General Santos City Hospital opens new facilities

By Michelle Ann Gonzales

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (31 May 2014) - After almost a decade of not being used, the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of General Santos City District Hospital (GSCDH) has now re-opened its doors to the citizens of GenSan and other neighboring towns.

On Tuesday (May 28), City Mayor Ronnel Rivera with City First Lady Jane Rivera and Department of Health (DOH) Regional Assistant Director Francisco Mateo led the opening ceremony of GSCDH's newest facilities.

The district hospital's ICU can accommodate three patients with severe general or surgical cases. It is equipped with three latest ventilators, 12 infusion pumps, Electro Cardio Gram machine and other ICU apparatus.

Aside from the ICU, GSCDH has also opened two newly-functional Obstetrics and Gynecologist ward with 36 beds. There are now 63 beds for the whole Ob-Gyne section of GSCDH.

For many years, hospital congestion has been one of the ailing problems of GSCDH where it is not uncommon for three patients to share a single bed.

With the additional beds and modern facilities, Mayor Rivera is hopeful that this will address the problems of the patients

"I am downhearted every time I see our patients share in a single rusty bed. Since we started running this city, we have tapped national agencies, companies and even international organizations to help us with our needs," Rivera said.

The city mayor also emphasized that proper hospital management is a key towards a satisfying public health service.

"Modern facilities and equipment would be very useless if we don't have responsible and excellent people to administer, guide and manage our undertakings," Mayor Rivera said.

In his pursuit to improve GSDCH's operation, Rivera has also requested the DOH Hospital Management Information System (HOMIS) Bureau to help the hospital in computerizing all flows and transactions.

"The DOH will continually support the endeavors of the city. With the request of Mayor Rivera, HOMIS is now beginning to coordinate with General Santos City District Hospital," Director Mateo announced.

Rivera has been advocating health care accessibility especially for the poor. In his city development agenda, he is prioritizing health along with education and modified social services. (GENSAN CPIO/ Michelle Ann Gonzales)