BENJAMIN P. SABLAN, JR.

, MD, MDM
Nominee for PGH Director
Dr. Benjamin P. Sablan, Jr. Is a product of the University of the Philippines, Diliman
campus where he took his undergraduate course in BS Psychology and Manila campus
where he studied Medicine. He further trained in Pediatrics at the Philippine General
Hospital where he became chief resident in 1993. After training, he joined the faculty of the
Department of Pediatrics, UP College of Medicine and was sent for training in Ambulatory
Pediatrics at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx New York, in order to address
the need for improvement in academic training of the department in the Out Patient Clinics
as well as the administrative operations of the general and subspecialty clinics in the PGH
Dispensary.
After his fellowship training, Dr. Sablan assumed the function of Coordinator for Out
Patient Clinics in the Department of Pediatrics. His functions included designing teaching
modules for undergraduate and graduate training in Pediatrics. At this time, he was sent to
a two week trainors course on Integrated Management of Childhood Illnesses (IMCI)
conducted by the WHO in Cambodia. Upon his return, Dr. Sablan started a pre-service
training on IMCI for LU5 Medicine students and residents which consisted of a didactic
session conducted in PGH and wet clinics both in the PGH OPD and in the community health
centers of the UP Manila Community Health Development Program (CHDP).
Dr. Sablan has been conducting Pediatric Clinical Trials in the Out Patient Clinic
particularly on vaccinations, tuberculosis and nutrition. He has participated in multi-country
trials since 1998. He was also the principal investigator in researches conducted with the
International Vaccine Institute in Korea, the George Washington University with Dr. Joseph
Bellanti in Washington DC and recently was the recipient of a most prestigious PEER Health
(Partnerships for the Enhancement of Engagement in Research) of the US National Academy
of Sciences.
Prior to joining the UPCM and PGH as faculty in 1994, Dr. Sablan worked as program
manager for Breastfeeding in the Maternal and Child Health Unit of the Department of
Health. He continued working as a consultant of the DOH even when he was a faculty of
UPCM particularly in programs on Food Fortification, IMCI-Computerized Adaptation,
Disaster Preparedness, Childhood Tuberculosis and Healthy Lifestyle particularly on Tobacco
Cessation.

BENJAMIN P. SABLAN, JR., MD, MDM

Nominee for PGH Director.p.2
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Dr. Sablan, has also worked as a Short Term Consultant on Childhood Injury
Prevention at the World Health Organization, Western Pacific Regional Office. He has also
led a team which has adapted the Brief Advise for Tobacco Cessation training from the
Guam version which was based on the University of Arizona Training for Tobacco Control.
Dr. Sablan has assumed several positions in the PGH Administration since 2004
serving three PGH Directors, Dr. Carmelo Alfiler, Dr. Enrique Domingo and Dr. Jose Gonzales.
Under the term of Dr. Alfiler, Dr. Sablan, as Coordinator for Health Services, was in charge of
the Tatak PGH Plus project which was a PGH networking initiative in collaboration with the
Department of Health and the seventeen local government units in Metro Manila and select
regional hospitals all over the Philippines. This won for PGH the Lingkod Bayan Award given
by the President of the Philippines and the Civil Service Award given by the Department of
Trade and Industry. Under the directorship of Dr. Jose Gonzales, Dr. Sablan eventually
became the Deputy Director for Health Operations where several projects and programs
were implemented. Some of these were the reorganization of the Out Patient Department
which strengthened both the primary care clinics as well as the specialty clinics,
improvement of patient access into PGH through more efficient Medical Records
generation, access to funds available either through Philhealth or Medical Assistance Funds
of DOH and availability of on time and efficient diagnostics such as Xray, CT Scan, MRI and
laboratory procedures and medicines and supplies.
In 2012, Dr. Sablan received a study grant from UP Manila funded by Zuellig
Foundation to take up Masters in Development Management at the Asian Institute of
Management in Makati City. He graduated in December 9, 2012 where his thesis was A
STRATEGIC REORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT PLAN FOR HEALTHCARE SERVICE
DELIVERY IN THE PHILIPPINE GENERAL HOSPITAL. This further training on management
had honed Dr. Sablans approach for addressing operations and management of the PGH as
well as leadership skills to organize the huge human resources of the hospital.
Dr. Sablan has been involved extensively in community and networking activities
starting from his early years of education by joining medical missions of a church based
group, the Penafrancia Devotees Association of Metro Manila and continuing into his work
as a faculty of the UP Manila. He has organized the Western Pacific Regional Alliance for the
Protection of Families and Children from Second Hand Smoke Exposure involving country
representatives from Singapore, Malaysia, Mongolia, China, Japan, Hong Kong, Laos and
Vietnam. He is also the lead consultant for Community Pediatrics in PGH where he has
instituted programs on Healthy Lifestyles, IMCI and Essential Health Care. Dr. Sablan has

