Program of the Department of Health

PHARMACY. A drugstore set up by the Department of Health (DOH) in Arteche, Eastern Samar. Another pharmacy will be set up by the DOH in Can-avid, Eastern Samar, the local government announced on Monday (June 28, 2021). (Photo courtesy of National Drug Policy Programs-Eastern Visayas)

The town of can-avid in Eastern Samar is soon to have its own pharmacy for easy access of medicine supplies among its constituents.


Mayor Gil Norman Germino expressed his gratitude to the Department of Health (DOH) for granting his request saying the creation of a pharmacy to be run by the municipal government will be beneficial to his people who will be needing their medicine needs.

By approving the request, DOH Regional Director Dr. Exuperia Sabalberino said that the LGU has granted the application as they have qualified for such program.


The request of Can-avid to have its own pharmacy is in line with the DOH’s ‘FOURmula One Plus Botika ng Bayan (F1+BNB)’ program.


F1 Plus BNB mainly targets government primary health facilities including the Rural Health Units (RHUs) and Health Centers (HCs) in order to upgrade pharmacy services at the primary care level and become government operated pharmacies.


“In support of this endeavor, we would like to inform you that we are ready to deploy a licensed pharmacists under the Pharmacists Deployment Program and Administrative Assistant III (Pharmacy Assistant) to your health facility which is one of our commitment to help you in the implementation of the said program,” Sabalberino said.


The deployment of a pharmacist from the DOH-8 will run for few years of the implementation or will depend to the availability of fund.


Can-avid has 20 villages with more than 20,000 population.


Other areas in the region with Botika ng Bayan are Catbalogan City and Daram town both in Samar, Arteche in Eastern Samar, and San Antonio in Northern Samar, Maasin City and the towns of Limasawa, San Francisco and Hinundayan all in Southern Leyte, and MacArthur and Hilongos, and Baybay City in Leyte. (ROEL T. AMAZONA)