The Heart Institute at Amai Pakpak Medical Center (APMC) in Marawi City, Philippines has begun its operations, reported Philippine News Agency.

In collaboration with the Philippine Heart Center (PHC), the APMC Heart Institute aims to serve as a regional heart centre, with latest facilities including a cardiovascular catheterisation laboratory, cardiovascular operating room, and specialised units for recovery.

Department of Health undersecretary for Visayas and Mindanao Dr. Abdullah Dumama said: "The establishment of APMC Heart Institute is in line with the thrust of Universal Health Care and is part of the mandate of Department of Health (DOH) to explore the regionalisation of health care."

Equipped with various residency training programmes, APMC is expected to function as a key referral centre for heart-related medical services in the Bangsamoro and other regions in Mindanao.

The Heart Institute's establishment follows the decentralisation of cardiovascular care and aims to increase accessibility to critical services.

Being the Level 3 teaching-training hospital, APMC offers residency programmes in various fields including Internal Medicine, Paediatrics, Surgery, Obstetrics, Gynaecology, and Anaesthesiology.

The 438-bed hospital benefits from a government grant ranging from PHP100m ($1.76m) to PHP200m ($3.52m), alongside a $1.5m contribution from the King Salman Foundation of Saudi Arabia in the previous year.

The Heart Institute has so far utilised PHP150m ($2.64m) from the Department of Health's general appropriations allocation.