The Philippine Heart Association (PHA) has raised serious concern over a shortage of cardiologists in the country, with even zero cardiologists in six major areas.
PHA president Dr. Walid Amil said Abra, Aurora, Siquijor, Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi do not have a single cardiologist despite the rise of heart disease in the Philippines.
“We all know that this is a very huge task, a very huge challenge, but we will start the groundwork as early as today. We will plant the seeds as early as today,” he said.
“The PHA believes every Filipino patient, whether you are from Batanes to Tawi-Tawi, deserves holistic cardiovascular care from a cardiologist. You do not need to travel several kilometers to avail of a cardiology consultation,” he added.
The PHA plans to create subchapters in every region and encourage new cardiology graduates to serve in underserved areas.
According to Amil, there are about 120 to 150 cardiology graduates a year. “We will be meeting with these cardiology graduates, and we will encourage them to work in underserved areas. Of course, there will be challenges in terms of facilities and location,” he said.
There is only one cardiologist for every 45,000 Filipinos, he noted.
“This is a challenge to us in the PHA, which hopefully we can address effectively,” he said.
There are 1,294 cardiologists in the National Capital Region and 1,252 in the provinces. The PHA is doing its best to implement the One Cardiologist for Every City training program.
“One heart for every Filipino,” Amil said.