BENJAMIN P. SABLAN, JR., MD, MDM

Nominee for PGH Director.p.3
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been working with the Department of Health in programs on TB in children as well as food
fortification. He has been instrumental in the establishment of the public health program
particularly establishing the TB DOTS for children.
As president of the Philippine Ambulatory Pediatric Association (PAPA), Dr. Sablan
has been able to lead and gain international recognition of the Association with the
American Academy of Pediatrics, the Julius Richmond Center for Tobacco Control, Potts
Foundation and the Alliance for the control of Tuberculosis in Children based in Washington
DC. It is noteworthy that during his term as President of PAPA, he was able to organize with
the UP-National Institute of Health, the Environmental Health Study Group which he leads.
Despite all of these accomplishments, Dr. Sablan is extensively involved in teaching
in the University, particularly in the College of Medicine. He has been the chair of the
Medicine Library Committee since 2007, member of the College of Medicine Curriculum
Committee and Faculty Association Committee. He is the course coordinator for the Health
Management Course for Year Level 5 (Integrated Clinical Clerkship). Dr. Sablan still conducts
lectures on primary health care, IMCI, injury prevention and clinical preceptorials for
students in the OPD.

MOST SIGNIFICANT ACHEIVEMENTS AND QUALIFICATIONS

A. QUALIFICATIONS
Masters in Development Management (MDM)
Asian Institute of Management

Ambulatory Pediatrics Fellowship

Montefiore and North Central Bronx Hospital
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Bronx, New York USA

General Pediatrics Residency

Philippine General Hospital

BENJAMIN P. SABLAN, JR., MD, MDM

Nominee for PGH Director.p.4
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Medicine
University of the Philippines Manila

BS Psychology
University of the Philippines Diliman

B. ACHIEVEMENTS
Deans List, Masters in Development Management, AIM
Cum Laude, BS Psychology, UP Diliman
Recipient of PEER Health research grant as Principal Investigator, National
Academy of Science, USA

FLAGSHIP PROJECTS FOR THE PHILIPPINE GENERAL HOSPITAL

The University of the Philippines Philippine General Hospital (PGH) is the largest
public tertiary care hospital in the country. It was established on 17 August 1907 and serves
as the training hospital for the Colleges of University of the Philippines Manila (UPM) which
is referred to as the health science campus. It is situated in the middle of a fourteen (14)
hectare area of UP Manila, services approximately 600,000 patients annually. PGH is also
the National University Hospital and as such is mandated to deliver the following functions
a. Tertiary Care Medical Services for the poorest segment of the nation;
b. Training Hospital for all medical specialties in both general and subspecialties;
and
c. Conduct of relevant research for the Filipino nation.
Having served PGH under several Directors, I have realized that operational
efficiency and management is crucial for the hospital to maintain its status as the countrys
premier training institution and hospital for the Filipino people. It is also what will propel
the Philippine General Hospital into becoming a regional and globally recognized training,

BENJAMIN P. SABLAN, JR., MD, MDM

Nominee for PGH Director.p.5
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service and research hospital. I would therefore like to propose the following flagship
projects.
1. PGH Hospital Information System
The IT system for PGH is crucial in order to enhance efficiency of operations of the hospital.
This will involve a hospital wide information system which will cover all areas, some of
which are medical records, pharmacy, laboratory, radiology, administrative and accounting
as well. The IT system should be a working system whereby both the internal community,
meaning PGH personnel, doctors, nurses, paramedical and administrative as well as the
external community, the patients and the nation can access. The purpose of a hospital
information system (HIS) is to manage the information that health professionals need to
perform their jobs effectively and efficiently. These may be categorized into three domains
Operational
o up-to-date factual information
o necessary for day to day tasks
Planning
o short- and long-term decisions about patient care
o decisions about hospital management
Documentation
o the maintenance of records
o accreditation
o legal record

2. Strategic Human Resource Development Program for PGH

I believe that PGH needs to develop a strong, cohesive internal community which is
empowered to sustain PGH through the next century. PGH has the best, most resourceful
and most creative minds for healthcare delivery in the country. I would like to harness this
potential by re-inventing and redesigning the Human Resource Development programs of
the UP-PGH. In the first year, PGH will embark on an internal human resource development.
As we strengthen our internal capacities and abilities, in the second and third years of my
leadership, I envision PGH to be extending its human resources, both in terms of services
and technical expertise, throughout the country. This will address the expansion of PGH so
that more PGH like hospitals will be seen all over the country, with the same excellence
and quality that is distinctly UP-PGH. This hopefully will answer the concern for networking
which has remained an enigma for PGH.