Committed to bringing gov’t medical services closer to Filipinos in need, Senator Christoper “Bong” personally led the groundbreaking of the Mawab Super Health Center in Davao de Oro Friday.

In his speech, Go expressed optimism that the health facility will benefit the whole community especially those in far-flung areas.

He thanked the various partners who had come together to make the project a reality, including the Department of Health and local officials, such as Congressman Ruwel Peter Gonzaga, Governor Dorothy Gonzaga, Mayor Ruperto Gonzaga III and Vice Mayor Ruprio Gonzaga, among others.

The senator went on to explain that the Super Health Center will offer a wide range of health services, such as database management, out-patient, birthing, isolation, diagnostic (laboratory: x-ray, ultrasound), pharmacy, and ambulatory surgical unit, more accessible to Filipino patients.

Other available services in Super Health Centers are eye, ear, nose and throat service; oncology centers; physical therapy and rehabilitation center; and telemedicine, where remote diagnosis and treatment of patients will be done.

To efficiently address the growing need for quality healthcare in the country, Go, together with fellow legislators, advocated for funding the construction of some 307 Super Health Centers across the country in 2022. He has also successfully pushed for additional funds in the 2023 health budget to ensure additional Super Health Centers are constructed in other parts of the country.

In 2022, Super Health Centers in Davao de Oro commenced construction in Montevista and Nabunturan, the groundbreaking for both of which were witnessed by the senator earlier. This year, Super Health Centers will also be established in Maco, Monkayo, and Compostela, the groundbreaking for which he personally attended last 4 February.

Go also conducted a monitoring visit to one of the country’s 156 Malasakit Centers located at the Romblon Provincial Hospital in the town of Odiongan last Thursday,17 March.

The center is a one-stop shop that houses representatives from the Department of Social Welfare and Development, Department of Health, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office to help financially incapacitated patients reduce their hospital expenses to the lowest amount possible.

A brainchild of Go, the Malasakit Centers program was institutionalized under Republic Act 11463, which he principally authored and sponsored in the Senate. To date, the 156 operational centers have helped more than seven million Filipinos nationwide according to the DoH.

During the visit, several officials accompanied the senator, including Romblon Governor Otik Riano, Odiongan Mayor Trina Fabic, and Provincial Health Officer Dr. Marcus Lino Viola, and Medical Center Chief of Romblon Provincial Hospital Dr. Benedict Anatalio, among others.