HAGÅTÑA (The Guam Daily Post) —
Support from the medical community poured in as the Guam Legislature opened the floor for testimony on Bill 185-37, which aims to keep the construction of a new hospital in Tamuning near already existing medical infrastructure.
Professionals in the medical community remain steadfast based on the $1.6 million Matrix assessment that Ypao Point is the best site for the construction of a medical complex as evidenced by the written testimonies submitted to the Legislature on Monday.
Four written testimonies were submitted by Dr. Leo Petero a urological surgeon, Dr. Freight Hirata a maternal fetal medicine genetics specialist and a group of pediatricians which included Drs. Antonio Gracie, Maria Blancaflor, Cristina Manloto, Gladys Linsagan, Edna Santos, Millie Fojas, D. Sarmiento and Dina Domalanta and the fourth by the Guam Memorial Hospital anesthesia department.
Bill 185-37 as introduced by Sen. Chris Barnett does not identify a specific site in Tamuning, however, all the testimonies shared one resounding message: Bill 185-37 is “best for Guam,” when considering proximity of primary care to acute care service.
Required to “first do no harm,” the written testimony submitted on behalf of a group of pediatricians caring for the island’s most vulnerable stated that, after weighing the arguments for and against Bill 185-37, “we believe that Bill 185-37 is what our children need and what is best for Guam. We need a hospital built in Tamuning, Ypao Point that can be accessed easily from the different parts of the island and from all the pediatrician clinics around the island.”
‘The most ideal location’
Many in the medical community who have voiced support for the new hospital to be built in Tamuning versus Barrigada have felt dismissed in the conversation.
“I am submitting my testimony in the hopes that our honorable senators will not ignore the advice of medical providers who have been pleading to have the hospital built in Tamuning. The location is perfect, and all we really needed is a hospital. I have heard pros and cons of Ypao Point as the new hospital site. In my opinion, Tamuning/Ypao Point is the most ideal location for patients and for emergency staff response,” Dr. Petero said.
GMH’s anesthesia department testified that “harder access to health care leads to worse results.”
“In our job, every minute counts, in some cases, every second counts because any delay could potentially mean loss of life, worse outcome, preventable complications,” the GMH anesthesia department said, noting they all live within 5 to 10 minutes of the current hospital.
The Guam Medical Association, Guam’s largest organization of medical professionals, reiterated their support, and asked senators to support the bill, “because distance and time is of essences. When it comes to saving lives, every minute counts.”
Even specialists who rotate in and out of Guam like Dr. Hirata offered support for the bill.
“Currently, 100% of your OB-GYNs are located within 15 minutes of Ypao point, and this alone should convince the senators to vote (in) favor (of) Bill 185-37. One cannot ignore the value of response time in the field of obstetrics in saving the lives of women and children,” said Dr. Hirata who specializes in care for high-risk pregnant mothers. “Coming in from Hawaii, I have seen Guam’s “medical complex,” built around Ypao Point, and it is impressive. I have seen this growth of the private medical sector in Tamuning over the last two decades and the quality of health care has definitely risen.
There is no need to build a “medical complex,” because it already exists near Ypao Point.”
The governor’s plan
Barnett described Bill 185-37 as a “simple bill,” and noted that the decision to introduce the bill was also based on the Matrix study “using data and numbers not feelings and emotions.”
“When we met with the governor, she told us Adacao lacked the necessary infrastructure to build on, and that she would commit $100 million in American Rescue Plan funds to install the infrastructure required to build a medical complex at Eda Agaga. The matrix study shows infrastructure upgrades at Tamuning are only $26 million, $26 million to upgrade existing utilities at Tamuning while power water and sewer will cost upwards of a hundred million dollars in ARP funds at Eda Agaga,” said Barnett.
The public hearing follows four hearings held on the governor’s Bill 184-37, which aims to secure land in Barrigada under the Ancestral Lands Commission for the purpose of constructing a medical complex.
Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero has pushed for Barrigada crown lands as a result of location, size and less traffic to impede access.
While the governor said Eda Agaga would make hospital access easier for southern residents of Guam, on Monday Barnett contended that wasn’t necessarily the case.
“Some southerners have expressed support for the Eda Agaga site. And it is true building at Eda Agaga will benefit some southern villages like Yona, Talo’fo’fo and Inalåhan. But building at Tamuning may be better for Malesso’, Humåtak, Hågat and Sånta Rita(-Sumai). Now whether we build it at Eda Agaga or Tamuning, the simple fact remains southern villages will always be more than 30 minutes away from the new hospital,” Barnett said.
The senator, himself a southern resident, said he understands how southern residents feel and committed to pushing for improvements to existing facilities in the south and for the construction of new facilities in the south using the savings gained by building the new hospital in Tamuning.
Testimony against
But not all who testified were supporting the bill, such as Inalahan resident Benny San Nicolas
“I am here to testify against Bill 185-37. I am against this bill for the following reasons: Number one, the locations proposed for a new hospital in Tamuning is not in the best interest for the majority of the people of Guam. There is limited space and lacks room for expansion there. The drive time from Inalåhan to Tamuning is longer with more traffic congestion than the drive time from Inalåhan to Mangilao which could save many lives in emergency situations, especially for the people in southern village like Inalåhan,” San Nicolas said.
In support of the governor’s Bill 184-37, San Nicolas said he trusts the administration’s decision.
“They did not just make (an) irrational decision. Her decision and (the) lieutenant governor’s decision were based on these specialists, these directors and administrators – her people. Just remember that all these agencies have specialists in their department,” San Nicolas said to the senators.
A panoramic image showing the view from Ypao Point, one of the proposed sites for a new Guam Memorial Hospital.
