INVESTING in the improvement of Rota Health Center will reduce the island’s medical referral costs, resident director Vanessa Quitugua said in her testimony submitted to the House Committee on Health & Welfare.
She said telehealth should be explored. This includes teledentistry, telepsych and telepharmacy.
She also recommended the following:
• Provide funding to Rota Health Center to support the inter-island medical referral program, specialist outreach clinics and the Rota Medical Referral/Liaison Office.
• Provide housing for long-term referral patients who need to be assessed and upgraded to accommodate present needs.
• Work with Star Marianas Air to set a patient transfer charter fee to guarantee seats and flight schedules for patients.
Quitugua said, “The realities and hardships of our medical referral program is a result of little to no funding. All patient transports are necessary due to healthcare service limitations on the island. Patients, RHC and the Rota municipality are all financially challenged to keep the program running.”
For his part, Rota Mayor Efraim Atalig is urging the Legislature to consider appropriating funds for dialysis equipment and personnel on Rota. He said the structure for Rota dialysis program is already in place.
“I know that a dialysis progress is not cheap, but we cannot place a price tag on the value of having our unfortunate citizens feel that their leaders are concerned about their welfare,” the mayor said.
In his testimony to the committee, Atalig said many of the patients from Rota require dialysis treatment on Saipan. He said those patients “endure hardship because they had to leave their loved ones. Most of these patients, if not all, would prefer to spend the twilight years of their lives in their home island of Rota.”
