State-owned Land Bank of the Philippines is extending a P300 million loan to MEDICUM The Medical Center Inc. (MTMCI) for the construction of a hospital building and support facilities to provide reliable and quality healthcare services in Tabuk City amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The new hospital will be completed next year and located strategically along the provincial road within the city’s commercial hub. It will start operations by early 2024 and will cater to the healthcare needs of Tabuk City residents, as well as the 16 municipalities and neighboring provinces of Kalinga, with a combined population of some 490,000.
“In line with Landbank’s thrust of extending essential services is the delivery of critical financial support to private healthcare providers. We remain committed to working with various partners to boost the local healthcare industry and provide accessible, quality healthcare services to Filipinos,” LANDBANK President and CEO Cecilia Borromeo said.
The four-story MTMCI hospital building is designed to accommodate 100 beds, complemented by separate cadaver and waste holding buildings.
As a Level II hospital, it will be equipped with modern medical equipment, such as a CT-scan machine, laparoscopy set, radiographic and fluoroscopic X-ray TV system, 2D echo system, and color ultrasound system, among others.
The MTMCI aims to increase the number of available beds in the service area by 100 and help improve the projected bed-to-population ratio from 0.61:1000 to 0.78:1000—closer to the World Health Organization’s prescribed 1:1000 hospital bed availability.
“Aside from catering to the health needs of our people, this project will also help in the economic development of the city and province by providing added employment opportunities to our people, more taxes paid, and other benefits. We are so grateful to LANDBANK for granting us the much-needed loan to help bring about the success of our dream health facility,” said MTMCI President and CEO Rita Dong-as.
LANDBANK continues to support micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) across the country to spur recovery and inclusive economic development.
As of end-December 2021, the lender’s outstanding loans to MSMEs have reached P40.04 billion.
