Ospital ng Makati ranked highest in COVID response

BENCHMARK | Local governments can learn a lesson or two on efficient delivery of health services from Ospital ng Makati, adjudged THE best public hospital in COVID-19 response. (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)

MANILA, Philippines — The local government-run Ospital ng Makati (OsMak) received the highest ranking among Metro Manila public hospitals in terms of infection control and COVID-19 response and management, a standard that other cities and municipalities should aim for to efficiently operate their own health facilities.

In a statement on Tuesday, Makati Mayor Abby Binay said OsMak scored 97 out of 100 in the inspection and validation report conducted by the Health Facility Development and Enhancement Unit (HFDEU) of the Metro Manila Center for Health Development, an agency under the Department of Health (DOH).

OsMak was rated 19 out of 20 for both governance, and for ethics and patient’s rights; nine over 10 for facility safety and emergency management, and perfect scores of 20 for patient safety, 15 for quality measurement and improvement, and 15 for resource management.

“Time and again, OsMak has set the benchmark for efficient, effective and compassionate delivery of health-care services. Our Makatizens can rest assured that OsMak follows the standards and protocols set by DOH as a tertiary care hospital,” Binay said.

High efficiency

The audit and evaluation of all local government unit- and DOH-run facilities is mandated by DOH Memorandum No. 2020-0202 on the “Use of Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Assessment Form for Health Facility Managers and Healthcare Professionals in the context of COVID-19.”

The HFDEU assessed the hospital’s compliance with infection prevention and control standards and protocols with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as with the Integrated Hospital Operations Management Program (IHOMP).

The IHOMP’s target is to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of health-care services through the creation and use of information for clinical, administrative and monitoring purposes in hospitals and other health facilities.

In March this year, OsMak received its second ISO 9001:2015 certification, the international standard for a quality management system, after a three-day external audit. It first received the ISO certification in 2019.

Hospitals and clinics which scored high on the assessment adhered to the IPC Standards and Protocols set by the World Health Organization (WHO) amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hospitals were evaluated in terms of assessment and triage of patients with acute respiratory illness; source control measures and patient placement; implementation of standard, contact and droplet precautions; visitor management and exclusion; requirements for performing aerosol-generating procedures; monitoring and reporting, and occupational health.

They were checked if they had a dedicated area to triage patients with respiratory symptoms separate from other clinical triage and evaluation areas.

The review also examines if aerosol-generating procedures were performed in negative pressure rooms, or if not available, were done in an adequately ventilated room.

Hospitals were also assessed if they adhered to occupational health standards, if health workers were provided with appropriate personal protective equipment such as N95 respirator mask, eye goggles, gloves and isolation gown.

They should also be actively screened for fever and other symptoms of COVID-19 before the start of their shifts.

Expansion

The Makati government is expanding its health facilities and has tapped the help of private sector investors in putting up the Makati Life Medical Center, formerly called OsMak 2, the country’s biggest public-private partnership hospital built through a joint venture agreement between LifeNurture Inc. and the city government.

It will have 360 beds and has multiple specialty centers to be rolled out in phases.

Located along Malugay Street in Barangay Bel-Air, its in-patient services using the first 100 beds are expected to start by the end of the year. Completion and full operations are targeted by the first quarter of 2024.

Makati City contributed P2.77 billion for the construction while LifeNurture provided a total of P7 billion in equity and debt funding for the project.

Binay said that with OsMak 2, Makati would make health-care services more accessible even without a pandemic.

The project received this year the Public-Private Healthcare Partnership of the Year Award from the Healthcare Asia Awards, spearheaded by an industry magazine catering to Asia’s hospital owners, investors, administrators and policymakers.

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