DOH's Herbosa: 190K HCWs needed to fill gaps in healthcare system

Health Secretary Teodoro Herbosa on Wednesday said a total of 190,000 healthcare workers are needed to fill the gaps in the Philippines' healthcare system.

At a Palace press briefing, Herbosa said he discussed this during the sectoral meeting with President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. on Wednesday.

''We will need the human resources, so we saw the gap. Prinesent ko sa presidente na we [need to] have about 190,000 to actually fill-in the gaps of our health care system – that’s with the net flow ‘no, iyong mga nag-migrate at iyong mga nag-OFW plus iyong nagga-graduate from our schools,'' Herbosa said.

(I presented to the President that we need about 190,000 to actually fill-in the gaps of our healthcare system, that's with the net flow --- those who migrated and the OFWs who graduated from our schools.)

Herbosa said hiring of medical practitioners will continue, adding that there are scholarship programs for those who want to obtain a career in the medical field.

''So, tuloy-tuloy na iyong programa na iyan (the program continues) ano because most of them are… have gotten scholarship through the private sector – iyong members ng PSAC, Private Sector Advisory Council for Health and may mga nakapasa na actually eh,'' Herbosa said.

''So, may mga na-enroll na diyan, may nakapasa na (some have already enrolled and some have already passed) and some of them I think a 140 plus and they’re now hired as nurses kasi pasado na,'' he added.

During the sectoral meeting, President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. highlighted the importance of the National Human Resources Master Plan 2020-2024 such as the human resources and preventive healthcare, the BUCAS Centers or Bagong Urgent Care and Ambulatory Services, the corporatization of tertiary hospitals, and the investment in women’s health.

Herbosa also said they discussed reforms that Marcos wants to be implemented in the healthcare system.

''It focused really on… emphasis on primary care. We talked about how the idea of we’re spending a lot of money on improving a lot of our specialty hospitals but a lot of the diseases that Filipinos die from are actually preventable if we have good primary care services at the local level,'' Herbosa said. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News