ZAMBOANGA CITY, (PNA) -– Department of Health (DOH) Secretary Dr. Enrique Ona visited this city Tuesday to check on the plight of the evacuees as well as the status of the government-run health facilities.
“We want to look at the whole aspect of health care. The major concerns such as supply, staffing and I’m glad to see that it is okay and things are under control,” Ona said in an interview, citing “the medical staffs are there and offering complete services.”
Upon his arrival here, Dr. Ona visited the government-run health facilities like the Zamboanga City Medical Center (ZCMC) and Mindanao Central Sanitarium as well as the evacuees at the Mayor Joaquin Enriquez Memorial Sports Complex and Zamboanga National High School (ZNHS)-west.
The DOH chief said the agency is partnering closely with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) in attending to the needs of the evacuees.
Ona personally checked on the damages incurred by the ZCMC during the standoff that started when hundreds of Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) rebels infiltrated this city last September 9.
Among the facilities that were damaged at the ZCMC are the power house, water tank, perimeter fence, hospital’s roof, and the P60-million Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scan machine, which was purchased by the local government.
Ona also visited Barangay Sta. Catalina, one of the sites of the fierce firefight between the government forces and the MNLF rebels.
Meanwhile, Ona said he envisioned that the agency could render faster health assistance in the future as well as to “make sure everybody is given the necessary health care assistance.”
The Health chief met with Mayor Ma. Isabelle Climaco-Salazar and assured the latter of continuing support in terms of supply, manpower, and effort to prevent the emergence of diseases.