Institutional Preparedness and Implementation of DRRM: Basis for an Awareness Safety Guide

This study assessed institutional preparedness and the implementation of Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) policies at Ilocos Sur Polytechnic State College–Santa Maria Campus as a basis for developing a contextualized DRRM Awareness Safety Guide. It examined preparedness in planning and policy implementation, infrastructure and facilities, and emergency response and recovery; policy implementation across four DRRM dimensions; relationships between the variables; and differences among stakeholder assessments. A descriptive, correlational, and comparative design used a structured 70-item questionnaire administered to students, teaching personnel, and non-teaching personnel selected through stratified random sampling. The stated sample comprised 564 respondents. Five campus DRRM officials validated the questionnaire, and pilot testing produced a Cronbach's alpha of .985. Weighted means, Pearson correlation, analysis of variance, and Tukey post-hoc comparisons were used. Institutional preparedness was rated Very Prepared, with an overall reported mean of 3.74. Policy implementation was rated Highly Implemented across prevention and mitigation, preparedness, response, and rehabilitation and recovery. Preparedness and implementation were positively correlated, with coefficients ranging from .600 to .810, all significant at the .01 level. Stakeholder assessments differed significantly; students consistently provided higher ratings than personnel. Infrastructure maintenance, early warning systems, response procedures, post-disaster assessment, and psychosocial support emerged as improvement priorities. The proposed guide obtained an expert-validation mean of 4.52, interpreted as Very High Validity. Findings support institutional review and implementation of the guide, inclusive training, clearer operational responsibilities, and periodic evaluation. Expert validation establishes perceived suitability rather than demonstrated effectiveness, which requires subsequent implementation and outcome assessment.