The Sangguniang Panlungsod of Bacolod City has unanimously approved a resolution urging the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO), through Mayor Greg Gasataya, to provide all barangays with ambulances or patient transport vehicles extra stretchers.
Councilor Caesar Z. Distrito, author of the resolution, said on Tuesday, Feb. 10, that access to timely emergency medical transport is essential to an effective local disaster risk reduction and health response system.
“Access to prompt and adequate emergency medical transport is not a luxury, it is a necessity, especially during medical emergencies and disasters where every minute can mean the difference between life and death,” Distrito said.
Distrito stressed that barangays serve as the city’s frontline responders and must be properly equipped to carry out their responsibilities.
“Our barangays are always the first to respond during emergencies. They must have ambulances or patient transport vehicles with stretchers so they can act quickly and decisively when residents need immediate medical attention,” he said.
The councilor also pointed out recurring situations in hospitals where stretchers brought by barangay ambulances are temporarily retained due to overcrowding or the unavailability of hospital beds.
“There have been instances when stretchers are necessarily retained by hospitals while patients wait for room availability. While this is understandable, it leaves barangays without the equipment they need to respond to the next emergency,” Distrito explained.
“By ensuring that barangays have access to these vehicles and stretchers, we strengthen our emergency response system and better protect public health and safety,” he said.*
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