BY JOEL P. MAPILES
CANDABA, Pampanga — “It’s a Candabenios’ dream come true.”
So stressed Mayor Rene Maglanque who made true to his promise as the municipal government initiated yesterday the groundbreaking and construction of P12-million Candaba Community Hospital.
The Candaba Community Hospital will rise in a 6.7 hectare land owned by the municipality along the Pansol road in Barangay Pasig, this town
According to Maglanque, the Sangguniang Bayan sponsored by Councilor Linda “Donya” Salac seconded by Councilor Thelma Macapagal concurred by all the members has initially approved and funded the project with amount of P5.5- million for the Phase 1, then, an additional budget of more than P6-million will be allotted for the second phase of the project.
“I am very much thankful to the members of the Sangguniang Bayan as we shared the same dream – the rise of a community hospital which will cater to the medical and health needs of thousands of Candabenos especially the indigents,” the mayor said.
The mayor said they need the guidance and approval of the Department of Health for its operation. “We are happy that the DOH has approved the permit to construct a hospital, eventually, we will ask them the permit to operate upon its completion,” he said.
Initially, the municipal government will hire three doctors, nurses, midwives and other personnel whose salaries will be shouldered by the municipal government.
“We will also allot funds for its daily operations. This will not be used for free as it has to survive and operate on its own,” the mayor explained.
However, Maglanque said the municipal government will provide guarantee letter or financial assistance to those who are in need based on the assessment of the medical social worker.
The mayor said for so many years, Candaba, one of the 1st class municipalities in the province with more than 32,000 hectares of land and 102,399 population as of 2010 census has no hospital of its own.
“Dinadala namin ang mga maysakit lalo na kung emergency case, kung hindi sa Baliwag, Bulacan, sa San Miguel, Bulacan, sa Gapan, Nueva Ecija, sa San Luis, sa Mexico, sa Arayat and as far as the City of San Fernando which is 20 kilometer away from Candaba. It’s about time for Candaba to stand up, dream and realize a hospital of its own,” Maglanque said.
The community hospital which will start as a level 1 hospital or emergency hospital will treat cases that require immediate treatment and will provide primary care for prevalent disease in the area.
He added the hospital will also cater general medicine, pediatrics, minor surgeries, and non-surgical gynecology; primary clinical laboratory, pharmacy and first level radiology
and nursing care for patients needing minimal supervised care.
Aside from the mayor, the groundbreaking was also witnessed by Councilors Salac, Macapagal, Michael V. Sagum, Charina Sombillo, Luis Pelayo, businessmen Rey Turla, Ben Lapuz, Jaime Sale, department heads and employees of the municipal government and majority of the barangay captains.
