DAVAO CITY — Learning from the lessons brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, Vice President Sara Duterte underscored the immediate need to strengthen the country’s public health system.

In her speech at the opening ceremony of the 49th Midyear Convention of the Philippine College of Surgeons held in SMX Convention Center Thursday, the Vice President thanked the doctors for their sacrifices to save lives at the height of the pandemic.

Duterte, however, also stressed that the country’s journey throughout the pandemic was an eye opener to put premium priority in public health and provide more avenues for Filipinos, especially the poor, to access medical services.

She said that the unavailability of basic health services in marginalized communities and underprivileged countrymen inspired the Office of the Vice President to establish a medical assistance program and ensure public funds are serving those in need.

“Coming from one of the biggest cities in the country, natutunan ko na mahalagang magkaroon ng mga satellite offices sa ibat-ibang lugar para masiguro na mabababa yung tulong na kailangan ng ating mga kababayan,” she said.

The Office of the Vice President now has eight satellite offices outside of the National Capital Region. These are located in the cities of Cauayan, Dagupan, Bacolod, Tacloban, Cebu, Davao, Tandag and Zamboanga.

Duterte also said the increase in the utilization of funds allocated for medical aid shows that the goal of the office to bring the government services “closer to the people” is being achieved.

The Vice President, who was mayor of Davao City, shared the city government’s initiative to support aspiring doctors.

“Ang City Government of Davao po ay merong Medicine Scholarship Program at isa sa mga graduates namin ay member ng Indigenous People’s Tribe dito sa Davao City. Bago po ako bumaba as mayor noong nakaraang taon, ang atin pong lumad doctor ay piniling bumalik doon sa kanilang lugar sa Marilog District ng Davao City para doon magserbisyo sa ating mga kababayan,” she said.

Duterte, who is also Education Secretary, also shared the department’s MATATAG agenda in basic education, which hones children to be patriotic and become productive, reliable, and holistic pillars of nation building.

“The Department of Education launched the MATATAG agenda this year to do something akin to a "surgical procedure" to save our children and youth from the "tumor" of learning loss exacerbated by the school closures during the pandemic,” she said.

“The task of building a strong nation calls for us to work together and complement each other so we can create a dynamic environment of able, healthy, empowered, and skilled people. This is one of the foundations of a resilient nation – one in which our people are interdependent, productive, and capable of withstanding future crises,” she added.