By Mar T. Supnad
DINALUPIHAN, Bataan – The municipal government of Dinalupihan is not taking any chances insofar as its health agenda is concerned.
Even with a global pandemic eating so much attention of and resources of the government, Dinalupihan Mayor Gila Garcia cited the need to sustain its programs and services to fight tuberculosis, an antecedent cause of COVID-19.
In an online regional media forum organized by Department of Health and the United States Agency for International Development TB Platforms in partnership with Philippine Information Agency, Mayor Garcia stressed that the pandemic should not hinder local government units on delivering its health services to their constituents.
Garcia cited that the launching of their Satellite Treatment Center (STC) in the town in 2015 as a huge contribution to their tuberculosis response. It added that STC went farther and benefitted patients from adjoining localities.
“I think the STC really helped us in our tuberculosis program this pandemic because we have sustained the performance of the facility-based screening plus the intensive case findings. So even with the COVID-19, since we set up in place our tuberculosis programs, we have observed that we really can sustain it,” she explained.
The local chief executive also shared that the support system received by patients contributed to their fast treatment due to socio-economic and psychosocial factors tackled by their programs.
“The STC conducted various outing activities with families so we have seen that it’s not just the patients we need to help, but also need to let their families understand that the support of the community is equally important to make the treatment program a success,” the mayor said.
Garcia emphasized that the town has an active and enhanced community case findings wherein previous tuberculosis patients including their families are being backtracked by the health personnel and volunteers.
“Our municipality has three rural health units. We have 46 barangays, and we are very fortunate that we have six doctors. So the ratio is, one doctor for every 6,000 households,” she revealed
Lastly, Garcia assured that amid the influx of COVID-19 patients in public hospitals, poor residents are provided with free medical health services.
“Since our hospitals are mostly occupied by COVID-19 cases, our provincial and municipal government signed a memorandum of agreement with private hospitals in Bataan. All indigent residents who can’t be accommodated by public hospitals are admitted at private hospitals for free,” she said.
Other best practices Garcia pitched are nutrition programs among the children, anti-tobacco campaign, sector-specific screening, among other programs.