No supplies in hospital

If you seek medical attention in the emergency room of the government-run Mandaue City Hospital, be ready to buy your own plaster, syringes, and cotton balls.

The facility has “dwindling-to-zero” hospital supplies, said hospital chief Dr. Dominga Obenza yesterday because their operating budget for the 3rd and 4th quarters worth P5.379 million was not yet released by City Hall.

The hospital chief said the problem would become more crucial once they cater to emergencies during the holiday season when firecracker blast victims walk in.

“Maybe patients will have to buy their own Betadine,” Obenza said.

Mandaue Mayor Jonas Cortes said he would ask his staff for the speedy procurement of supplies because Supplemental Budget No.5, containing the hospital budget, was already approved early this month. But whether the hospital budget was among the items carried is still being debated by the executive and legislative department.

“The doctors are available, the medical attention you need will be given but when it comes to logistical support, it will be prescribed to the patient mostly,” said Obenza. She was referring to basic items such as plasters, syringes, and antiseptic like Betadine.

Although the hospital has enough medicine and drugs such as antibiotics, Obenza said non-drug supplies at the hospital are no longer available.

Of the P5.3 million hospital budget, P2.5 million is earmarked for “medical, dental and laboratory supplies expenses”. The balance is for personal services like salaries and benefits (P443,000) and maintenance and other operating expenses like food supplies, utilities, and services for laundry, janitors and security.

As of Tuesday, Obenza said the 41-bed Mandaue City Hospital is fully occupied in its wards, two private rooms, and four semi-private rooms.

At the emergency room, patients have to buy their own items or settle for unused supplies left by other patients, she said.

Most of the patients buy their own medicines, according to the hospital chief, depending on the availability of the prescribed drugs.

“Until we get a new budget, we will (also) be prescribing our patients to buy supplies,” she added. “We will not drive away emergency patients even if our hospital is full. Until the patient is stable, that is when we ask them to transfer to another hospital because we can no longer accommodate them.”

“As much as we want to purchase the supplies, we cannot even if the budget is approved or not because of the time element,” Obenza said.

Mayor Cortes criticized the system of budgeting in the hospital which is done quarterly instead of a yearly plan. “This (quarterly budgeting) will be something we will change for next year. I have asked the hospital to prepare a budget that is good for one year.”

“I have been saying this since day one that I will prioritize basic services such as hospital services, so I will change the system next year,” Cortes said.

The opposition-led City Council said SB No. 5 did not have an approved budget for hospital supplies after the mayor had vetoed the version approved by the legislature.

The mayor prepared a total of P62 million for SB 5 in November but the Council approved only P48 million in December. The Council slashed several items in the budget but the mayor overturned it through a line veto.

Vice Mayor Carlo Fortuna said he believed the mayor “killed” some items in the hospital's budget after he vetoed the slashed SB No.5 version of the City Council.

Source:globalnation.inquirer.net