Excessive oxygen consumption

If true, this case would land in the Guinness Book of World Records, or Ripley’s Believe It or Not.

Bionat, in a follow-up interview with Bulatlat, revealed that the hospital is consuming medical oxygen and compressed gas at a rate much higher than that of other big-capacity hospitals in the country.

He claimed that the CLMMRH, a tertiary hospital with only a 450-bed capacity consumes an average of 3,500 to 4,000 cylinders of medical oxygen and compressed air per month, incurring expenses amounting to at least P2 million a month ($43,383.95 based on an exchange rate of $1:P46.10 as of last June 25) for oxygen and compressed air alone.

This is even more than what other tertiary hospitals with bigger bed capacities consume, Baylon stressed.

He cited the Philippine General Hospital which has a 1,500-bed capacity yet uses only an average of 1,300 to 1,900 cylinders of medical oxygen per month; Iloilo Medical Center, a 500-bed hospital uses an average of 2,000 cylinders monthly; Vicente Sotto Hospital in Cebu, an 800-bed hospital uses an average of 2,000 cylinders per month.

Bionat for his part added that CLMMRH does not have a tester or any device that can test the quality of the medical oxygen in the cylinders delivered by suppliers.

“The quality of the oxygen and compressed air supplied to the hospital is the subject matter of a study conducted by the Department of Medicine of the Hospital, the result of which has not been given to me even up to now,” he said. “I have the suspicion that the checkers and the property custodian are conniving to bloat the number of actual cylinders delivered to the hospital.”

As if proving Bionat and Baylon’s allegations, a report by the hospital internal audit team headed by Nancy Cuady, chief of the internal audit unit of the Department of Health (DoH), revealed that the hospital had exceeded its supposed medical oxygen consumption for year 2003-2004 by as much as 19, 989 cylinders with a value of P6, 996, 150.00 ($124,908.94 based on the average exchange rate of $1:P56.01 for 2004).

Stripped of “duties and functions”

As an aftermath, Baylon received on June 15, 2007 a “relief order” from Vega who drew authority for such “relief order” from a department order emanating from the office of Assistant Secretary David Lozada, Jr., which advised Vega to order Baylon to refrain from doing “certain duties and functions” which, to Vega’s “sound judgment,” hampers the hospital’s operation.

This order in effect took away all functions that are inherent in the position of Baylon as chief administrative officer as provided for in DoH Administrative Order No. 0034, S. 2006. This “relief order” was viewed by Baylon as a technocratic way of silencing him because of his expose’ of the irregularities and anomalous transactions in the procurement of medical grade oxygen and other supplies. Baylon holds Vega responsible for these irregularities as chief of the hospital. He also accused Vega of mismanagement of the hospital.

Baylon called the relief order a retaliation for his strict implementation of his official and legal duties and responsibilities, particularly in safeguarding the dispensation of public funds from anomalous transactions with favored suppliers who are in cahoots with some syndicate hospital personnel, and thus, constitute abuse of discretion and authority, oppression, violation of anti-graft and corrupt practices (R.A. 3019) and violation of penal provisions of R.A. 9184 on collusion between suppliers and hospital personnel all meant to stifle his current efforts to help straighten hospital procurement transactions pursuant to R.A. 9184 and other pertinent rules and regulations.

In a press conference he called at his office yesterday afternoon to clarify the issues relating to his “relief” and the demolition job being done against him, Baylon furnished the media with copies of his letter to Vega dated June 18, 2007.

He showed cause and effect of such Memorandum as follows:

· The Memorandum was issued barely five days after he came out with his public report concerning irregularities in the procurement of medical oxygen and compressed air involving no less than Vega.

· After a thorough review of his official duties and responsibilities as Chief Administrative officer, he came to realize that Vega’s memorandum essentially stripped him of all his official and vital duties and responsibilities as provided for in DoH Administrative Order No. 2006-0034 about the delegation of authorities for certain transactions in the offices under the DoH.

Vega’s memorandum, while stating that Baylon’s all other duties and responsibilities as chief administrative officer shall in the meantime continue to be in force and effect, the actual functions, duties and responsibilities taken away from him left him merely with ministerial functions – thus rendering him practically suspended. Such act disregarded Baylon’s right to due process accorded him by the Civil Service Rules and the Constitution.

