Ilocos Norte: The Department of Health (DOH) 1 (Ilocos Region) has distributed 150 Barangay Health Station (BHS) packages to selected villages in La Union, Ilocos Sur, and Ilocos Norte to enhance primary care services in communities.

According to Philippines News Agency, between March 2 and 10, the DOH turned over 18 BHS packages to villages in La Union's first district, 14 in its second district, 48 in Ilocos Sur's second district, and 70 in Ilocos Norte's second district.

DOH-1 Director Paula Paz Sydiongco said on ________day that the packages, worth PHP500,000 each and funded under the 2024 Health Facility Enhancement Program, would strengthen health centers' services.

A BHS package includes a dressing cart, two minor surgical sets, a mechanical bed, two spine boards, two EENT diagnostic sets, a weighing scale with BMI calculator, a weighing scale for infants, eight fetal dopplers and examining table, a medicine cabinet, two instrument cabinets; five nursing kits (digital BP apparatus with heavy duty stethoscope, non-contact thermometer with battery, nebulizer, blood glucose meter with strip, and pulse oximeter); tabletop sterilizer, and a 10kva generating set.

Sydiongco urged local governments to allocate funds for maintenance and highlighted plans to gradually upgrade barangay health stations to ensure cleaner and more efficient healthcare facilities.

In February, 25 sets of BHS packages were turned over to rural health units of Urdaneta City, Pangasinan; five sets to villages in Infanta town; one package to Burgos town; and 140 to villages in the sixth district of Pangasinan to contribute to the health facilities' ability to provide better healthcare services to the people in the barangays.

'The equipment was given to barangay health stations for them to be fully equipped and be able to provide primary care services to prevent, diagnose, treat, and rehabilitate illnesses and diseases at the local level, safely and effectively,' Sydiongco said.