time when I am walking towards our house and a motorcycle would come, I would make sure to stop and make way for the motorcycle to avoid me getting hit by the motorcycle. It is a risk factor since if the driver cannot control his driving, he and the people involved if there are any would be greatly injured by the accident. o Stairs outside our house (Risk factor and Hazard) Aside from the steep walkway towards our house, about ¾ of the walkway towards our house is a staircase, a wide staircase made up of cement to be exact. The stairs are very visible, and the interval per step is kind of huge so it is not dangerous but if one would be so careless I walking, the stairs would definitely be a hazard, especially if the stairs are wet. A person might slip his/her foot and arrive at the end of the stairs. o The wooden part of our house (Risk factor and Hazard) The uppermost floor of our house is made up of wood, and it is the area where our bedroom is located. I consider it a risk factor since it is flammable and whenever a strong

wind is present, our roof might give up but at the very least, and the construction of our house is very strong that our topmost floor was able to withstand strong winds. I think one factor is that the two walls are cemented, so the wooden part is only the floor and the other two walls. o Cemented flooring and walls (Risk factor and Hazard) Our house is mostly cemented, so whenever a very strong earthquake would occur, there is a chance that our house cannot withstand the intensity of the earthquake. But I think that the level of it as a hazard is only small because my father made sure to build a strong house with the right materials and design. o Stacked furniture, books, and other things (Risk factor and Hazard) On the first floor of our house, our television is attached to the wall, and there is a bookshelf, and other materials are placed on wood-like furniture that is attached to the wall. When an earthquake would occur, the hanging materials might fall. o Others: -

There is a small portion of our house where there is an uneven surface, and sometimes, we fall on our toes because we did not notice the difference.

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There is a huge window in a certain area of our house if there is a heavy rain with strong winds, a very little amount of rain would enter the house.

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Our house has a wooden stair that is very hazardous because if one would walk heavily or stamp on the stairs, there is a possibility that the stairs would give up. There is a tendency for a person to fall immediately, and it would totally cause an injury. I experienced something when I fell on our stairs and luckily, I was able to hold onto the handle while laughing. My father repaired the broken part of our stairs.

Psychological Risk Factors: Psychological risk factors are those events and happenings in our community that could affect the people in our neighborhood psychologically.

o Neighbors’ Rants and Fights The houses in our neighborhood are near to each other, thus, whenever our neighbors would shout at each other, or fight with one another, we can hear them. I can feel that it is very awkward to hear such a private matter but I have no choice since their voices can be heard up to our house. I can hear them rant about their problems if they shout. It is very disturbing but I cannot interrupt them since it is their right to express and say out loud what they think. Their opposing ideas are debatable, and sometimes, I think whether they are right or wrong. Basically, it is disturbing and noisy. o Presence of a nearby prison The prison located nearby our area imposes a great risk for the residents in our neighborhood including me and my family. There is a possibility that prisoners might break out of the prison, prompting the possible use of harmful weapons such as guns of the police, pointed objects, and other weapons used to damage the opponent. Whenever an encounter between the prisoners and the jail guards would occur, it might involve the lives and safety of the innocent people near the area. Also, an exchange of gunshots between the two opposing sides might happen. It is a risk for the prisoners, the jail guards, and the people. Due to this possibility, it imposes a great risk to the safety of the people. Innocent lives might be involved, and properties owned by other people might be damaged as well. It would be expected that the jail guards would chase after the breakout prisoners, and they might intrude the houses and properties of other people. It creates the feeling of fear among the residents in the area. Aside from that, civilians, who are allegedly known as “drug syndicates” and “drug dealers”, were said to deliver drugs to prisoners almost every week. Their delivery might trigger a fight between the authorities and them. I experienced when the “drug dealers” were chased by the authorities. I can hear them run fast, and I saw that both teams carry “guns” with them. Good thing that I just stayed inside our multicab, thus they did not notice my presence around. I think that some people would treat this as a normal instance but I

know that fear cannot be avoided. There might be a possible “ligaw na bala” or sudden intrusion in our homes. Our safety is not guaranteed in our area. One afternoon, I went out of our house to go somewhere. Since my father is not around, I rode the motorcycle. When the motorcycle stopped, I noticed that my mother texted me messages about where am I at the moment. I wondered why my mother asked that because I know that she knows where I am headed to. Later on, that same day when we had our dinner, she told me that a jail guard shot a man, who allegedly delivered drugs to the prisoners, a few moments after I left the house. So, my mother was worried about me, and I think that is highly observed among the other residents in our area. Since the possibility of danger is very high; it is very risky for young people to roam around because there is no certainty of what might happen. Living in our area is like living in with fear that cannot be replaced with the feeling of safety that we feel. It affects many of us psychologically by becoming anxiety of our own safety. o Others: -

My mother rants about everything, and she sometimes shouts or yells at me, and I think that it is affecting my psychological state. Right now, I am very stressed and exhausted when I go home and when she yells at me, it is very disturbing, and I think I would have anxiety from the words she would say. So sometimes I tell her to just talk calmly.