Baylon also pointed out that Vega’s Memorandum contradicted Assistant Secretary David Loada’s memorandum of June 5, 2007 advising Vega, for his guidance, “to relieve Mr. Baylon from certain functions pertaining to his position which in your sound discretion are not effectively and efficiently being performed.” It is clear, said Baylon, that Vega’s memorandum, as shown by its annexes, stripped him of all his vital duties and responsibilities, and that Lozada’s memorandum was used as a justification to render him inutile in performing his tasks as chief administrative officer.

Referring to the systematic demolition job launched against his career, person and reputation, Baylon categorically demanded for an official copy of the report which specifically states that he had not performed his official functions well as laid down in DoH AO No. 2006-0034. He also demanded an official copy of the formal complaint “by unified suppliers” outlining the details of his so-called unreasonable delays in the processing of vouchers which was made by Assec Lozada as the basis for his Memorandum of June 5, 2005.

Baylon had been asking Vega, as chief of hospital, to conduct a job rotation scheme for personnel in the Property, Accounting, and Cashiering Sections; the Central Supply Room, the BAC, and the BAC Secretariat. This scheme was vehemently opposed by Vega.

This clarificatory letter and protest will go a long way as he provided copies to the President, top officials of the DoH, CLMMRH chiefs, the Civil Service Commission, the provincial governor, Sangguniang Panlalawigan (Provincial Concil), congressmen in Negros Occidental, the city mayor, the Sangguniang Panlungsod (City Council), party-list groups Bayan Muna (People First) and Gabriela Women’s Party (GWP), Bp. Vicente Navarra of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bacolod, Negros Press Club, Liga Journalista, Kapisanan ng mga Brodcaster ng Pilipinas (KBP) and Congress of Active Media Practitioners (CAMP).

Rigged investigation?

Last June 19, the DoH Integrity Development Committee (IDC) led by Lozada along with Director Agnette P. Peralta, chairperson of the DoH Pre-Investigation/Fact-Finding Committee and Integrity Development Committee; lawyer Amelita Arguelles of the DoH Internal Affairs Unit and Nap Magay of the DoH Regional Integrity Development Committee-Western Visayas, came to Bacolod to undertake preliminary investigation on complaints of irregularities.

The preliminary investigation on the alleged medical oxygen scams and other irregularities in the CLMMRH raised by Baylon however turned out to be a grilling session against him.

“The irregularity in the procurement of medical oxygen and compressed air involving no less than the chief of hospital Dr. Domingo Vega is supposedly the main topic of the investigation; but it turned that I was the one who they tried to grill on so-called complaints against me by suppliers who did not identify themselves,” Baylon said.

Baylon also charged that the panel of investigators was clearly biased in Vega’s favor, and Lozada’s line of questioning was “quite leading.”

“It was obvious that they were trying to get me down on my knees and eventually cripple me so I would not pursue my case against the culprits of irregularities in the hospital,” he added.

Furthermore, Bionat for his part said that he did not agree with the way Lozada handled the “investigation.” “The issue is medical oxygen and other irregularities in this hospital and not Bryan Baylon,” he said.

The meeting was conducted “like an inquest,” with Bryan Baylon being required to answer the panel’s questions by yes-or-no, without allowing him to explain his side, a hospital employee who requested anonymity told Bulatlat. “With that kind of ‘investigation,’ who else among the employees will have the courage to stand up and denounce the irregularities in the hospital?” the hospital source said.

Independent and impartial investigation

Baylon, after his “ordeal” in the hands of Lozada’s team, demanded that Lozada and his team resign and that the IDC be dismantled for “lack of integrity and credibility.”

He demanded the creation of an independent and impartial body to be composed by representatives from the health sector, media, lawyers, academe and the church.

Meanwhile, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan or New Patriotic Alliance)-Negros, Alliance of Health Workers (AHW), and urban poor federation Kadamay have also urged DoH officials and other concerned individuals and groups to call for an “impartial and sincere investigation” of the alleged corruption and mismanagement of the CLMMRH.

They urged Regional Health Director Lydia Defra-Ramos, Presidential Assistant for Western Visayas Lito Coscolluela, Negros Occidental Gov. Joseph Marañon and congressmen of Negros, to assist in undertaking an independent investigation of mismanagement and scams in the hospital, and the establish the culpability of Vega and some of his co-officials.

Bishop Navarra also called on them and Baylon and other concerned citizens and groups to press for the formation of a truly independent multi-sectoral body which will undertake the impartial investigation and resolution of the problems in the regional hospital. (Bulatlat.com)

PART 2: Just Part of the Can of Worms

PART 3: Growing Support for Hospital Scam Whistleblower

 Save as PDF