House Minority Leader Marcelino “Nonoy” Libanan and Eastern Samar Rep. Christopher Sheen Gonzales have forged a partnership with the University of the Philippines (UP) Manila’s School of Health Sciences to build a sustainable, community-rooted health workforce for Homonhon Island, Eastern Samar.

Under the initiative, UP Manila, led by Chancellor Dr. Michael Tee, will open a special class for 25 scholars from Homonhon, who will undergo the School of Health Sciences’ pioneering stepladder curriculum.

The program sequentially trains students to qualify as midwives, then nurses, and eventually doctors—within one integrated educational track.

Homonhon’s eight barangays will select the 25 scholars who will form the inaugural batch, while the congressional offices of Libanan and Gonzales will shoulder the students’ allowances.

“This will revolutionize public health services in Homonhon with community-rooted professionals who will stay and serve their people. The island will finally be assured of sustainable, community-based health care,” Libanan, a 4Ps Party-list representative, said.

Graduates are expected not only to serve in the island’s hospital but also to act as adjunct faculty, ensuring ongoing mentorship and skills transfer within the community.

Gonzales underscored the urgency of the project, noting the hardships faced by Homonhon’s 15,000 residents who are mostly fisherfolk and coconut farmers.

“Right now, patients—even in emergency cases—must endure a two-and-a-half-hour motorized boat ride to Guiuan on the mainland. When the seas are rough, travel becomes impossible,” Gonzales pointed out.

Libanan added: “We are determined to rebuild the island’s hospital and, with it, rebuild hope.” 

Gonzales also noted that Eastern Samar Governor RV Evardone has pledged provincial government support for the hospital’s rehabilitation.

Tee welcomed the partnership, saying it embodies UP’s mission of education in service of the people.

“Our goal is two-fold: to give our students practical training through community preceptorship while multiplying health services for remote areas. This is how we bring universal health care closer to the people,” Tee explained.

Homonhon, part of Guiuan town where Gonzales previously served as mayor, holds historical importance as the landing site of Ferdinand Magellan in 1521. 

Yet despite its rich heritage, the island has long suffered from poor access to public health care due to its isolation and the deterioration of its Department of Health (DOH)-maintained hospital, which was damaged by typhoons and later neglected.

The UP Manila’s School of Health Sciences, based in Palo, Leyte, has a proven record of producing graduates who return to serve in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas across the country.

Libanan and Gonzales, both with deep roots in Eastern Samar, emphasized that the initiative is more than a scholarship program.

“This is about securing the health, dignity, and future of generations of Homonhon residents,” they said.