The newly established newborn screening clinic at the Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical center will provide the needed continuity care to patients with confirmed NBS disorder in the Ilocos region.
DEPARTMENT of Health (DOH) UHC Health Services Cluster Undersecretary Maria Rosario Singh-Vergeire together with Ilocos Regional Director Paula Paz Sydiongco and Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical Center (MMMHMC) Chief Maria Lourdes K. Otayza led the opening and blessing of the Newborn Screening Continuity Clinic (NBSCC) located at the Department of Pediatrics of the MMMHMC on May 28, 2024.
“We now have three clinics that will provide the necessary continuity care to patients with confirmed NBS disorder in Ilocos region. And these facilities will definitely improve the quality of life for our diagnosed patients,” Regional Director Paula Paz M. Sydiongco stated.
“Proper treatment and management of NBS patients is important for achieving optimum care. And with the establishment of this facility, continued care for NBS patients will be assured including follow-up services, consultations, and necessary interventions to ensure their proper treatment and care.”
By virtue of Republic Act 9288, the DOH, as the lead agency was tasked to establish and ensure a network of NBSCC facilities for referral and management of all positive cases. There are 33 NBSCCs in selected government tertiary hospitals in the country and three are located in Ilocos region particularly at the Ilocos Training and Regional Medical Center (ITRMC), Region 1 Medical Center (R1MC) and at the Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical Center (MMMHMC).
MMMHMC Chief Maria Lourdes K. Otayza said that newborns identified with Inborn Errors of Metabolism (IEM) will be taken care of at the NBSCC. “It will provide continuous, efficient and more accessible outpatient care to IEM patients.”
IEM affects a child’s long-term health and survival.
Otayza added that the establishment of MMMHMC’s NBSCC is an essential step toward the achievement of Universal Health Care where every patient will be taken care of and no patient will be left behind.
The NBSCC will also serve as a referral network with consultation services.
Guest of Honor and Undersecretary Maria Rosario Singh-Vergeire emphasized that the establishment of the clinic is anchored on one of the DOH’s 8-Point Action Agenda, “Bawat Pilipino Ramdam ang Kalusugan.”
“The clinic will improve the delivery of long-term management to all patients with confirmed with conditions detected through the newborn screening,” she added.
The newly renovated Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU), which houses an operating room, delivery room, and pediatric ICU was also inaugurated during the event.
