Governor Patrick Alain T. Azanza last week sought the support of the Catanduanes Development Council for the immediate improvement of facilities and services of the 53-year-old Eastern Bicol Medical Center (EBMC).
The chief executive’s call was made during the 3rd Quarter Meeting of the council last Aug. 6, 2025 to discuss vital development priorities and policy directions for the province, including the status of the programs and projects under the 20% Development Fund, the realignment of 20% DF infrastructure projects, the endorsement of Supplemental Annual Investment Program (AIP) No. 3 for Calendar Year 2025, and the reorganization of the CDC and the Provincial Project Monitoring Committee (PPMC).
A bill has been filed by Congressman Eulogio R. Rodriguez in Congress requesting the reversion of EBMC to the control of the Department of Health (DOH), to which Secretary Teodoro Herbosa has reportedly expressed no objections in an earlier discussion with the governor.
The transition will require more than a year due to the lengthy legislative process in the Lower House, the Senate and Malacañang, Azanza stressed as he underscored the need for a short-term plan that could be implemented immediately.
In a meeting with the Local Finance Committee and EBMC management last Friday, however, the governor seriously took into consideration the recommendation that the present status of the provincial hospital as an economic enterprise as its operation is already earning revenue.
“We cannot let Catandunganons suffer any longer. That is why we are initiating these improvements now to ensure that our constituents receive the care and service they deserve,” the governor emphasized to the CDC.
The day after the council meeting, technical personnel from the Provincial Engineering Office and staff of the Provincial Health Office (PHO) presented to Azanza a three-phase replacement construction plan for the hospital, with groundbreaking targeted in the last quarter of 2025.
The proposed P440-million, three-story facility to be built on the same site is designed to be a state-of-the-art 300-bed hospital, aimed at upgrading EBMC from a Level 2 to a tertiary-level medical facility.
Azanza has already announced that P200 million has been secured for the first two phases, with funding for the final phase already pledged by several senators.
The P100-million Phase 1 will relocate the Emergency Room adjacent to laboratory and diagnostic services building now under construction, with the left wing to house ancillary and diagnostic services, including Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), ultrasound, medical X-ray facilities, and emergency rooms.
It will also include nurses’ stations, a birthing facility (for both surgical and obstetrical services), pathology and neonatal (premature) rooms, a pharmacy, a dental clinic, and other surgical and obstetrical units.
The P100-million Phase 2 be allocated to the Outpatient Department, low-risk recovery areas and a dialysis center while Phase 3 will replace the main building with a modern facility housing administrative offices, a chapel, canteen, and patient support services area to serve as a a one-stop shop to streamline the Medical Assistance to Indigents and Financially Incapacitated Patients Program (MAIFIPP), integrating services such as PhilHealth, PCSO, DSWD, and the Malasakit Center.
The main building will also include a sputum collection room, waste holding room, housekeeping, admission office, chapel, waiting lounge, canteen, reception and information counter, and general administrative services.
The entire third floor in all phases will be designated for admitted patients, with rooms classified based on the severity and type of illness, while patients with contagious diseases will be accommodated in a dedicated isolation ward.
The upper floor will also connect to spaces to be leased to affiliate medical doctors within the hospital.
Behind the main building, a laundry unit and a medical waste thermal pyrolysis plant will be installed to treat various types of hospital waste to reduce the operational expense for waste collection and disposal pegged at P10 million annually.
The new administration also plans to utilize solar power for the hospital, install a rainwater catchment basin beneath the proposed fountain.
“Unang hakbang pa lang ito para sa pagbabago. Marami pang kasunod,” said Gov. Azanza, who also vowed to evaluate and upgrade district hospitals in the province.
“Natuwa ako dahil may mga nakita akong masisipag at dedicated na doctors, health at admin workers sa EBMC. Sa kanila tayo huhugot ng pag-asa. Sila ang makakatulong natin sa pagbabago sa EBMC,” he said in commending hospital staff.
A recent inspection led by the chief executive has revealed overcrowding, structural deficiencies, and management lapses.
Acting on inefficiencies in the hospital’s medicine procurement, Azanza said the current system will be replaced with a consignment-based model involving multiple suppliers.
Under this system, EBMC will only pay for medicines actually used, reducing unnecessary expenditures, eliminating the need for large cash advances, limiting outside purchases and preventing potential conflicts of interest.
To speed up repairs, a donation drive was launched by the provincial government, with individuals and organizations encouraged to adopt a ward with packages ranging from P180,000 to P680,000.
The ward improvements involve the repair of toilets and roots, repainting, installation of airconditioning units or fans and other equipment.