
DOH-Ilocos Regional Director Paula Paz M. Sydiongco together with other DOH, ITRMC and local government officials of La Union gathered to bury the ceremonial time capsule during the groundbreaking ceremony of the Ilocos Traininng and Regional Medical Center (ITRMC) 3-storey Multi-specialty Center, Operating Room Complex, and Patient Wards Building on February 8, 2024.
THE Department of Health (DOH) led the formal groundbreaking ceremony of the Ilocos Traininng and Regional Medical Center (ITRMC) 3-storey Multi-specialty Center, Operating Room Complex, and Patient Wards Building on February 8, 2024.
Ilocos Regional Director Paula Paz M. Sydiongco expressed her appreciation to the men and women who were instrumental in the realization of the project. “For 78 years, ITRMC has stood by its commitment in delivering excellent and compassionate service to all, and this facility will be another symbol of its commitment in expanding its health services to our people.”
“Once completed, it will be a place where the most dedicated and critical procedures will be performed by our medical specialists with precision and care. It is for this reason, that I encourage our medical doctors to pursue more subspecialty training to complement the growing services of the medical center,” she stated.
ITRMC is one of the premier DOH hospital north of Manila, known as the “Sillag Ti Amianan”, with an 800-bed capacity hospital that caters to the provinces of La Union, and its neighbors Ilocos Sur and Pangasinan.
ITRMC Medical Center Chief Eduardo M. Badua III added that the new building will serve as a monument and a symbol of hope, healing and progress. “It will be a staging ground for DOH’s 8-point agenda and it will be a place where cutting edge specialized and tertiary care and public health and primary care converge creating an environment that will foster healing and recovery.”
“With this new facility in place, we can truly say, “sa bagong Pilipinas, bawat buhay mahalaga,” he emphasized.
The 3-storey multi-specialty centers, operating room complex and patient wards building is funded under the DOH Health Facilty Enhancement Program (HFEP) a project cost of Php500 Million (Multi-Year Contractual Authority). It is expected to be completed on 2026.
Among the dignitaries present during the event were Vice Governor Mario Eduardo C. Ortega, La Union’s 1st congressional district Representative Francisco Paolo P. Ortega, City Councilor Pablo C. Ortega, the ITRMC Multi-Sectoral Governance Council headed by Hon. Aureo Augusto Q. Nisce, DOH Cluster Head of the Health Regulation and Facility Development Assistance Secretary Charade Mercado-Grande, DOH HFDB OIC Director III Engr. Maximo A. Adan Jr., and DOH Special Assistant to the Secretary Assistant Secretary Ariel C. Valencia.

DOH, ITRMC and LGU officials of LA Union pose for posterity after the groundbreaking ceremony of the Ilocos Traininng and Regional Medical Center (ITRMC) 3-storey Multi-specialty Center, Operating Room Complex, and Patient Wards Building on February 8, 2024.