Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act No. 11196

August 13, 2019

DOH ADMINISTRATIVE ORDER NO. 2019-0029

 

I. RATIONALE AND BACKGROUND

Pursuant to Batas Pambansa Blg. 517, in 1983, the Labuan Public Hospital (LPH) was established as a 10-bed capacity extension facility of Zamboanga General Hospital, located in Labuan, Zamboanga City, and under the supervision of the Ministry of Health. The LPH sits in 5,000 square meters along the Zamboanga City's west coast, its primary catchment is the barangays situated there and the city's boundary with Zamboanga del Norte.

Over the years, the demands for the hospital's services have steadily grown, and the LPH needed to upgrade its capacity and capability in order to provide better health care. On January 18, 2019, the President approved Republic Act No. 11196, "An Act Upgrading the Labuan Public Hospital in Zamboanga City into a Level II Hospital to be known as the Labuan General Hospital, Increasing its Bed Capacity for General Care Services to One Hundred (100), and Appropriating Funds Therefor." Section 6 provides for immediate implementation of this Act through the Department of Health's programs and appropriations.

On April 12, 2019, the DOH and Zamboanga City Special Economic Zone Authority (ZAMBOECOZONE) entered into a Deed of Usufruct that assigned five hectares of land area in the ZAMBOECOZONE First Industrial Park for the construction of the Level II general hospital per R.A. No. 11196, premised upon "mutual interest of promoting and strengthening the right to health of residents."

II. OBJECTIVE AND SCOPE

This Administrative Order sets the Implementing Rules and Regulations of Republic Act (R.A.) No. 11196, "An Act Upgrading the Labuan Public Hospital in Zamboanga City into a Level II Hospital to be known as the Labuan General Hospital, Increasing its Bed Capacity for General Care Services to One Hundred (100), and Appropriating Funds Therefor," and pertains only to the provisions of this Act.

III. DEFINITION OF TERMS AND ACRONYMS

1. A.O. No. 2012-0012 — refers to the "Rules and Regulations Governing the New Classification of Hospitals and Other Health Facilities in the Philippines" issued by the DOH on July 18, 2012, as amended.

2. Act — refers to Republic Act (R.A.) No. 11196, "An Act Upgrading the Labuan Public Hospital in Zamboanga City into a Level II Hospital to be known as the Labuan General Hospital, Increasing its Bed Capacity for General Care Services to One Hundred (100), and Appropriating Funds Therefor."

3. IRR — refers to the Implementing Rules and Regulations of R.A. No. 11196.

4. Level 2 Hospital — refers to the type of general hospital according to functional capacity as provided in A.O. No. 2012-0012, as amended.

5. General Hospital — refers to a hospital that provides for all kinds of illnesses, diseases, injuries or deformities. It provides medical and surgical care to the sick and injured, maternity, newborn and child care. It shall be equipped with the service capabilities needed to support board-certified/eligible medical specialists and other licensed physicians rendering services in, but not limited to clinical, emergency, outpatient, ancillary and support services.

6. LGH — refers to the Labuan General Hospital.

IV. POLICIES AND GUIDELINES

A. General Policies

The Labuan General Hospital (LGH) shall at the minimum meet the requirements of a Level 1 General Hospital. The hospital shall provide promotive, preventive, diagnostic, curative, and palliative care services in accordance to the provisions of and related issuances to R.A. No. 11223, or the "Universal Health Care Act." As intended by this Act, it shall develop into a hospital with fully equipped with state-of-the-art equipment and facilities, complemented by adequately trained and competent human resources for health appropriate for a licensed and accredited Level 2 General Hospital.

The LGH shall strengthen its existing basic services, and aim for the improvement of its service capability and capacity serving as a referral hospital in the barangays along the west coast of the City of Zamboanga, and the bordering municipalities of Province of Zamboanga Del Norte, complementing local health systems and providers in these areas. The increase in bed capacity and expansion of services and capability shall be consistent with the LGH's Hospital Development Plan (HDP) as approved by the Health Facility Development Bureau (HFDB).

B. Implementing Mechanisms

The implementation of the Act shall be supported by the following guidelines:

1. Change in Name

The Labuan Public Hospital shall be renamed as Labuan General Hospital. The acronym shall be known as "LGH." The Medical Center Chief (MCC) shall ensure that directory and future official documents adhere to the new hospital name and reflected in the DOH's National Health Facility Registry and other official databases.

2. Expansion of Services

The LGH shall formulate and submit its HDP to the HFDB through the DOH's Zamboanga Peninsula Center for Health Development (CHD). The HDP shall be consistent with the Philippine Health Facility Development Plan (PHFDP) leading towards a 100-bed Level 2 General Hospital with specialty/sub-specialty services.

