In celebration of program’s 5th year with 154 centers established nationwide

SENATOR Christopher “Bong” Go hailed the notable success of the Malasakit Centers program as he celebrated its fifth year anniversary by visiting Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC) in Cebu City, where the first-ever Malasakit Center in the country was established in 2018.

In his speech, Go shared that personally witnessing the struggles of financially incapacitated Filipinos to get affordable healthcare has propelled him to pursue, to the best of his capacity, initiatives that will strengthen the country’s health sector.

For this reason, even before becoming a senator, Go initiated the Malasakit Centers program in 2018 as Special Assistant to then president Rodrigo Duterte. The first center was established in VSMMC on February 12 of the said year.

The senator envisioned the Malasakit Center as a one-stop shop where concerned agencies, such as the Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Health, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, are brought together under one roof to ensure government medical assistance programs are within the reach of particularly poor and indigent patients.

“Simula noong ako ay nagtrabaho para kay (dating Davao City) Mayor (Rodrigo) Duterte noong 1998, nakita ko na ang daming humihingi sa kanya ng tulong kahit hindi sila taga-Davao. Kahit po mga taga-Cebu, humihingi rin ng tulong medikal kay (dating) pangulong Duterte. Ubos ang oras nila sa kakahingi ng tulong sa iba’t ibang opisina,” shared Go.

“Kaya itinaguyod natin ang Malasakit Center para sa mga Pilipino. Bakit natin pahihirapan ang Pilipino? Eh pera naman nila yan. Basta Pilipino ka, kwalipikado ka sa Malasakit Center. Walang pinipili yang programa na Malasakit Center,” he stressed.

Once he became senator, Go successfully pushed for the institutionalization of the program under Republic Act No. 11463, which he principally authored and sponsored, and was subsequently signed by former president Duterte in 2019.

Since the first Malasakit Center was established five years ago, there are now 154 such centers that have helped more than seven million Filipinos nationwide according to the DOH, of which more than 700,000 patients were helped by the center at VSMMC.

Aside from VSMMC, other Malasakit Centers in the province are located at St. Anthony Mother & Child Hospital, also in Cebu City; Eversley Childs Sanitarium Hospital in Mandaue City; Lapu-Lapu District Hospital; Cebu South Medical Center in Talisay City; and Cebu Provincial Hospital in Carcar City.

“Kung kinakailangan n’yo ng tulong sa mga pasyente na kinakailangang operahan sa Maynila, sabihan n’yo lang ang aking opisina. Tutulungan namin kayo sa inyong pagpapaospital. Bukas ang aking opisina para sa inyo. Magkapitbahay lang tayo. Bisaya tayo pareho,” offered Go.

“Huwag po kayong magpasalamat sa amin, kami po ang dapat magpasalamat sa inyo dahil binigyan n’yo kami ng pagkakataon na mag-serbisyo sa inyo. Kaya naman hinding-hindi ko sasayangin ang pagkakataon na ito at patuloy ko kayong pagseserbisyuhan sa abot ng aking makakaya,” he continued.

As part of the anniversary celebration, Go also provided relief items, such as grocery packs, vitamins, masks, meals, umbrellas, and shirts to 441 VSMMC employees and 13 patients. The senator also gave away bicycles, cellular phones, shoes, and watches to select beneficiaries.

“Nais ko rin pong pasalamatan ang ating mga medical frontliners na nandito po ngayon. Maraming salamat sa inyong patuloy na sakripisyo at pag-aalaga sa lahat ng pasyente dito sa VSMMC,” expressed Go.

“Naiintindihan ko po kung gaano kabigat ang inyong trabaho, pero pakiusap ko rin po sa inyo na huwag ninyong pabayaan ang mahihirap. Yung mga hopeless at helpless, wag natin silang pabayaan dahil kinakailangan nila tayo. Ako naman po ay patuloy na susuporta sa inyo sa abot ng aking makakaya,” he encouraged.

Meanwhile, a team from the DSWD likewise provided financial assistance to the hospital workers and patients.

Furthermore, apart from those who received assistance during the event, the DSWD conducted an assessment where more frontliners and patients may be given support in the following days.

Go also commended VSMMC for their service and recognitions received. In 2019, the VSMMC received two international awards, including “Dr. Kwang Tae Kim Grand Hospital Bronze Award” and the “Seddiqi Holding Excellence for Corporate Social Responsibility Award”, during the International Hospital Federation’s (IHF) 44th World Hospital Congress in Barcelona, Spain.

In line with his commitment to provide greater access to basic health services, Go also supported the establishment of more Super Health Centers nationwide, including one in Talisay City, the groundbreaking of which he likewise personally witnessed on the same day.

Advocated by Go, Super Health Centers are medium versions of polyclinics and are bigger than rural health units, which offer basic services such as out-patient, birthing, isolation, diagnostic (laboratory: x-ray, ultrasound), pharmacy, and ambulatory surgical unit. Other services include eye, ear, nose, and throat (EENT) service; oncology centers; physical therapy and rehabilitation center; and telemedicine, among others.

Through Go’s efforts, sufficient funds had been allocated under the 2022 Health Facilities Enhancement Program for the construction of some 307 Super Health Centers. As Vice Chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, he was likewise successful in pushing for additional funds under the 2023 budget to support the construction of more SHCs in other parts of the country.

On the same day, Go also led another relief operation for more struggling Cebuanos in Talisay City.