The DSWD Field Office V and the Diocesan Medical Foundation of San Antonio de Padua, Inc.signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on Tuesday, August 15, 2023, at the hospital’s location in Pulangbato Brgy. Kinamaligan, City of Masbate, Masbate.

This partnership entails that the Diocesan Medical Foundation of San Antonio de Padua Inc. will honor approved guarantee letters from DSWD, providing coverage for hospitalizations and medications needed by Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) program clients.

In this significant collaboration, DSWD FO V Regional Director Norman Laurio expressed his gratitude to the hospital’s enthusiasm and commitment to aid vulnerable and marginalized patients in the Province of Masbate.

The MOA also assures the public that all individuals or families in crisis situation, regardless of their patient category, whether private or service patients, will receive medical aid as may be covered by DSWD.

A Guarantee Letter (GL) is a document issued by the DSWD in favor of the beneficiary, addressed to service providers, to guarantee the approved amount for payment of the service on behalf of the beneficiary under AICS. In the Bicol Region, DSWD AICS has already forged partnerships with a total of thirty-six (36) hospitals to accept guarantee letters from the agency.

The AICS, or Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation, is one of the social welfare services of the DSWD that provides medical, burial, transportation, education, food, or financial assistance for other support services or needs of a person or family in crisis.

Also present during the MOA signing were Assistant Regional Director on Operations Melchor Sañano, the Hospital’s president, Most Rev. Bishop Jose S. Bantolo, D.D., the hospital’s general manager, Doc. Rosalea R. Aguilar, other medical doctors from the hospital and staff from SWAD and AICS Masbate.

The Diocesan Medical Foundation of San Antonio de Padua, Inc. was founded by the Diocese of Masbate and is operated and managed by Masbate Medical Mission Group Hospital Service Cooperative.

The said hospital is the only hospital in the Province of Masbate that accepts GLs  for clients as of this time.

DSWD FOV, through its program, Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) under the Crisis Intervention Section (CIS) is committed to its responsibility of promoting the welfare of vulnerable individuals and families. It serves as a social safety net or a stop-gap mechanism to support individuals and families in recovering from life’s adversities.