GENERAL SANTOS CITY (MindaNews / 3 Sept) – The city government is moving to fast-track the ongoing construction of an P81-million building of the local government-run Dr. Jorge P. Royeca Hospital.
Mayor Ronnel Rivera said he has instructed the hospital administration, through its new department head Gabriel Francis Glenville Gonzales, to ensure that the construction works will be expedited to facilitate timely completion of the project.
He said the new building, with the first phase earlier targeted for completion this year, will increase the hospital’s capacity by an additional 100 beds.
It will complement with the continuing improvements of the hospital’s key facilities, the latest of which was the renovation of the obstetrics and gynecology (OB-Gyne) ward and the high-risk pregnancy unit.
The mayor and other city officials formally reopened the two facilities Monday that he described as “essential improvements that the city hospital should have.”
He cited that the facility, on a daily basis, attends to as many as 700 patients coming from the city, Sarangani province and other neighboring areas.
“If our rooms and facilities are now not enough, we will not be able to cater to them,” Rivera said in a statement.
With the opening of the newly-renovated OB-Gyne ward and the high-risk pregnancy unit, he said the hospital may now accommodate more pregnant mothers and ensure the smooth delivery of their babies.
Aside from these, the city hospital also launched its improved digital records and identification system for its patients.
These information systems will allow better management and monitoring of the hospital’s patients.
The city government started in September last year the construction of the first two levels of the city hospital’s new building, which will mainly house a state-of-the-art intensive care unit, additional operating room complex, labor and delivery rooms and other specialized units.
The project, which was originally designed as a two-level structure but expanded to five levels, has a projected development cost of P200 million. (MindaNews)