TOURIST first aid facilities will soon rise in key tourist destinations like Boracay, Siargao, Panglao, La Union, Palawan, and Puerto Galera, according to the Department of Health (DOH).
The DOH said such medical facilities will also be built in other areas of the country with a high concentration of tourists.
The Tourist First Aid Facilities program is another flagship project of the Marcos administration which aims to enhance the safety standards of tourist destinations.
The facilities will serve as emergency response centers for tourists who figured in accidents or injuries during their visit.
They will be staffed by well-trained healthcare professionals equipped with essential medical supplies and medicines to ensure prompt and effective emergency assistance.
The facilities will have a secondary purpose of providing preventive care.
The second floor of every facility will serve as a lifeguard station or viewing deck to oversee tourist safety.
To complement these facilities, solar-powered Tourist First Aid Booths will also be installed along beachfront areas, particularly in long stretches of coastlines, to address immediate medical needs of tourists without the presence of professional medical personnel.
The booths will be equipped with first aid supplies, automated external defibrillators. a pull=out stretcher, a closed circuit television, and a two-way communication system linking to a command center for emergency calls.
The Department of Tourism (DOT), DOH and the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA)have officially partnered for this project.
Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, DOH Secretary Teodoro Herbosa, Jr., and TIEZA chief operating officer Mark Lapid represented by lawyer Joy Bulauitan, have signed a memorandum of understanding on the matter.
