Delos Santos vows to champion health care services in Cebu City

MINERVA BC NEWMAN

CEBU CITY—Mary Ann Delos Santos, aspiring to be elected as councilor of Cebu City this May 9 elections vowed to champion health care services in the City and to continue with the unfinished business, she started at the City Council.

"As you can see when I started in 2013 as councilor, my advocacy was on health. And even when I already joined the BOPK in 2016, I continue to advocate for health. So, this for me, this run, is my unfinished business," De los Santos said, in a press conference Thursday.

Delos Santos, in her two consecutive terms as City Councilor from 2013 to 2019, earned the reputation as the fiercest fiscalizer in the city's legislative branch. She has already accomplished so much at this point of her political career but she refused to rest on her laurels.

Delos Santos is more determined now to her "unfinished business" which is to provide the Cebu City residents with a stronger, more efficient, and integrated health care system.  This is her battle-cry in her bid to reclaim a seat at the Cebu City Council in the May 9, 2022 elections.

She bared that for one, the Cebu City Medical Center is not fully operational and not fully equipped. It should have the MRI, CT scan, ultrasound, X-ray diagnostic and the most important is to have complete health specialists.

De los Santos emphasized on the need to focus on and strengthen the two departments, the City Health, which is the preventive aspect, and the CCMC which is the curative aspect.   The City Health must be strengthened through the Barangay health centers. 

Barangay Health Centers must also be equipped with ultrasound, X-ray and other diagnostic equipment for easy and efficient health access of the barangay residents at their levels, no need to go to the hospitals for earlier primary health care, Delos Santos added.

She recalled that during the pandemic, it was very difficult to be admitted in hospitals, hence Delos Santos wants to strengthen and equip the barangay health workers so that sick people, especially those bed-ridden can be monitored and are given immediate care.

De los Santos highlighted the importance of the curative aspect, which is the hospital. She said her mission is to upgrade the services and equipment at the CCMC similar to the services in private hospitals in the City.

"You've heard of UP-PGH, it's a very good hospital. That's a public hospital. Why can't we not make Cebu City like that. It's a training hospital, CCMC is a training hospital, so why can’t we get the best consultants, the best, because it's a training hospital. So that should be the thrust," Delos Santos added.

Delos Santos went on that a very strong and efficient health system is the primary concern of a city and education is the secondary thrust.  “Give me a very strong health system and I give you a strong city. With an efficient and effective healthcare program, everything will just follow." She added.

For now, De los Santos said her vision-mission is really to change the definition of health from medical to an integrated healthcare services, no matter what kind of sickness or disease one has—high blood, hypertension, heart disease, diabetes or cancer.

She noted that the pandemic has changed the world, so many deaths, people became jobless and depressed.  The definition of health now is integrated, both mental and medical wellness and well-being.

Delos Santos continued that the pandemic is not done yet, and everyone must brace themselves and “I want the people of Cebu City to be ready physically, mentally, emotionally and psychologically. That's how health should be strengthened this time."

De los Santos recalled that during her second term as councilor in 2016, she sponsored the mental health ordinance creating a Barangay Behavioral Health Unit in every barangay within the city of Cebu.

She revealed that Barangay Lahug is the only barangay out of the 80 barangays in Cebu City that has a BBHU complete with a psychiatrist, a psychologist, and a social worker. It's the first of its kind in the country.

The biggest challenge for De los Santos is to complete the unfinished work on health care system at the barangay level once given the chance to sit again at the Cebu City Council. (Photos: Robby Alugar/Brgy.Lahug FB)