• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Provincial Health Officer Dr. Girlie Pinongan on Wednesday, Dec. 4, defended the implementation of the One Hospital Command system stressing that it is one of the best practices of the provincial government of Negros Occidental and being duplicated by other provinces.
Pinongan said that the OHC system was formed as part of the province’s Digitizing Health and Emergency Management initiative and serves as the center of communications between referrals from one hospital into another.
It also aims to deliver efficient health services, effectively manage health services, resources and manpower, and operationalize the patient referral system as required by the Universal Health Care Act, she said.
During assessment of SGLG (Seal of Good Local Governance) awards, Pinongan said “it is one of our strength, being among the best practices implemented by the provincial government of Negros Occidental”.
The Department of Interior and Local Government identified the provincial government of Negros Occidental as among the recipients of Seal of Good Local Governance for calendar year 2024.
On Tuesday, former Victorias City Mayor Francis Frederick Palanca, who is challenging incumbent Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson in the May 2025 elections, described the One Hospital Command system, as “anti-poor”, which was only applicable during the COVID 19 pandemic.
Palanca claimed that many have died because they cannot be immediately accommodated in government hospitals as they have to wait for referrals from the OHC system to determine which government hospitals can accommodate them. | GB
