Tomas bans direct admission at CCMC

CEBU, Philippines – Mayor Tomas Osmeña has ordered the Cebu City Medical Center to stop accepting direct admissions.

Councilor Christopher Alix, chairman of the City Council committee on health, said Osmeña issued the executive order purposely to unload and de-clog CCMC and to “give force” to the city health department and barangay health centers.

“This would mean that out patient services of CCMC are already at City Health and the barangay health Centers, all admissions will therefore has to pass through the City Health,” Alix said.

With the order in place, Alix said only emergency cases and patients with recommendation from doctors of health centers will be accepted at CCMC.

Alix said the mayor’s order would mean the city would need at least 20 more doctors to augment the over 20 doctors currently serving at health centers in the city’s 80 barangays. The city would also need to provide health centers with more medicines now that out-patient services will be provided there.

The councilor said the city would need up to P10 million to fully make the new system efficient.

Earlier this week, Alix complained why his long requested P3.5 million worth of medicines has not been included in the city’s supplemental budgets. He said he hopes that his request would be included in the succeeding supplemental budgets.

Tinago barangay councilman Joel Garganera recently criticized City Hall for its alleged failure to see the importance of medicines and other basic services vis-à-vis the priority it is giving to road projects and developments at the South Road Properties. — Ferliza C. Contratista/JMO (THE FREEMAN)