Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ir ECG Na

P yates

Quezon City, Metro Manila

NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

320

House Bill No.

Introduced by Hon. ALAN 1 B. ECLEO

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Health is a fundamental right of every Filipino. As provided for in Section 15 Article 2
of the 1987 Philippine Constitution, “The State shall protect the right of the people and instill
health consciousness among them”. Pursuant to health being an established fundamental
right, this bill seeks to establish a Level II General Hospital in the Municipality of Basilisa,
Province of Dinagat Islands with one hundred (100) bed capacity and be known as Ruben E.
Ecleo Sr. General Hospital, to be under the full administrative and technical supervision of
the Department of Health (DOH)

This will be the first health facility in the Province of Dinagat Islands capable of
handling patients needing intensive care and immediate surgical care with the increased
capacity to take in patients all over the province. As all other health facilities in the island is
on a mere infirmary level status, the presence of specialist care such as an Adult Intensive
Care Unit, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and a High-risk Pregnancy Unit with a surgically-
capable team to handle trauma cases and cesarean section will greatly improve the health
outcomes and survivability of patients coming from the province.

Currently, all trauma, obstetric emergencies and critically ill patients are transported
by sea to Caraga Regional Hospital in mainland Surigao City in the neighboring Province of
Surigao del Norte. Meanwhile, critically ill patients needing specialized surgery are sent to
Southern Philippines Medical Center in Davao City. Sea travel from the island province of
Dinagat to Surigao del Norte ranges from 1.5 hours to 4 hours depending as to the port of
departure from the island, while travel by land from Surigao City to Davao City can take up to.
8 hours. Factoring in transporting patients by land from the Municipalities to the General
Hospitals, then to the nearest port, travel time alone proves to be one of the weakest links in
the chain of survival of these patients.

Service delayed is service denied. This delay is a factor in an increasing mortality
rate in the province. There are times when patient transport proves very difficult, especially
during bad weather conditions when sea travels are more often than not’ cancelled.
Moreover, transporting patients during these times would mean danger to the lives of the
patients and health personne! accompanying them. Since sea transport is not available 24
hours, the burden of having the patients transported after service hours is put on the
patient's families, as they need to secure a sea craft willing to travel during the wee hours of
the night. This is all on top of the high amount of out of pocket expenses the families need to
pay for chartered trips to Surigao City.


The Coronavirus pandemic has all the more highlighted the vulnerability of the
province and its capability in responding to health emergencies, as border controls such as
the “lockdowns” were put in place. Consequently, patients needing advanced care cannot be
easily transported to Surigao City as the receiving province is also controlling movement in
and out of the City. Moreover, the accompanying health personnel including the boat men
would also need to undergo a mandatory 14-day quarantine in a designated quarantine
facility upon return to the island, thus hampering their livelihood and comfort while further
complicating the facilitation of one patient transfer. This puts a strain on the Island's limited
human healthcare resources.

With this Level Il Health Facility in place, the province will be more self-reliant in
handling advanced and difficult health emergencies, providing a pool of health specialists
and experts within its borders that will help save lives in difficult times. The presence of
these specialists will also increase the level of care in the whole province through
subsequent staff training to uphold standards of practice per specialty. The more highly
trained personnel are available in the island, the more it will propagate a more competent
health workforce within the province. This gatekeeping mechanism will also aid in the
decongestion of the Caraga Regional Hospital in Surigao City from patients being referred
from Dinagat Islands.

The establishment of this Health Facility will increase the survival rate of people living
in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas as it will make medical services
accessible, available and affordable for the people of Dinagat Islands.

In view of the foregoing, the immediate approval of this bill is earnestly sought.

}
B. ECLEO

Representative, Ldng District of Dinagat Islands


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No.__ 320.

Introduced by Hon. ALAN 1 B. ECLEO

AN ACT PROVIDING FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A LEVEL Il GENERAL
HOSPITAL IN THE MUNICIPALITY OF BASILISA, PROVINCE OF DINAGAT
ISLANDS, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the
Philippines in Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Establishment of a Level Ii General Hospital in the Province
of Dinagat Islands. - There shall be established and maintained, under the direct
supervision of the Department of Health, a general hospital with Level I capacity in
the Municipality of Basilisa, Province of Dinagat Islands, to be known as the Ruben
E. Ecleo Sr. General Hospital.

SEC. 2. Appropriations. - The Secretary of Health shall immediately include
in the department's program the operationalization and maintenance of the Ruben E.
Ecleo Sr. General Hospital the initial funding of which shall be charged against the
current year’s appropriations of the Department of Health, and thereafter, the
succeeding funding such as but not limited to the amount necessary for the capital
outlay and the continued operation of the general hospital shall be included in the
annual General Appropriations Act.

SEC. 3. Implementing Rules and Regulations. Within six (6) months
following the effectivity of this Act, the Department of Health shall promulgate the
necessary rules and regulations for the effective implementation of this Act.

SEC. 4. Effectivity. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its
publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general circulation

Approved,