In the early 1990s, I found myself in a huddle with doctor-friends, brooding over the state of medical care in our province (Iloilo). A few things were clear to us. One, that the three big private hospitals and several government hospitals then operating in Iloilo could scarcely keep up with the need for medical care. Two, that health services, including diagnostic examinations, were out of reach of the average Ilonggo. Three, that with our combined resources, we might be able to offer an alternative to the expensive diagnostic services then being offered.
There was, moreover, a fourth issue, an ethical one, which needed to be threshed out before we act on our plan.
This was the ethical question of whether doctors should engage in business or not. It took us a year to resolve the question.
Our conclusion: In the same way that teachers are the best people to put up schools, engineers, construction companies, pharmacists, drug stores, doctors are also the most qualified to go into a health care enterprise
Our uneasiness over profit was eventually eased. Profit or money after all can be a means to serve the community better. Being in business gives doctors control. When we are in control, we are more responsive to patients’ needs. Moreover, by setting up a corporation, profit is spread thinly.
In August 1991, Medicus, Inc. was put up, with 11 doctors as incorporators. Each of us pooled in an investment of P75 thousand each to come up with a total initial capital stock of P700 thousand.
Now 21 years in existence, Medicus is No. 1 in medical laboratory and diagnostic services in the Panay islands, with five diagnostic centers in the city proper and a branch each in Sara, Estancia and Tabuc Suba in northern Iloilo, Roxas City in Capiz and San Jose in Antique. It is also the most well equipped in diagnostic facilities. Over the years, other clinics offering diagnostic services mushroomed all over Panay — none of which was able to nudge Medicus as market leader.
In 2011, we began to offer the “Medcard,” a pre-paid annual health card providing members access to preventive health care. At about the same time, we organized a Hypertensive and Diabetic Club, where members are provided information about hypertension and diabetes and given special discounts on cost of medicine and diagnostic services. In 2003, we opened our first pharmacy and health shop. Later that year, we went on the air with the “Clinic on the Air”: one of the first interactive health programs on television.
I am certain other doctors would also love the freedom that being in business provides. We can serve without giving too much thought to compensation. That way, we can retain much of the passion for our profession that we had as idealistic young medical graduates.
Rodolfo B. de la Cruz, MD
Medicus, Inc., Iloilo City