3 floors of CCMC operational by 2020

CEBU, Philippines — Three floors of the new Cebu City Medical Center with a 100-bed capacity will be functional in time for the city’s charter anniversary in February next year. 

This was disclosed during the discussion of the ordinance that proposes the P2.5 billion Supplemental Budget 2, which includes P300 million for the purchase of medical equipment and P100 million for the completion of the lower ground, upper ground, and second floor of the new CCMC.

“Most of our major hospital equipment is old and some are unserviceable so we need to request to buy state-of-the-art machines which we don’t have as early as now in preparation for our transfer to the new building considering the length of time the bidding and procurement processes are completed,” CCMC Hospital Administrator Yvonne Feliciano said.

Feliciano said the P300 million will be used to purchase Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Digital Cardiac Monitoring, Electric Stretcher, CT-Scan and digital stretcher.

She said these pieces of equipment will be installed at the new CCMC hospital.

Councilor Alvin Dizon said he will support the purchase of the state-of-the-art equipment but the city should also set aside a budget for the maintenance of the equipment so that the money will not be put to waste.

Feliciano said the terms of reference for the purchase of the equipment include the training of CCMC personnel to ensure that the equipment will be maintained and well-used.

As for the P100 million additional budget to complete the first three floors, Feliciano said the city needs the funds to furnish the new CCMC hospital fully.

To recall, former mayor now Vice Mayor Michael Rama ordered the demolition of the 45-year-old CCMC building after it incurred heavy damage during the magnitude 7.2 earthquake that hit Central Visayas in 2013.

The old building was demolished in February 2014 and it was on June 2015 when C.E. Padilla Construction, Inc., was given the go signal to start the construction of the first phase of the new building. For this, the city allocated P600 million.

The city also allocated P300 million for the second phase of construction, which included the installation of power lines and communication tools.

City Engineer Kenneth Carmelita Enriquez said the second phase will be completed by November this year.

Phase 1 and 2 of the construction is being handled by C.E. Padilla Construction, Inc.

Atty. Jose Daluz III, special assistant to the mayor, said the city needs P100 million for the three floors to be fully operational with 100 beds.

At the Council, Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) President Franklyn Ong asked if the city would still hire C.E. Padilla Construction, Inc. for the remaining phases of construction.

Daluz said the firm is allowed to continue with the contract as long as it would not exceed P300 million worth of work, adding, that the executive department has yet to decide on the matter.

“The mayor really wants to open the CCMC. The phase two or the engineering side will be completed by November but there will be small construction works for the P100 million to finish the three floors,” he said.

Daluz said the executive department included the purchase of P300 million medical equipment in SB 2 because it would take several months to deliver the equipment and the installment of the equipment.

Daluz said the Department of Health has authorized the city to use the first three floors of the new CCMC building while the rest of the floors are being completed.

“By January, ma-deliver ang equipment and fully operational with 100 beds by first quarter of 2020 ang CCMC,” he said.

Daluz said the city will propose P600 million for the annual budget next year to complete the 10-story building which has currently six to seven floors of structural framework of the building. — JMO (FREEMAN)