CCMC to open by March 2019

CEBU, Philippines — Three years since the construction of the new Cebu City Medical Center (CCMC) has started, the new building’s first phase is now 91 percent complete.

Councilor Mary Ann de los Santos, deputy mayor for health matters, said three floors of the new CCMC will be operational by March 2019.

This was disclosed during the inspection and presentation of the progress report of the construction of the 10-story CCMC building yesterday.

De los Santos said seven of the 10 floors of the new structural framework of the hospital building have been completed.

“There is a substantial completion of phase one which is the structural itself and phase two is under process for implementation under negotiated procurement which comprises the following – utilities to include plumbing, electrical, fire protection, mechanical, communication lines, the architectural finishes which includes tiles, doors, windows, ceilings, paintings, and general façade of the building,” she told reporters.

The first floor is where the parking, septage treatment plant, laundry area and maintenance are located. Second floor will feature the emergency room and departments including pedia, internal medicine, OB-GY, surgery, isolation room, and organ imaging.

The third floor will have the out-patient, dialysis, hematology and oncology departments.

The fourth floor will house the operating rooms while the fifth to seventh floor are where the rooms will be found.

The city has yet to look for budget for the three remaining floors to reach the 10-story building.

De los Santos said the remaining nine percent of the first phase is the cementing and flooring which can be done along with the phase two of the project, which include pipe laying and cementing.

To recall, former mayor Michael Rama ordered the demolition of the 45-year-old hospital due to the old building’s severe damage after a 7.2 magnitude quake hit Central Visayas in 2013.

In February 2014, the city demolished the old CCMC building.

In June 2015, the city has given C.E. Padilla Construction, Inc., the go signal to start the construction of the first phase of the project amounting to P514 million.

However, de los Santos said the civil works of the CCMC building were suspended in June 2016 when the new administration found out that there was no building permit for the hospital.

She said the city government’s Department Engineering and Public Works and C.E. Padilla have already addressed their concerns on the engineering and technical aspects of the project.

The new 10-story hospital on a 1.2-hectare property is estimated to cost P1.5 billion.

De los Santos said the C.E. Padilla and the city government are processing for the P300-million phase two of the project since the contractor will proceed with the project under negotiated procurement.

“Phase two is under process under negotiated procurement. It’s a mode of procurement which is legal for as long as…it’s contiguous. The present contractor can proceed (with) the work. It will save a lot of time. It’s on the practical side that sila ang nakasugod and sila ang mohuman,” she said.

Before they started assuming the construction, she said the construction in July 2016 was 35 percent complete.

De los Santos thanked Mayor Tomas Osmeña, who also visited the area yesterday, for trusting her in supervising the project.

Osmeña, in a short speech, commended de los Santos and everyone who helped in addressing the “technical and legal difficulties” to proceed with the project since his administration did not start the project.

North District Representative Raul del Mar, for his part, vowed to assist the city government in seeking additional funding from the national government for the CCMC building. (FREEMAN)