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I do not know if this could be applied to the entire community, but I think that this is a psychological risk factor for my family, and it is the ring of the alarm clock. The first sound I hear every morning is my alarm clock. Hearing my alarm clock is very annoying because it means that my rest time is done, and I must get up. It is a risk factor psychologically because I think it forces me to wake up immediately, and there is this inner dilemma whether to straighten up or not, so it is affecting me seriously. That is the biggest dilemma that I encounter in the morning, and I hate my alarm clock for that.

Socio-cultural Risk Factors: Socio-cultural risk factors are those that involve the people in our community and how it affects the relationship among one another. There is a certain connection among the people in our neighborhood, and I think that it is important for a community to know that connecting with one another matters in an engaging and united community. o Neighbors’ Rants and Fights I think that I would place this as a socio-cultural risk factor as well because I am not comfortable seeing my neighbors, interacting with my neighbors, or other activities involving them because I feel like their personal problems were exposed when I heard them shout. So, our neighborhood bond is affected by their outspoken fights and rants about their problems. o Divided Neighborhood Our neighborhood is unleveled. There are some houses located at the upper part of the slope, while the others are in the middle, the rest are at the lower part of the slope. The division among the neighborhoods promotes a divided neighborhood where the people do not have a unified bond and/or culture but a certain bond and/or culture is established based on the small subgroups formed from the division of the entire village. This intensifies the risk of fights and misunderstandings between the people in our neighborhood. Peace might be unlikely to be observed in our village. Unity is observed on a small scale only, thus, dividing our neighborhood into factions, etc. o Others: -

Presence of prisons. We see men holding guns, almost every day, and I think that it is very awkward for us, residents, to feel so safe and to feel secured because seeing a gun makes us uncomfortable with the people around us, and the community.

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The unfamiliarity of the people. Some people in our community are quiet, some are too friendly, and some are dangerous. There are times when they lose their patience, or they might lose their sanity, they might possibly harm others. It

gives the message of warning to the other people. I think that there is a risk that a rift would occur, a misunderstanding might happen. This may result in physical harm to one another, or a social disconnection between the involved people, or an emotional and psychological attack among the involved. Economic Risk Factors: Economic risk factors are those that affect the residents economically. So, it involves money, the market, etc. o Lack of financial resources Money is very important, and if you do not have money, it MIGHT be a disadvantage if you do not work hard. For me, I think that money is important because we use our money to pay for the electric bills, water bills, and provide for our own basic commodities, and I believe that these are important in order to survive. Without these basic needs, people might not survive, and would suffer dramatically. Unpaid water bills would result in an end to the supply of water being directed to one’s house. Unpaid electric bills would result in the cut of the electric lines that were supposed to deliver electricity from the main source to each house. Inability to provide for one’s own basic needs might result to improper hygiene and hunger among the members of the family. It is indeed a risk factor for each family, and I do believe that our family is susceptible to that risk. o Price increase The increase in the prices of the basic commodities is a great risk because this means that the basic needs of an individual might not be attainable anymore. The usual budget for personal consumption, and for individual survival is sacrificed due to the change in the prices, leading to insufficient financial capacity, and a shortage of money. Thus, the residents would be forced to lessen their consumption. o Others: -

Lack of budget for the community. Our community is not that developed since there is a lack of budget allotted for our community. Instead of allotting an ample

amount for the budget for our community, there is none. Some roads that need repair were not given importance especially a certain part of our road is not properly cemented, resulting to an abrupt change in position of the car. Political Risk Factors: Political risk factors are those risk factors that I considered as an effect of politics or the insufficiency of the service of the officials in our community. This is more of the management of the people in authority on the things that they must consider in our community. o Waste management in our barangay There are times that the waste management of our barangay is very insufficient. Most of the time, the scheduled time for collecting garbage is not followed. It’s either they are delayed for a day, or they are delayed for a week. It is not systematized. Although the barangay set the schedule for the garbage collection of the biodegradable and nonbiodegradable, there is a mismatch between the garbage collectors and the residents. Thus, it resulted in the dumping of garbage in a certain area in our neighborhood. It is not appropriate since it is infested by many flies and it spreads an unpleasant smell to the upper part of our village. It is a major concern for our village’s officers because it is not sanitary for our community to have dump garbage beside the road where vehicles would pass. It would affect not just the image of our community but also the image of our barangay. It is a risk factor in terms of health and sanitation because it is just simple dirty. o Water Distribution The water distribution in our community is uneven. The upper part of our village gets to enjoy a long time in having water in their area while areas in the lower and middle part of our village suffer from water shortage (sometimes). This is very unfair because most of the residents in the upper part of our village are members of the officers. So, there is a possible manipulation in the distribution of water in our village. It is a political risk

