Davao de Oro - Governor Dorothy Montejo-Gonzaga, on Monday, December 12, 2022, led the groundbreaking ceremony to officially start the construction of the P10-M worth of 1-storey Provincial Medicine Warehouse located at the Provincial Capitol Complex, Nabunturan.
Governor Gonzaga, in her speech, expressed gratitude to the Department of Health (DOH) through the Davao Center for Health Development (DCHD) and the Provincial Health Office (PHO) for the support provided in the realization of the building, as well as her plans to extend aid so that the construction will be finished on time.
PHO head Dr. Antonio P. Ybiernas said in his message that the building will serve as a satellite office that will improve the day-to-day operations of PHO as well as a storage facility for commodities including medicines and vaccines.
"Duna pud ni syay gamay opisina para sa atoang supply officer para ila gyung mabantayan ang atoang mga commodities... para pud ang atong katawhan dili na magproblema kung unsay mga tambal o vaccines nga gikinahanglanon" Dr. Ybiernas said.
Meanwhile, DCHD Regional Director Dr. Annabelle P. Yumang was also present during the ceremony emphasizing in her message the necessity for a warehouse in times of emergencies.
"Remember during the Bagyong Pablo, there are lot of people na gusto mu-donate sa atoa but wala tay mabutangan, we only have tents. We should not wait for another calamity that we come to realize nga need nato ang warehouse" Dr. Yumang said.
Dr. Yumang added that a series of training will be given to the supply officers who will look after the supplies including proper temperature requirements to avoid contamination from pests. She also hopes for support from the Provincial Engineering Office (PEO) for the maintenance and monitoring of the building.
Further, in a one-on-one interview with Dr. Ybiernas, he also stressed that more projects await the constituents including the construction of Super Health Centers from DOH that are set to rise in strategic locations of the province providing specialized health services at the local scale. Such provisions may include an outpatient department, laboratory, x-ray, ultrasound, birthing services, diagnostic, blood chemistry, and dental services, among others.
Present also at the ceremony were Acting Provincial Administrator Fatima Montejo, DMO-DOH Representative Dr. Annie Larosa, Asst. PHO PG Heads Dr. Mary Cyrel Pasaol and Dr. Abigail Amores, Engr. Moises John Fortulazo of Heavy John Engineering Consultancy and other PG Heads of the provincial government, together with the PHO, PDOHO, and PEO staff, where they showed their support in strengthening the healthcare delivery in the province. (J. Fernandez, Photos by A. Dayao)