BONG GO HELPS BRIDGE HEALTHCARE IN GRASSROOTS COMMUNITIES THROUGH ESTABLISHMENT OF MORE SUPER HEALTH CENTERS AS HE INSPECTS CONSTRUCTION IN PAVIA, ILOILO

SENATOR Christopher “Bong” Go, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Health and Demography, continues to help bring essential public health services closer to Filipinos by establishing more Super Health Centers.

Go highlighted his commitment to work for Filipinos in his speech during the site inspection of a Super Health Center in Brgy. Balabag, Pavia, Iloilo, on Sunday, January 29.

“Unang una, ‘wag kayong magpasalamat sa amin… kami ang dapat na magpasalamat sa inyong lahat dahil binigyan n’yo kami ng pagkakataon na makapagserbisyo sa inyong lahat,” he said.

Go also underscored his efforts to bridging the gap between healthcare and grassroots communities through Super Health Centers, thus alleviating the difficulty of extensive travel to hospitals just to access primary health services.

“Ipagpatuloy natin na ilapit ang serbisyong medikal sa ating mga kababayang mahihirap na walang matakbuhan kundi ang mga government health facilities. Para sa mga mahihirap nating kababayan, napakaimportante po nito dahil iyan po ang kanilang lalapitan po talaga. The more we should support it, the more na mag-invest po tayo sa ating healthcare system,” Go said.

“Ilapit po natin ang serbisyong nararapat para sa tao. Huwag po natin silang pahirapan. Marami po sa ating kababayan sa iba’t ibang sulok ng Pilipinas na wala silang sariling health facility. Kaya importante na mailapit natin ang serbisyong medikal mula gobyerno sa mga taong nangangailangan nito,” he stressed.

Super Health Centers are strategically designed to emphasize delivering primary care, offering consultations, and enhancing the early detection of diseases at the grassroots to bolster the healthcare sector with a particular emphasis on rural communities.

Super Health Centers offer essential health services, including database management, outpatient care, birthing, isolation, diagnostic (laboratory: x-ray, ultrasound), pharmacy, and ambulatory surgical unit. Other available services in Super Health Centers are eye, ear, nose, and throat (EENT) service, oncology centers, physical therapy and rehabilitation centers, and telemedicine.

Through the collective efforts of the DOH led by Secretary Teodoro Herbosa, local government units (LGUs), and fellow lawmakers, sufficient funds have been allocated under the DOH for the construction of 307 Super Health Centers in 2022, 322 in 2023, and 132 in 2024. As the lead implementing agency, DOH identifies the strategic areas where these Super Health Centers will be established.

There are 27 Super Health Centers funded for construction in Iloilo province.

Go also made it a point to acknowledge the presence and contributions of local officials, national agency representatives, and uniformed personnel. The senator thanked Congressman Michael Gorriceta, Mayor Laurence Gorriceta, and Vice Mayor Edsel Gerochi for welcoming him and for their commitment to the community.

During the activity, Go and his Malasakit Team also distributed grocery packs, meals, and balls for basketball and volleyball to 54 barangay health workers present during the inspection. Select individuals also received shoes.

Go then expressed concern for the well-being of the people and encouraged them to take advantage of additional assistance, particularly for health issues, by visiting the Malasakit Centers at West Visayas State University Medical Center, and Western Visayas Medical Center, both in Iloilo City, and Western Visayas Sanitarium and General Hospital in Santa Barbara.

The Malasakit Centers institutionalized through RA 11463 or the Malasakit Centers Act of 2019, are one-stop shops that enable various government agencies to collaborate and assist indigent patients with medical expenses.

Go is the principal author and sponsor of the Act, which paved the way for establishing 159 Malasakit Centers. According to the DOH, these centers are currently operational nationwide and have already assisted around ten million Filipinos.

Another Malasakit Center in the province is located at Don Jose S. Monfort Medical Center Extension Hospital in Barotac Nuevo.

“Sa mga pasyente, lapitan niyo lang ang Malasakit Center dahil para ‘to sa inyo. Kung may hospital bill kayo, nandiyan ang mga ahensya ng gobyerno na tutulong para mabayaran ito,” said Go.

Go also highlighted RA 11959, also known as the Regional Specialty Centers Act, which he principally sponsored and is one of the authors in the Senate. The Regional Specialty Centers Act played a pivotal role in the healthcare legislative agenda of the Marcos administration, as detailed in the Philippine Development Plan 2023 to 2028. The law mandates the establishment of Regional Specialty Centers within existing DOH regional hospitals.

Go, vice chairperson of the Senate Committee on Finance, also supported various projects in the province to contribute to its progress. These initiatives included the construction of multipurpose buildings in Barotac Viejo, completing different barangay health stations throughout Iloilo City, and constructing a multipurpose building in the Iloilo City Public Market.

Other significant initiatives he supported include the concreting or construction of roads in Badiangan, Banate, Carles, Dumangas, Lemery, Miag-ao, and Sara; completion of the barangay health stations in Leon; construction of a flood control system in Balasan; construction of a seawall in Banate; and construction of the legislative building complete with facilities in San Dionisio.

On the same day, Go joined the festivities at the Dinagyang Festival and distributed aid to recovering Typhoon Egay victims from Pavia, Zarraga, and Iloilo City.