since it is very unhealthy for a community to have officers who use power in manipulating what they want to do and what they want to have. It is an unhealthy practice of political distribution within a small community. o Fewer Projects, Fewer Improvements It is the responsibility of the barangay officials to have projects and programs that are aimed to improve the community. However, since the barangay elections last May, there are no visible projects done by the barangay. Despite the fact that the barangay officials were mostly reelected from their previous regime, they were not able to develop projects and programs that were supposedly part of their platforms. Most parts of their platforms aim to decrease the risk of some factors in our community such as the landslide in some areas, the road construction, and other factors. These factors remain risky for the people in the community. It is so unfortunate that the barangay was not able to address these risk factors. Thus, these fewer projects and fewer improvements result in risk in the community. It just intensifies the risk that concerns the community. o Others: -

Crimes involving barangay officials. A few months ago, a reelected barangay councilor was shot inside the premises of the barangay hall. The gunshot resulted in the death of the councilor. The man was said to enter the gates of our barangay hall, and immediately went near the barangay councilor, and shot him directly. Due to his position, he was able to target the barangay councilor. But what if he missed the councilor, who would have been shot? To think that it was an afternoon, so the tent outside the barangay building is full of parents waiting for the dismissal of their children. With that, I think that the crimes involving our barangay officials are considered risk factors. One is that these crimes are very serious, and there are questions of “what ifs” as to what might have happened. It may affect the lives of innocent people, or it may harm the others.

Even though some of these crimes involve politicians, but surrounding the politicians are members of the community. So, as you can observe, the risk is present. So this means that almost anywhere in our community is risky. Biological Risk Factors: I considered this as the risk factor that is caused by humans. These are man-made risk factors that have a major effect on our community. o Two dogs at home and other dogs outside We have two dogs, a female and a male dog. The male dog is a year and a half years old while the other is just a few months old. Dogs are simply risky. They could you. Their saliva contains rabies that might contaminate the inside of our body, and it might go all the way up to our brain, and damage it. Even though our dogs are trained to follow and respect us, the chance of a dog biting us is still there. So, there is a need to be careful in handling these cute little doggies so that they would not harm us. But still, they are considered risk factors. It is also very unlucky for a person to be unfamiliar with the dogs in our neighborhood. If the dog is not familiar to you, the dog would bark at you loudly or it would chase you. So, the risk of having people being bitten by dogs is high, and it could affect the body once rabies would penetrate our body. o Presence of a factory I think that at barangay Guadalupe, there is a glass company. The glass company emits dark and dirty smoke. These are the risk to the health of the residents in our community since these might affect our respiratory system, especially to those people who have complications in the respiratory tract. The smoke is part of the air pollution in our area.

Individual Risk Factors on a Personal Level Now, I will move on a personal level of analysis of the various risk factors that concern myself. These risk factors are more likely inclined to my overall health inclusive of physical, mental, emotional, social, and spiritual health. These individual risk factors can only be applied to how often I expose myself to a certain event or a certain activity, in which later on, develop into something that greatly affects myself. These are only some of the risk factors that affect me on a personal level. Individual Physical Risk Factors: o Lack of Sleep My sleeping hours is less than the required sleeping hours for a normal teenager. I do my homework and assignments at night, and after that, I study sometimes. Due to this, I tend to sleep in class sometimes, and it affected my health. I feel so exhausted every day, and I feel very lifeless. I also noticed that it had a tremendous effect on my health since I am prone to illnesses now. Every night, I can also feel that my headaches. Due to lack of sleep, my immune system is easily damaged, and I am prone to sickness. I think that a part of the effects of my lack of sleep is me being so forgetful. Since I lack sleep and rest, my brain is also restless. o Avoidance of Eating Vegetables As much as possible, I avoid eating vegetables, except squash and potato. I do not hate vegetables but I do not like how it tastes, that is why I avoid eating vegetables. I think that this is the reason why I am a bit chubby because my diet is not that balanced, though I eat fruits a lot of times every day. Vegetables provide vitamins and minerals that are essential for the body and other organs, but since I do not eat most of the vegetables, I do not receive the nutrients in my body. This is evidence that I do not have a healthy lifestyle. This makes me prone to other diseases and defects in my body such as bad eyesight, low immunity (lack of Vitamin C), and others. o Others:

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Sitting, not moving. I think that I always sit or just stay in one place. I avoid moving since it is very hassle. It lessens the activities of my muscles and bones, thus some complication might occur.

