South Cotabato Governor Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. is pushing for another major expansion of the provincial hospital in Koronadal City to further address its overcrowding problem.
Tamayo said Monday they are working for the construction of a new building for the hospital at a portion of the province’s Productivity and Technology or ProTech Center compound.
He said the provincial board has approved an ordinance early this month declaring some 2,332 square meters within the Protech Center site as an expansion area for the provincial hospital.
The expansion site is adjacent to the provincial hospital compound, which was already considered congested due to completed and ongoing developments. Capitol owns the property.
“This is part of our efforts to improve the services at the provincial hospital so it can properly cope with the increasing number of patients,” Tamayo said in a statement.
Tamayo implemented in July last year the free hospitalization program for all residents availing the services of the provincial hospital.
The move, which was a campaign promise of the first-term governor, sought to complement Republic Act 11223 or the Universal Health Care (UHC) Law. South Cotabato province is one of the 33 pilot implementing sites in the country for the UHC.
The provincial hospital is a Level 2 facility and with a listed capacity of 200 beds. In 2019, its average bed occupancy rate reached 212.56 percent or equivalent to 425.12 patients per day.
The Department of Health approved last year around PHP200 million for the construction of a four-level expansion building within the hospital compound. (PNA)
