Governor Pamela Baricuatro regularized 66 job order health personnel into plantilla positions and promoted 19 permanent employees during a mass appointment ceremony on Monday, May 18, 2026.
The appointees, including 27 doctors and 15 nurses, will be distributed across four provincial and 12 district hospitals to support manpower upgrades for DOH licensing standards.
Mass Appointment Ceremony
A total of 66 job order (JO) workers under the Provincial Health Office (PHO) were given plantilla positions on Monday, May 18, 2026, marking the first regularization of provincial healthcare workers this year. The mass appointment of health personnel by Gov. Pamela Baricuatro also included the promotion of 19 existing permanent employees. It was Baricuatro herself who administered their oaths of office.
Major Milestone for the Province
PHO Head Sheila Faciol described the move as a major milestone for the Province. “It is a big leap forward compared to before because they are now regularized and there is a good number of them per hospital,” Faciol said in Cebuano.
The new appointees, which include 27 doctors, will be assigned to the Province’s four provincial hospitals and 12 district hospitals. Three of them were designated as chiefs of hospitals in the district facilities in Badian, Barili and Oslob towns. The rest were distributed to various facilities: Cebu Provincial Hospital (CPH)-Balamban (eight doctors), CPH-Bogo (seven), Tuburan District Hospital (two), Daanbantayan District Hospital (two), Oslob District Hospital (two) and one doctor each for Badian District Hospital, Barili District Hospital and Mariano Jesus Cuenco Memorial Hospital in Malabuyoc.
The regularized workforce also includes 15 nurses, one dentist, two midwives, one radiologic technologist, five medical technologists, five pharmacists, three nutritionists, two social welfare officers and 24 support personnel.
Hospital Upgrade and Licensing
Faciol said the creation of additional plantilla positions aligns with provincial plans to upgrade local health facilities and comply with Department of Health (DOH) licensing standards. “Health facilities are in the ongoing process of upgrading, from Level 1 to Level 2 hospitals. There are also Level 1 infirmaries. Along with that, we need to improve their manpower,” Faciol said in a mix of Cebuano and English.
The PHO is currently reviewing the service capabilities and equipment of provincial hospitals. Faciol noted that compliant manpower and equipment, such as anesthesia machines, are required to secure DOH licenses for higher hospital levels. The Province also plans to expand existing 10-bed hospitals into 25-bed or 50-bed facilities to accommodate actual patient demand. Hospital chiefs are preparing the necessary documentary requirements, with the Province aiming to upgrade two to three facilities to Level 1 status within the year.
Faciol added that the new permanent positions are essential for these upgrades and will help retain local medical professionals. “The positions that we have are needed for the upgrading of our hospitals,” she said.
Security of Tenure
In a statement posted on the Cebu Province Public Information page on Monday, May 18, Baricuatro expressed sadness upon learning that some of the regularized personnel had served the Province for 27 to 35 years without security of tenure. “It’s really sad. I’m so glad that before it’s too late, we did the right thing. And I think it is the right thing to do,” part of Baricuatro’s statement read. “I am sorry for what happened in the past, but I want to assure you that in this administration, it will not happen again,” she added.
