AN initiative of Sen. Bong Go that aims to provide meals for hospital patients and their companions has evolved into a sustained nationwide outreach program, the senator’s office said.
From Feb. 23 to 27, Go’s staff carried out feeding activities in public hospitals across Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, serving warm meals to patients, watchers and health care workers.
According to the senator, the initiative was born out of a practical observation: Many families seeking treatment in government hospitals often allocate their limited funds to transportation, medicines and laboratory expenses, leaving little for food while waiting for hours — sometimes days — inside hospital premises.
“There are patients and watchers who only have enough for their fare and medicine. If we can help them get something to eat while they wait, that would be a big deal,” Go said in Filipino.
Over time, the program expanded to include medical frontliners who endure long shifts and may not always have the opportunity to step away for meals.
In Metro Manila, feeding activities were conducted at Ospital ng Muntinlupa and the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine.
Across Luzon, the initiative reached several provincial hospitals, including Laguna Medical Center and San Pablo City General Hospital in Laguna; General Emilio Aguinaldo Memorial Hospital in Cavite; and Batangas Provincial Hospital and Batangas Medical Center in Batangas.
Further north, meals were distributed at Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center, Benguet General Hospital, Far North Luzon General Hospital, Conner District Hospital, Kalinga Provincial Hospital, Bontoc General Hospital, and Luis Hora Memorial Hospital.
In the Visayas, the program covered Leyte Provincial Hospital, Governor Celestino Gallares Memorial Medical Center, Don Jose Monfort Medical Center, Western Visayas Sanitarium and General Hospital, and Northern Samar Provincial Hospital.
In Mindanao, feeding efforts continued at the Southern Philippines Medical Center, one of the country’s largest government-run hospitals.
The senator emphasized that the program remains grounded in its original purpose: providing immediate and practical support to people inside public health care facilities.