COTABATO CITY – Two bills seeking to “convert and upgrade hospital facilities” in Lanao del Sur have been introduced to the plenary.

Parliament Bill No. 99 or Conversion of Tamparan District Hospital (TDH) to Provincial Hospital Act of 2021 and Parliament Bill No. 102 or Balindong Hospital Upgrade Act of 2021 were the two proposed bills. 

Dr. Saffrulah Dipatuan, author of these bills, recognized the need to improve healthcare services in the region, particularly in Lanao del Sur. 

The Tamparan District Hospital will be converted into a Lanao del Sur Provincial Hospital under PB No. 99. The proposed bill also called for upgrading the hospital’s facilities and professional health care services by increasing its bed capacity to 150.

TDH has served about 4,000 patients each year from various towns in Lanao del Sur during the previous five (5) years.

“With the increasing population of the province, and TDH being the most accessible hospital and strategically located to cater the needs of the people of the province, it is appropriate for it to be converted into a provincial hospital,” Dipatuan wrote in his explanatory note.

He said that by upgrading the district hospital, the Bangsamoro government would meet the health needs of the region’s most marginalized sector. 

Dipatuan also proposed PB No. 102, which aims to increase the capacity of the Balindong Municipal Hospital to 50 beds.

The Minister of Health, who is authorized to determine and approve the appropriate organizational structure for the management and operations of the hospital, should be in charge of the mentioned district hospital. 
According to Dr. Dipatuan, there is a need to improve the quality of healthcare services by upgrading it from level 1 with a 10-bed capacity to level 2 with a 50-bed capacity to cater and sustain the needs of increasing patients in Balindong Municipal Hospital. (Publication and Media Relations Division)