Improved outpatient facilities for CCMC

Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama meets with the doctors and staff of the Cebu City Medical Center after the inauguration of its newly renovated outpatient department.(CDN/JOANALISA BELSONDA)

The newly renovated outpatient department of the Cebu City Medical Center which is temporarily housed in the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) building on N. Bacalso Ave. is now open for public use.

Mayor Michael Rama, who just arrived from Australia, led yesterday’s blessing and inauguration.

Also blessed were the additional 15 hospital beds, an ambulance and a comfort lounge.

“CCMC will rise again. We are now undergoing a paradigm shift from temporary to permanent,” Rama said.

The newly renovated OPD has a registration and triage, internal medicine, pediatrics, surgery, ob-gyne, dental and electrocardiogram sections.

The registration and triage section has  two computer units which stores the patient’s medical records.

CCMC administrator Rey Cris Panugaling said that there will be an additional 24 hospital beds coming.

The ambulance, which was purchased using the city government’s disaster funds, costs P1.5 million.

The new CCMC comfort lounge, which can accommodate 20 patients, was donated by the family of Roberto Rago under the People-Privately-Driven Governance (PPDG).

Rev. Fr. Kyle Tabotabo led the blessing of the new CCMC facilities.

As this developed, the BFP-7 wants to utilize the rooms located on the second floor of the BFP building.

On April 14, Senior Supt. Erlinda Tobias, BFP-7 officer in charge, wrote to then CCMC hospital chief Dr. Gloria Duterte regarding their intention to utilize the rooms on the second floor.

But they did not receive a reply.

F03 Wendell Villanueva, BFP-7 deputy officer for public information, said on June 17, they planed to go the BFP building to occupy the rooms on the second floor.

But Cebu City Administrator Lucelle Mercado and Panugaling met with the BFP-7 officials and asked them to defer their plan to occupy the second floor of the building.

They are set to have another meeting within the week.

Villanueva said the rooms on the second floor were vacant before they sent a letter to Duterte in April.

However, after the hospital management received the letter, they placed   medical  equipment and supplies  in the rooms.

BFP-7 intends to use the rooms as quarters for the in-house firefighters.

As of now, they are renting an apartment in Zapatera.

Villanueva also expressed surprise at the city government’s  renovations and improvements in the temporary hospital housed in their building as it appeared like they were permanently setting up shop in the BFP building.

When asked about BFP’s request, Rama said he cannot give his comments because he has yet to receive a copy of the request.

CCMC transferred its operations to the BFP building after its old building was declared unfit for occupancy following the October 2013 earthquake./WITH UP CEBU INTERN MARY CLAIRE U. CATADO