Dr. Lloyd Barba

09/10/2025

08/10/2025

We built 600 health centers.
Only 200 are open.
Are these "ghost" projects, or a "ghosted" health system?
Until we fix staffing, funding, and respect for health workers, our healthcare will stay hollow.

21/09/2025

Wag kang matakot, sila ang dapat matakot!

Medtech, Nars, Pharmacist, PT, RT, Dietitians, mga Doktor at iba pang kasama sa Allied Health at lalong lao na ang mga naghihikahos na mga pasyente. Kahit sino sa atin ay walang ligtas sa korapsiyon, tayo ay kabilang sa araw-araw na inaabuso at biktima ng sistemang ito.

𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗴𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗮𝘆𝗼! 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗺𝗮 𝘁𝗮𝘆𝗼!

Alam naming mas pipiliin nating magpahinga kesa maging presenta sa Luneta o EDSA, karapatan natin iyon at nararapat lang din naman iyon. O di kaya naman ay nasa duty o tawag ng obligasyon kaya hindi din makakasama, tama lang din naman iyon—pasyente muna, obligasyon muna. Ngunit nais namin ipaalala na marami kang pwedeng gawin upang ipahayag ang iyong galit sa mga katiwalian, ang simple pagiging mulat sa katotohanan at hindi nagbubulag-bulag sa kamalian ng sistema ay isa na ring paraan. Mag-ingay ka, mag reklamo ka, kumalampag ka, makiisa ka, dahil walang ligtas sa isang malawakang korapsiyon sa sistema.

Sa mga 𝗞𝗢𝗥𝗔𝗣 na 𝗣𝗢𝗟𝗜𝗧𝗜𝗞𝗢 ano pa ang saysay ng aming pagliligtas ng buhay kung nais niyo lang din sila/kami mamatay; sa kakulangan ng gamot, kakulangan sa pasilidad sa pagamutan, gutom, baha, at mga sakit dulot ng inyong kapabayaan, pagkagahaman, at kasakiman. Mangilabot at matakot naman kayo.

✊🏼

Objectives

08/09/2025

18/08/2025

Every time a Filipino doctor or nurse goes abroad, people say: “Nag-abroad na naman. Iniwan ang bayan.”

But the truth is, they’re not leaving the country. They’re escaping a broken system.

The real problem isn’t migration, it’s the system that pushes our healers away.

Doctors and nurses don’t want to abandon the Philippines. Many dream of serving here. But when the system is broken—leaving becomes an act of survival, not betrayal.

Sources:
Marcos to doctors, nurses: Stay, serve in the Philippines
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2097148/fwd-marcos-on-healthcare-system

Uneven distribution of health workers in PH - PIDS study
https://www.pids.gov.ph/details/address-uneven-distribution-of-health-workers-in-ph-pids-study

Who Are the Health Workers and Where Are They? Revealed Preferences in Location Decision among Health Care Professionals in the Philippines (Abrigo and Ortiz, 2019)
https://pidswebs.pids.gov.ph/CDN/PUBLICATIONS/pidsdps1932.pdf

15/08/2025

I read a post about a doctor who gave everything for their patients—time, energy, even their own health—yet passed away feeling shortchanged.

It’s a painful truth in our profession. We pour our hearts out, but sometimes the system forgets to care for us in return.

To my fellow doctors: your kindness is your strength, but your life matters too.

14/08/2025

"...our profession is evolving and that the practice of medicine will also evolve, not just from a knowledge aspect but also from a societal standpoint. It is no longer acceptable to subject our trainees to inhumane conditions, even if we did survive them."

As Gen X doctors who graduated from medical school in 2001, it was an implied commandment that you couldn’t be absent unless you had a life-threatening illness. High fever and chills? As long as you could walk, you would come in anyway. The patients always come first.

Read more in the comments section.

12/08/2025

"This is not merely a reputational issue; it is clinical. When propaganda overwhelms facts, patients receive worse care, physicians practice defensively, and confidence in both doctors and the health-care system erodes."

[EDITORIAL] The Chilling Effect On Care: How Harassment Undermines Doctors And Patients

Read: https://www.advocatesomi.com/2024/recent/the-chilling-effect-on-care-how-harassment-undermines-doctors-and-patients

10/08/2025

Doctor shaming is real in the Philippines. And it’s hurting both our doctors and our patients.

From expecting free consultations anytime, to blaming doctors for system failures, to discrediting them online, these actions chip away at trust, morale, and the future of healthcare in our country.

I’m sharing 5 common ways we shame doctors (and why they’re wrong) — so we can unlearn them and start building a culture of respect for the people who keep us alive.

📌 Fix the system. Stop shaming the people keeping it alive.

Resources:
Need to increase supply of medical workers: https://cids.up.edu.ph/the-need-to-increase-supply-of-medical-workers-and-build-telemedicine-infrastructure-to-prepare-for-future-public-health-crises/
Health workforce issues: https://human-resources-health.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12960-025-00988-3
Addressing Health Worker Satisfaction and Retention: https://cids.up.edu.ph/addressing-health-worker-satisfaction-retention-in-philippine-primary-care/
Case study on doctor shaming: https://globusjournal.com/a-case-study-on-doctor-shaming-in-social-media-and-its-effects-on-the-perception-of-the-philippines-healthcare-system-among-the-residents-of-the-national-capital-region/

08/08/2025

Read: Things you need to know about medical certificates

18/07/2025

Good will, bad result: What cheap consultations cost the medical community

I understand why some doctors offer consults for ₱300 or less—there’s real heart in that.

But good intentions aren’t always sustainable. Low fees can lead to rushed care, burnout, and pressure on others to do the same.

The real issue? A healthcare system that’s underfunded, unequal, and broken in many places.

Let’s focus on lasting solutions:
✅ Sliding-scale fees with gov’t support
✅ Better PhilHealth coverage
✅ Fair rates that value both patients and doctors

Compassion should heal—not exhaust.

Resources:
https://pids.gov.ph/details/news/press-releases/out-of-pocket-health-costs-higher-for-elderly-women-poor-rural-pinoys-pids-study?utm_source=chatgpt.com
https://businessmirror.com.ph/2024/08/05/more-reforms-needed-to-cut-out-of-pocket-health-spending/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
https://businessmirror.com.ph/2024/11/01/high-out-of-pocket-costs-and-unequal-access-hinder-phl-healthcare-progress/?utm_source=chatgpt.com