The University of the Philippines Manila (UP Manila) partnered with local government leaders in reviving and improving the health services program of the island of Homonhon in Eastern Samar.
On Aug. 28, 2025, Rep. Marcelino Libanan, Minority Leader and 4Ps Partylist Representative and Rep. Christopher Sheen Gonzales, of the lone district of Eastern Samar convened with University of the Philippines Manila Chancellor Michael Tee to spearhead efforts to expand health services in the island.
“The goal is twofold: improve the training of our students through community preceptorship while multiplying health services for the community,” explained Chancellor Tee. “This aligns perfectly with the universal health care and primary care approaches of expanding health worker services. ”
Home to an estimated 15,000 residents, mostly fisherfolks and coconut farmers, the island of Homonhon once had a hospital maintained by the Department of Health (DOH). However, a series of typhoons and challenges related to devolution have caused the original hospital to fall into neglect. Travel to the mainland for medical services often takes over two hours by boat.
The partnership aims to spearhead efforts to rebuild and expand health services in response to the urgent need for medical care in the island.
Rep. Gonzales said renovation of the old hospital will start in 2026. Meantime, the local government of Guiuan, Eastern Samar will begin recruiting qualified students from barangays of Homonhon Island to make up the first medicine class who will later on be drafted to serve in the hospital. The students will be enrolled in UP Manila’s School of Health Sciences (SHS) program. Graduates of the SHS program will be employed as adjunct faculty and healthcare workers, directly serving the community through the community preceptorship model.
The SHS program is a ladderized program that allows students to earn degrees as they progress in their studies. The program starts with a Certificate in Community Health Work, qualifying graduates for a midwifery license. Further studies can lead to a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, and ultimately, a Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree.
“This program will revolutionize health services on the island,” said the minority leader spearheading the project. “It’s about bringing life back to Homonhon Island by providing sustainable, community-based health care.”#
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