After failing to receive the Seal of Good Local Governance in 2018, the city government will focus more on the improvement of the health sector.
Councilor Mary Joselle Villafuerte, head of the committee on health, said one factor affecting the grade of the city to receive the award is due to a lack of birthing facilities in most health clinics.
Health is among the criteria of the SGLG, along with disaster preparedness, social protection, peace and order, business-friendliness and competitiveness, environmental protection, tourism, culture and the arts, and education.
“It would be better if our health centers will all offer 3-in-1, primary care benefit package, maternity package and TB DOTS (Directly Observed Treatment Short course),” Villafuerte said on Tuesday.
They are also aiming to have at least one health center to provide additional assistance for animal bites.
In the report from the City Health Office, all 17 primary care benefit package-accredited health centers last year renewed their license in 2019.
Five out of 15 TB DOTS-accredited facilities also finished their license renewal while four health centers are still on process. The other six centers have yet to comply with requirements from the Department of Health for DOTS certification.
Health centers in Sasa and Garcia Heights are said to have not qualified for TB DOTS accreditation because of the limited space. They also lack a building for birthing home along with central and south district of Talomo and Jacinto.
Two health centers located in Paquibato and Marilog are also in an ongoing construction. “This is what the local health board are working on right now including the inventory of the 17 district health centers,” she added.
The CHO also formed the PhilHealth Task Force last September 2018 in all three districts to conduct inventory and assessment of all the facilities. They will be assisting all the facilities on the needed requirements from the DOH and PhilHealth.
