New 100-bed tertiary hospital to rise in southern Bacolod

SOUTH Bacolod General Hospital and Medical Center (SBGHMC), a new 100-bed tertiary hospital, will break ground on January 6 along Araneta Highway, Pahanocoy, Bacolod City, near the junction of Araneta and Circumferential Road.

"Since I started my medical practice in 1984, there has been no significant increase in the number of beds in hospitals in the province," said Dr. Rudy Nonato, president and Medical Director of SBGHMC who has also served as medical director of Riverside Medical Center for 11 years.

Nonato said that in his almost three decades of medical practice as an Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) and Head and Neck Surgery specialist, he has observed some patients, especially emergency cases, experience long waiting time before they can be attended to and that many patients suffer discomfort while waiting for vacant beds when they get hospitalized.

"SBGHMC aims to address the shortage in hospital beds," he said.

SBGHMC is in the southern part of Bacolod and is far from the cluster of similar medical facilities in the city. Thus, it will not compete but will complement the existing hospitals in terms of capacity, he added.

The hospital, which will sit on a 5,000-square-meter lot, is readily accessible to patients from subdivisions and barangays in southern Bacolod, as well as to patients coming from the southern part of the province.

Adjacent to the hospital is an 8,000-square-meter lot the corporation plans to develop into a retirement village once the hospital becomes operational two years from now.

"A retirement village needs to be very close to a hospital," said Nonato, apparently referring to the need for ready and immediate medical access of residents in a retirement village.

Joining Nonato in the top management of the hospital are Dr. Romeo Reyes (Vice-President for Administration) and Dr. Benjamin Souribio (Vice-President for Medical Affairs). Lawyer Rolando Nonato sits as chairman of the board.

Other investors include highly qualified professionals who are determined to provide efficient health care services and serve the increased demand for medical and hospital services brought about by the growing population of the city and the province, said Nonato.

For inquiries on the hospital and its investment opportunities, Nonato said interested parties may contact telephone numbers (0917) 547 6181, (0922) 856 3811 and (034) 434 1973.