PATIENTS in the mountain barangays of Cebu City no longer need to travel to the Cebu City Medical Center or other hospitals in the lowland for minor ailments, as the newly renovated Guba Community Hospital finally opened on Monday, July 29, 2024, after years of delay.
The Department of Health (DOH), which funded the renovation project, targets to finish the second floor by November or December this year. If completed, the second floor can accommodate 10 more people.
The DOH allocated a budget of P20 million for the second floor.
Acting Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia led other city officials during the health facility’s inauguration on Monday.
The renovation of the facility began in 2019; however, several factors, such as the delayed acquisition of the building permit and the Covid-19 pandemic, caused the delay in the completion of the health facility, situated in Barangay Guba.
City Councilor Jocelyn Pesquera, chairperson of the health committee, said the hospital will soon be named North District Community Hospital. It will be operating as a Level 1 hospital, or an emergency hospital, which will provide initial clinical care and management to patients requiring immediate treatment, as well as primary care on prevalent diseases.
The hospital is licensed to cater to 10 patients a day: five in the outpatient department patients and another five in the Emergency Room.
Pesquera also announced the donation of a biomedical refrigerator by DOH for the Guba Community Hospital. This medical device will be capable of storing various biological samples in laboratory and clinical settings in the facility.
Currently, the hospital employs 50 medical personnel, including six doctors. New job openings will also be announced soon to ensure steady 24-hour operations to cater to patients.
In his speech, Garcia said the Guba Community Hospital is not just a transfer station.
“Hopefully, karong adlawa maoy sinugdanan nga kaning Guba Community Hospital will no longer be a transfer station (Hopefully, today marks the beginning of Guba Community Hospital no longer being just a transfer station), but will be a full-blown hospital that will cater to the medical needs of our constituents here in the mountain,” he said.
The Guba Community Hospital has been operating for more than 50 years already.
Aside from Garcia and Pesquera, Acting Vice Mayor Donaldo “Dondon” Hontiveros, City Councilors Francis Esparis and Noel Wenceslao and various medical practitioners, including the hospital’s medical director Grace Valdez and DOH representatives graced the inauguration. / with EHP