The Hospital Management Office (HMO), headed by Provincial Administrator Raul Banias, is making headway towards its ultimate goal of making the 12 province-run hospitals centers of excellence.

Banias attended the week-long Executive Course in Hospital Administration held in University of the Philippines College of Public Health in Metro Manila beginning Monday (May 21) to equip himself with enough knowledge on how to make hospital services in the province more efficient.

Among the topics taken up during the conference were: Strategic Management of Hospitals, Essentials in Financial Management of Hospital Executives, Health Information Management, PhilHealth: Reducing Mistakes, Increasing Reimbursements, Institutionalizing Quality Standards in Health Care by PHILHEALTH, Budget Planning and Management of Hospitals, Maintenance, Management & Planning of Hospital Facilities, and many more.

Gov. Arthur Defensor, Sr. created the HMO to supervise and provide technical support to the operations of the Iloilo Provincial Hospital and 11 district hospitals that were converted as economic enterprises by virtue of Provincial Ordinance No. 2011-091.

To note, the provincial government has invested millions of pesos in the improvement of hospitals by way of infrastructure projects and acquisition of medical facilities and equipment.

It also tied up with the Department of Health and other financial institutions in obtaining loans to be used in the various hospital upgrading and expansion projects. (ECGarcia/ Capitol News)