SM Foundation upgrades vital Quezon City community health center

SM Foundation upgrades vital Quezon City community health center

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For most Filipinos, a visit to the doctor is often the last option. Those experiencing symptoms would opt for home treatment until, in many cases, the illness had already progressed and would require more complicated treatment. This often leads to a multitude of problems, including higher costs and additional strain on the health care systems.

Dr. Mike Lorenz Panaligan, medical officer of the Krus na Ligas (KNL) Health Center in Quezon City, is all too familiar with these health concerns. When he assumed the role earlier this year, he knew he would be facing a difficult task ahead.

"It was really a challenge trying to figure out how to make our lives easier," Panaligan said.

Like many other public health care facilities in the country, the KNL Health Center—which caters to over 73,000 residents of three barangays in the city—has been showing signs of disrepair.

Patients, which can reach up to 100 daily, either have to wait in line outside the facility or stay in a dark and often crammed waiting area along with others who require treatment. Medical supplies, due to lack of enough storage, can be found in every available space of the two-storey facility.

Panaligan says he and the rest of his staff are doing their best to manage the situation. But they knew that it was far from the ideal. Its impact, he says, goes beyond those who are seeking the services of the health center. For many in the community, a dilapidated health center would not inspire them to prioritize their own well-being.

This is expected to change in the coming months.