Atty. Gumilab vows to transform KPH into National Hospital if elected Congressman of Kalinga

Tabuk City, Kalinga – Three-term Tinglayan Mayor Atty. Sacrament Gumilab has set his sight on a major health-care transformation in Kalinga, saying he will push the elevation of the Kalinga Provincial Hospital (KPH) into a national hospital, and he will make it happen if he is given the chance to serve as the province’s next representative in Congress.  

Most problems faced by the Kalinga Provincial Hospital can be linked to its limited funds, and while many politicians have been saying the solution is to nationalize the hospital, it has not happened yet.

The legislator, during his campaign rally in Agbannawag, Tabuk City, on April 26, emphasized the urgent need to strengthen the healthcare services in the province, and one of the ways is by integrating the KPH into the Department of Health system, enabling it to become a national hospital. 

Currently, remote towns in Kalinga, like Tinglayan, are often forced to seek medical care outside the province because KPH, while it has undergone many upgrades, still lacks advanced medical equipment and services. The reason behind this is KPH is not a national hospital and has limited funding. 

Because of the lack of advanced medical equipment and also manpower in KPH, all due to limited funding, many critical cases, such as complicated surgeries, high-risk pregnancies, and specialized diagnostics, cannot be handled locally and require referral to larger, better-equipped hospitals outside Kalinga. 

Citing as an example, Gumilab said most iTinglayans often go to Luis Hora Memorial Regional Hospital in Mt. Province when the members of their families need immediate and crucial medical attention or operations.

In Tabuk City and the rest of the province, patients usually rely on hospitals like the Cagayan Valley Medical Center (CVMC) in Tuguegarao City and/or the Baguio General Hospital in Baguio City. 

With that, the mayor said if he is given the chance to be elected as congressman, he will push for the transformation of KPH into a national hospital so that iKalingas will no longer need to travel far for advanced medical services and can instead access quality healthcare right in their own province, as it is among his top priorities. 

If KPH becomes a national hospital, more funding will come, and improvements will follow. 

If elected, the young politician said he is determined to fight for that dream in the congress and make it into law, citing that he is capable of doing so because he is a lawyer and he knows the aspirations of the people of Kalinga on the ground. 

“Amin nga taga Kalinga ket kasapulan tayo launay iti napintas nga health facilities wenno ospital… Ket Kanyak, nu agtugaw tayo, didiay ti maysa nga priority tayo nga iyaramidan ti linteg nga agkaroon ti national hospital ditoy ili tayo nga Kalinga. Ta kas abogado, ipasiguradok kadakayo nga kakailyan nga kayak nga idabate dayta diay congress. Kayak nga ilaban. Tapno ada to national hospital tayo ditoy Kalinga nga sumrek amin ti malasakit (malasakit center funds), sumrek amin nga pondo ti national government,” he said.