The Senate health and demography committee tackled yesterday local hospital bills that seek to improve the healthcare system in various parts of the country.
During a public hearing conducted yesterday, Senator Christopher ‘’Bong’’ Go, committee chairman, said he recognized the importance of investing in the healthcare system to make it more responsive in the future.
Go also called on the government to augment the operations of existing government hospitals and prioritize health infrastructure projects.
“Kailangan na kailangan natin ngayon ‘yan, lalong-lalo na po may pandemya para siguradong may sapat na kapasidad ang tatakbuhang ospital ng ating mga kababayan,” he said. (Because of the coronavirus disease pandemic, we need to increase the capacities of our local hospitals where our countrymen seek medical help.)
“Noong bago pa man magkaroon ng COVID, kulang na talaga ang ating mga pasilidad at equipment para tugunan ang pangangailangang medikal ng mga Pilipino. Wala pong magawa ang ating mga kababayan kundi makipagsiksikan sa mga punong ospital dahil wala silang pambayad sa pribadong ospital,” he added. (Even before COVID-19 hit the country, we really needed more medical facilities and equipment to give medical care to our fellow Filipinos.)
‘’Recounting his experiences in going around many hospitals in the country, Go also said that he witnessed firsthand the hardships Filipinos all over the country have to endure just to seek medical treatment.
“Ako po, sa kakaikot ko po sa mga ospital tuwing nagbubukas ang Malasakit Center, nakikita ko minsan po ay nakahilera diyan ang pasyente. Isang kama, dalawang pasyente, nakahilera pa po sa corridor. Papaano po gagaling ang pasyente kung ganon po ang kanilang sitwasyon? Kawawa talaga ‘yung mga kababayang Pilipino kung ganun po ang sitwasyon,’’ he said. (Doing my rounds of the hospitals for the opening rites of Malasakit Centers, I see patients lining up. One bed, two patients. Others are in the corridors. How could our patients get well under such conditions? I pity our countrymen.)
Go said that he firmly believes that increasing the bed capacity of hospitals will further reinforce their compliance with physical distancing measures to prevent the further spread of contagious diseases.
Local hospital bills tackled during the hearing include House Bill (HB) 2582, which increases the bed capacity of the Lying-In Clinic in Rizal, Palawan; HB 6498 and Senate Bill (SB) 1768, increasing the bed capacity of the Naguilian District Hospital in La Union; HB 6729 and SB 1769, increasing the bed capacity of the Rosario District Hospital in Rosario, La Union; HB 6727 and SB 1383, increasing the bed capacity of the Sinait District Hospital in Ilocos Sur; HB 6728 and SB 1291 and 1609, increasing the bed capacity of the East Avenue Medical Center; HB 6730 and SB 1696, increasing the bed capacity of the Mayor Hilarion A. Ramiro Sr. Medical Center in Misamis Occidental; HB 6731 and SB 1647, establishing the Bacolod City General Hospital; HB 6753, converting the Medina Extension Hospital in Medina, Misamis Oriental into a General Hospital; HB 6850 and SB 1654, establishing the Eastern Pangasinan Regional Medical and Trauma Center; HB 6971 and SB 1584, converting the Schistosomiasis Control and Research Hospital in Palo, Leyte into the Governor Benjamin T. Romualdez General Hospital and Schistosomiasis Center, and increasing its bed capacity; HB 6972 and SB 1378, renaming the Eastern Visayas Regional Medical Center in Tacloban City, into Eastern Visayas Medical Center, and increasing its bed capacity; HB 7321 and SB 1616, establishing the Davao Occidental General Hospital; and HB 7322 and SB 1874, upgrading the Lanao del Norte Provincial Hospital into the Lanao del Norte Regional Medical Center.
Earlier this year, Go sponsored a series of local hospital bills to augment their bed capacities and upgrade their equipment. The need has been highlighted by the challenges caused by the COVID-19 outbreak in the country.
Aside from measures upgrading hospitals, Go has also been pushing for Senate Bill 1226, the proposed Department of Health Hospital Bed Capacity Rationalization Act. The said measure has been approved in the committee level and will be reported soon in the Senate plenary.
The bill aims to authorize the Department of Health (DOH) to increase bed capacity and service capability of its retained hospitals. This will also allow the DOH to promulgate evaluation and approval guidelines to streamline the process of upgrading public hospitals.