The incremental annual increases in bed capacity shall start with a 75-bed capacity Level 1 General Hospital, and to further increase into 100-bed capacity Level 2 General Hospital within four (4) years implementation of this Act. The hospital's implementation of its HDP shall also be consistent with the terms stated in the Deed of Usufruct entered by the DOH and ZAMBOECOZONE.

3. Health Human Resources

Based on the approved HDP, the LGH shall request for an increase in its health human resources based on DBM-DOH Joint Circular No. 2013-01, "Revised Standards and Organizational Structure and Staffing Pattern of Government Hospitals, CY 2013 Edition" dated 23 September 2013.

The LGH shall honor the positions, security of tenure, and other rights of its human resource complement. The hospital shall evaluate the existing human resource complement, re-classify and/or propose upgrading of positions, promote professional development and hire additional staff to comply and conform to the Civil Service Commission and DOH standards and intent of the Act. The management shall also adhere to CSC's Program to Institutionalize Meritocracy and Excellence in Human Resource Management (PRIME-HRM).

4. Assets and Liabilities

All movable and immovable assets and records of the LGH, as well as its liabilities and obligations shall be properly documented and be accounted for in accordance with existing policies and guidelines.

5. Equipment

The LGH shall make an inventory of the existing hospital equipment and undertake upgrading to conform to the DOH standards of a Level 2 General Hospital as provided for under A.O. No. 2012-0012 as amended. Additional equipment and facilities shall be provided to complement the expansion of services consistent with the approved HDP.

6. Infrastructure

The LGH shall implement and seek the support of the DOH for the construction, repair and/or renovation of its physical infrastructure in its current and future sites, consistent to the approved HDP, and conforms to all existing laws, regulations, national and international standards for hospital buildings, also in line with the Hospitals Safe from Disasters Program, the Green Healthcare Facilities Guidelines, Integrated People-Centered Health Services, among others.

7. Systems Development

The LGH shall conform to and sustain the standards of hospital operations to provide quality health care and safety for patients, health workers and other clientele of the hospital. It shall implement an electronic information system conforming to the basic requirements of the Integrated Hospital Operations and Management Program (IHOMP).

8. Quality Management

The LGH's Quality Management System shall conform to ISO 9001:2015 standards. It shall enhance operations with the implementation of the Continuing Quality Improvement Program, Patient Safety Program, Manuals of Standards of Hospital Operations and Management by HFDB, policies and standards by Health Facilities and Services Regulatory Bureau (HFSRB), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), and other standards by international organizations that support national or local standards. Its management shall comply with the gender and development (GAD) mainstreaming policies for government bureaucracies.

The LGH shall complete all stages and become certified with the Performance Governance System towards its organizational development and performance improvement, as guided by DOH performance accountability measures such as the Hospital Scorecard.

V. IMPLEMENTING STRUCTURE

1. Administrative Control

The highest DOH-designated official of the Zamboanga Peninsula CHD shall have oversight jurisdiction and control over the LGH's operations. The CHD shall monitor the implementation of R.A. No. 11196, and may recommend the necessary further upgrading as guided by this Order.

The MCC of the LGH shall be accountable and responsible for the implementation of quality standard hospital operations and management. The MCC shall establish responsibility accounting as means of management control and determination of respective contributions and performances of the hospital's divisions or units. The MCC shall also submit developmental plans, financial and statistical reports to the DOH Central Office.

2. Sourcing and Use of Funds

The amounts necessary to carry out the provisions of R.A. No. 11196 shall be sourced out accordingly:

a. Capital outlay for infrastructure and equipment shall be sourced from DOH appropriations under the General Appropriations Act (GAA), hospital income including PhilHealth payments, public-private partnership, and/or other financing modes or schemes subject to prevailing government rules and regulations;

b. The additional Maintenance and Other Operating Expenses (MOOE) resulting from the hospital expansion shall be sourced from the GAA, hospital income including PhilHealth payments, public-private partnerships, and/or other financing modes or schemes;

c. Personal Services (PS) to carry out the full implementation of the staffing pattern following the DOH-DBM Joint Circular No. 2013-01, and other related issuances shall be sourced out from the GAA and other sources; and

d. Release of funds from the DOH shall be approved by the appropriate authority.

VI. SEPARABILITY CLAUSE

If any of the provisions under this Order is declared unauthorized or rendered invalid by any court of law or competent authority, those provisions not affected thereby shall remain valid and effective.

VII. EFFECTIVITY

This Order shall take effect fifteen (15) days after publication in a newspaper of general circulation.

(SGD.) FRANCISCO T. DUQUE, III, MD, MScSecretary of Health