President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has appointed Dr. Mary Ann Maestral, chief of the Teresita L. Jalandoni Provincial Hospital (TLJPH) in Silay City, Negros Occidental, undersecretary of the Department of Health.
Maestral’s appointment came just as the TLJPH turned into a teaching hospital and was given its license to operate as a 200-bed hospital.
She said her assuming her new post will not leave a vacuum at the TLJPH that has a very good succession system in place. The hospital has been a very good breeding ground for leaders, Maestral said.
The TLJPH has turned into a teaching hospital and will be taking in residents who will undergo training in internal medicine, Maestral said.
The hospital has medical specialists and consultants for the program, she said.
“We are inviting pre-resident applicants. We already have one who was a scholar of the province and we are in need of two more,” Maestral said.
The teaching hospital status is a first step toward TLJPH’s becoming a level three hospital, Maestral said.
Other TLJPH departments are also preparing to also offer training programs, she said.
The 200-bed capacity license is also good news because it is a prerequisite for the TLJPH’s opening of a Department of Surgery, Maestral said.
“It is really a miracle that we were able to get this far at a very short time but we had to heed the call of the governor (Eugenio Jose Lacson),” she said.
Maestral thanked the governor for his support.
“Gov. Lacson has always been very supportive of the health system of the province that is why we have reached this far,” she said.*