“I got infected!… what the Hec”!

Having the opportunity to interview Orani District Hospital’s chief, Dr. Hector Santos, really got me drowned with the words of wisdom and life experiences he shared.

A certified millennial by deed but born during the 70’s, he resides at Calero St. Ibayo, Balanga City during the work days and at Urdaneta, Pangasinan during the weekends with his wife Ma. Theresa and their children Shayra, Joaquin,and Angel.

He spent his elementary days in Balanga Elementary School and his high school days in Balanga National School of Arts and Trade (BNSAT), now BPSU.

A farmers’ son with high hopes of being a doctor, he took both his pre-medicine course, BS Biology and medicine proper at the  St. Louis University (SLU) in Baguio.

“They made me promise na ‘pag may license na ako as a doctor, I will serve my fellow Bataeños,” said Doc Hec, and that’s what he did. He served as a medical officer in Bagac Community and Medicare Hospital in 1998, the only hospital with an open position that time.

His sixteen years of serving there didn’t go to waste because in the end he was also promoted as the chief of hospital.

Just last August 2016, he was transferred to Orani District Hospital to also serve as the chief of hospital. His words were “bigger hospital, greater responsibility.” As for his duties and responsibilities as the head, he manages the entire hospital specifically by overlooking the operations of the hospital, managing the finances, handling the personnel, strategizing the direction of the hospital, and most importantly, rebranding the hospital.

Going deeper with the rebranding, he said “I want to make an impression na, ‘government hospital ‘to?’” That if they say “government hospital”, people will have a good perception about it. “Ginawa kong personalized yung services, kumbaga, nakangiti lahat ng tao.” He said happiness is contagious, and that is what he is visibly doing.

Doc Hec also shared his plans for his hospital, that it is currently having its upgrade and general makeover. He also envisions the hospital to be very much capable. “’Yung hindi mo na kailangan dalhin ‘yung pasyente sa Balanga para operahan o para lang ma-cesarean. Kumbaga sa amin pa lang, pwede na,” he added.

Bringing to life the quote “leadership by example” is what he said is his most significant accomplishment was. He admitted that he is workaholic, that he is the first one to arrive in the office at 7 in the morning and the last one to leave at midnight, and that he sleeps where he works because he can think better if he is alone in the office. Doing this made a positive impact on his people, that he became a role model for them.

“Trabaho ng pagiging doctor in itself is fulfilling, kasi nakikita mo yung mga pasyente mo na gumagaling,” his response on asking what is the most fulfilling part of his job. “’Yung nakikita mong nakakatulong ka sa kapwa whether he/she is a patient or a personnel.”

Doc Hec wasn’t born with a silver spoon in his mouth, but that didn’t stop him from achieving his goals. “We came from a very poor family, noong bata ako nagtatanim ako ng palay at naliligo sa taguling. We had very little, pero tingnan mo napagtapos ako ng medisina ng magulang ko ‘di ba?” he said,

Aside from his family, his motivation comes from when he sees that he can make a genuine difference in the lives of the people.

Being a doctor and the head of a hospital consumes a lot of time from him, but that doesn’t mean he can’t be “in”. Aside from being a dedicated doctor, he is also a photography enthusiast, a baker of desserts, a fan of heavy metal music, and a technology geek. A good trivia about him is that whenever he gets a new gadget, he doesn’t use it unless he reads the manual from top to bottom.

Capping off the interview, he shares his current favorite quote “your smile is your logo, your personality is your business card, how you leave others feeling after having an experience with you is your trademark.”

That’s why he always says to his people, “be infectious in a good way. Kung infectious ang sakit, infectious din naman ‘yung happiness at ‘yung good vibes.”

And that’s it, I got infected. I just realized I was smiling the whole time I was talking to him.