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Carrying heavy bags and other stuff. My bag is very heavy due to the things that I bring, so, I have to carry them every day. My backpack would result in me being at risk of having problems in my spine, and problems concerning the release of my sweat because it would only stay at my back without being dried. So the sweat is just absorbed again, so it would result in problems that are related to asthma, etc.

Individual Psychological Risk Factors: o Loads of tasks As a student, we have many activities and tasks to accomplish. Sometimes, I feel so overwhelmed by these tasks that I ask myself on what to do first or sometimes, I do not know on where to start. It feels like as if I am so small and my tasks engulf me. That is what I feel, and I think that it creates an anxiety for me to do everything on time, and I think that it is an inner dilemma on what things should I do first, and why do I have to do it first. o Pressure from family and friends I never imagined myself being pressured for what my family and relatives would say. When I was young, I never imagined being able to enter where I am right now because I only dreamed of becoming a professional someday. Now, since I am lucky enough to study at a prestigious university, I am subject to all the things that my family and relatives would say. I think that they have their expectations of me, and I think that it pressures me in a way that it is one of the reasons why I study and work hard. Due to these pressures, I feel very responsible for what might happen in the future. I think that this is a burden but so far, I see it as a positive burden for me to continue. I consider this as a risk factor because we do not know, in the future, I might change. Bad things might happen, and the possibility is not low. This kind of situation is risky for the mental and emotional health of an individual. o Parents’ wisdom

I just stated it in a positive connotation but it actually means “yawyaw”. Parents do not want something bad to happen to their children, and they would do everything just to make sure that everything is all right. Sometimes, they would make a rant on us or say to us what they feel about us, and sometimes, I feel like it is too much. There are times when their ideas are contradicting to our ideas. There is an inner conflict for me to talk back or to not to talk back. But then, it can be a risk factor because it might be too much of a truth that it is hard for us to handle. So, it is a risk factor emotionally and mentally. Individual Socio-cultural Risk Factors: o The sometimes-quiet-sometimes-active Personality I am a person that has no uniform attitude every day. There are times that I am in good mood or in bad mood. I think that the perception of other people towards me changes because of the changes in my personality. Their relationship towards me might also change. So it is a risk factor in terms of connecting and making friends with other people. The social life would be affected by the changes in the personality of the person. o Difficulty in Expressing I find it difficult to express something. It’s either I do not want to say it, or I do not want to talk about it, but at the very least, I want to express it to everyone. Sometimes, the inability to express what you want to say might disconnect you from the people around you. It is a risk in terms of having social interaction with other people since it deals with a person’s social health. Individual Economic Risk Factor: o Lack of Financial Resources Money is very important to satisfy one’s needs and wants. It is used to buy what we want to have or what we want to eat. Financial resources are important. In terms of health, people need to eat, and if we do not have money, we control our hunger or our desire to eat the food that we want to eat. Also, if we want to buy something that we really want, we just control ourselves because we cannot afford to buy it. It might be a reason that would affect

our physical health, and then eventually affect our mental state. It is a sad reality that must be accepted because whether we like it or not, money has a huge influence on our lives, and its presence might become a risk factor. Individual Political Risk Factor: o Classroom Politics Whenever I do not want something, I say it. Even though it is in contrast with their ideas, I say it because I want them to know what I am thinking. Usually, I am on the opposing side with the decisions of the people in charge (if I am not the one in charge). I say what I want to say, and sometimes, they might view it negatively, making it feel very uncomfortable. So the risk of this situation for me is it would make things uncomfortable which might disrupt the unity of the group. But then, on the other side, it is a positive engagement since it is a way of being honest with one another, so it is both a risk but a healthy practice Individual Biological risk factors that either affect or not affect them: o No identified biological risk factors that could affect me on a personal level.

References

Case, S., & Haines, K. (2013). Understanding Youth Offending: Risk Factor Research, Policy, and Practice. Willan. WHO. (n.d.). Risk Factors. Retrieved September 11, 2018, from World Health Organization: http://www.who.int/topics/risk_factors/en/