3 more super health centers to rise in Taguig this year

MANILA, Philippines - The Taguig City government said Wednesday that it will build three more "Super Health Centers" in several strategic places in the city.

Taguig Mayor Lani Cayetano said these health centers will be open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and will provide free medical services to the people of Taguig.

“I believe that keeping our constituents healthy enables them to be more productive and as a result, allows them to enjoy a better quality life,” Mayor Lani said.

There is already an operational one-story Super Health Center which now stands in Barangay Ligid-Tipas and is run by a medical team composed of a doctor, a nurse, a midwife and two trained barangay health workers.

Another four-story Super Health Center has been completed in North Signal Village and is set to be inaugurated on the founding anniversary of Taguig on April 20.

The three additional health centers, which will be constructed this year, will rise in the city's most populous barangays of Central Bicutan, North Daanghari and San Miguel.

Cayetano said the project intends to decongest the Taguig-Pateros District Hospital (TPDH) by focusing its services to primary health cases or those that are low-risk, less serious or uncomplicated cases, thereby leaving the city hospital free to concentrate on the more serious and complicated ones.

She said that the Super Health Centers will offer the same services, although on a more limited scale, as any regular hospital thus leading authorities to call them "mini hospitals.”

Aside from being accessible to all needy patients 24-hours, 7-days  a week, the mini hospitals will be equipped with the most basic facilities and provide free laboratory, dental, breastfeeding, as well as birthing or child delivery and ambulance services, just like an ordinary hospital.

The Super Health Centers will provide the most it can for all residents of Taguig without resorting to any discount card similar to one distributed by the past administration just so they could avail of free medical attention.

Cayetano added that the services offered by the Super Health Centers will be felt more by working mothers or parents who have day jobs and are usually home by nightfall.

The Super Health Center has now three groups working on a daily rotation basis for rest and to enable them to deliver better service to the patients.

Cayetano said that one of her administration's priorities is providing quality healthcare to the city's residents.