House health panel chair wants strengthening of One Hospital Command Center

House committee on health chairperson and Quezon Representative Angelina “Helen” Tan filed a bill seeking to strengthen the One Hospital Command Center - the referral center which connects patients to healthcare providers.

Tan’s House Bill No. 9633 aims to institutionalize and broaden the scope of the One Hospital Command system through the establishment of the National Patient Navigation and Referral System (NPNRS), which will navigate patients through different levels of the health system.

According to Tan, the proposed measure will strengthen and expand the existing OHCC by establishing a National Patient Navigation and Referral Center (NPNRC) that will provide a link with the Malasakit Centers across different health facilities to ensure financial risk protection, particularly for indigent and financially incapacitated patients.

“The NPNRS is designed to support, strengthen, and facilitate the provision of health services of primary care providers acting as the navigator, coordinator, and initial and continuing point of contact in the health care delivery system pursuant to Republic Act No. 11223, otherwise known as the “Universal Health Care Act,” Tan said.

Tan added that once enacted into law, the NPNRS will support and strengthen the province-wide and city-wide health care provider networks throughout the country. It will also facilitate vertical and horizontal linkages and coordination among local government units, hospitals, infirmaries, other health facilities, telehealth service providers, local and national government agencies to maximize the use of limited health resources and improve access to quality health services for patients.

The NPNRS will also serve as a guide in directing patients as well as a “gatekeeper” in ensuring rational and efficient use of existing health resources; interconnect and facilitate communication among hospitals, infirmaries, other health facilities, telehealth service providers, local and national government agencies to improve access to quality health services for patients; and implement patient navigation services and referral mechanisms.

At present, the OHCC serves to facilitate a comprehensive and coordinated response to the COVID-19 pandemic by ensuring effective and efficient health facility referrals in Metro Manila that will reduce the waiting time of patients by referring them to the appropriate health facility. — DVM, GMA News