‘File formal complaints’: KPH urges patients to report concerns; BM Dangani offers SP assistance

TABUK CITY, Kalinga – Patients and their families with complaints about services at the Kalinga Provincial Hospital (KPH) are urged to formally report their concerns to hospital management or the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) so these can be investigated and appropriate corrective action taken.

Board Member Alfredo K. Dangani, chairman of the SP Committee on Health and Sanitation, encouraged patients and their families to approach him or the provincial board to ensure their complaints are formally received and acted upon through the proper legislative process.

The appeal was raised during a joint hearing of the SP Committees on Health and Sanitation and Civil Service on November 11, where concerns about KPH services presented by Save Kalinga co-founder Natividad Bayubay were discussed.

KPH Supervising Administrative Officer Raymond B. Palicas stressed that formal complaints are necessary for the hospital administration to establish the facts, hear the parties involved and address any lapses.

“Kasano nga maaksyunan nu awan ti formal complaint. Dayta ngay ti nabayag nga arapaap ko kas admin ti Provincial Hospital tapno koma maicorrect ti practice ti daduma. Kasla daytoy concerns nga inraised ni maam Bayubay, nu mabalin ket iexplain koma in proper forum,” Palicas stated during the hearing.

Palicas told Guru Press Cordillera that complaints may be filed directly with KPH or submitted to the appropriate SP committees for investigation.

He explained that the process allows both the complainant and the hospital personnel involved to present their respective accounts, helping establish what happened and determine the appropriate response.

During the hearing, Bayubay presented concerns gathered from social media, supported by documents and photographs of online posts. These included a receipt for purchased medicines and questions from netizens about out-of-pocket expenses incurred by patients admitted to charity wards and covered by PhilHealth.

Dangani said the concerns should be brought before the proper authorities so they can be investigated and addressed rather than remain as unverified reports on social media.

The provincial board had previously investigated a complaint involving a pregnant woman from Pinukpuk whose mother-in-law questioned the medical attention and care provided at KPH.

The complaint was raised during the SP regular session on September 8, 2026, and examined in a joint committee hearing on September 10, where the complainant and hospital personnel were given the opportunity to present their sides.

The hearing also surfaced broader concerns involving hospital services, including shortages of medical personnel, particularly obstetricians, patient waiting times, professional conduct and hospital procedures.

Following the discussions, Dangani proposed the Kalinga Provincial Hospital and District Hospitals Management, Operations, and Quality Healthcare Ordinance, which seeks to establish standards and a comprehensive framework for hospital staffing, duty schedules, professional conduct, service delivery, sanitation, accountability and monitoring.

The proposed ordinance remains subject to further legislative proceedings.