Cardinal Santos Medical Center: The Good Things About Minimally Invasive Surgery

I am part of the population of Filipinos who would  never want to undergo surgery. It creeps me out, and those medical series produced in the US doesn't really help especially if there are very graphic images which I'm sure real doctors are quite used to. They're real heroes, even at the time of the pandemic they're at the hospitals and are making sure the medical needs of Filipinos are sufficiently given. It's a noble profession.

 With the advancements in technology, we now have a choice. The Cardinal Santos Medical Center earlier held a webinar and press conference to tell us about the wonders of Minimally Invasive Surgery. In the past, it would take a lot of effort to operate on people especially in the torso. Hospitals across the country already use this technology but not all have been educating ordinary joes. CSMC knows how it is vital to inform the public of the procedure as it is better than the old ways. This webinar was entitled as "Why Less Is More: 10 Things To Know About Minimally Invasive Surgery."

 

 Distinguished men and women who spoke at the webinar include Dr. Alfred Allen Buenafe the Executive Director of Cardinal Santos Philippine Center for Advanced Surgery (the prime MIS training center in the Philippines) , Dr Zenaida Javier-Uy who is the Chief Medical Officer, and Dr. Jaideep Raj Rao the Senior Consultant and General and Upper Gastrointestinal Surgeon of Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital in Singapore.

Dr. Buenafe pointed out the goodness of doing laparoscopic surgery and says “It helps diagnose a wide range of conditions that develop inside the abdomen or pelvis. It does it through direct visualization of the affected organs​. Surgical procedures like removing a diseased organ like a gallbladder, or collecting tissue samples for testing or biopsy can now be easy.”

Dr. Rao supported this and says "Doing minimal invasive surgery gets similar or even better results. The trauma on the human body is less so recovery is much faster." 

During the event, several patients who have undergone the procedure also gave their testimonies, of which mostly all healed faster than what is predicted. Cardinal Santos Medical Center wants this to be more accessible to Filipinos, starting with the Philippine Center for Advanced Surgery Training Center so more people can have access to world-class training here in the country.

To know more about the procedure or training, visit their official site cardinalsantos.com.ph.

The Philippines on Medical Malpractice

In this time of pandemic, we have seen a lot of people struggle to go to clinics, hospitals to receive medical care. Since most hospitals are at full capacity, we see people sometimes been referred to other institutions, or flat out just give up or go back home because most of the time, they won’t be able to receive the care they need due to the lack of medical personnel. Understandable in some cases, but every Filipino should always have the care they need in times of emergency. The right and proper care with the safety of the patient in mind, and also the front liners, medical professionals who literally life and limb are out there for us every single day. Quality of work should never be sacrificed either because the last thing we would want is to have to suffer both on the patient’s side and the attending medical pro.  Medical malpractice is no joking matter and ultimately, we are talking about lives here. Aside from that, most medical personnel in the Philippines actually don’t have malpractice insurance. In the US, it is also referred to as professional liability insurance and some states do require it. 

Claims for this kind of insurance can be made against a clinician when negligence is alleged in the conduct of their professional activities like medical care. It is typically unique to physicians/doctors because if patients say they incur any additional expense or future hospitalization brought about the alleged malpractice, that is its main function. That could include loss of income because they would not be able to work anymore, also pain and suffering, or in some cases, if they pass away. Sometimes, it may include defense coverages that if in case you get involved in a lawsuit, they cover expenses all throughout the defense of the case. Aside from that, some products cover cyber liability cases wherein if in case there is a breach of confidentiality between patient-doctor relationships, they will also cover that too. It could be the doctor who is covered or the actual practice (for example you have a clinic and employ people included there) and they could be covered with that as well. 

Having that said, do you think medical malpractice exists in the country? I feel so. With the numerous incidents and stories seen on media wherein patients are not attended to, given proper medical care, the right prescription which results later on to incur disabilities, additional medical costs, and medical fees, who would pay for that? Most often than not, people take a blindsided approach which would be detrimental to the patient and the physician as well. This is why, there should be institutions that would cover this and I’m glad there are several of them now in the Philippines. Although if I were to ask of who is the best medical malpractice insurance in the country, that would be a small list. It’s all about experience and ease of getting coverage. Pricing is also different with shared or individual coverages, and how much of it is needed. It may be dictated by laws, it can be dictated that or simply advised by professionals. I hope things will be better soon, because both patients and medical professionals need protection like that. I prefer my premiums be low just like any regular joe because it might be a burden to an already very costly monthly bill we all get right?

I hope policies become very easy to understand and a lot of people get to know things that can protect them, their lives and livelihood as well. The country should do headway in protecting our rights, because that is a very important matter.

Dennis Trillo and Bela Padilla Stars In "Sa Puso Ni Dok"

Do you still remember when we talked to Bella Padilla a few weeks ago about a new project? It looks like it already materialized because they have started filming the series and they're calling it "Sa Puso Ni Dok" (In the Doctor's Heart) and she'll be paired with one of the country's premier leading man and award winning actor Dennis Trillo. It's a new medical series that will talk about adventures and misadventures inside a common public hospital in Manila. They'll also be concentrating on some of the less exposed heroism of our men and women in the medical field and their hardships before becoming successful practitioners in the industry.

They'll play the role of Doc Dennis and Doc Gabrielle where he is a practicing Doctor in Melchora Aquino General Hospital. Even without enough salary, he chose to be here so he could help the less fortunate. You'll see how hard it is to work in an understaffed hospital and how they continue to make it work even with bare minimum medical facilities. Doc Gabrielle on the other hand needed to just finish her 2-3 year term in the public hospital because she plans to migrate elsewhere after that. Will there be drama? Or will there be romance between the two? That still remains to be seen.

They had a hard time filming it because Dennis Trillo had to learn a few things before they could go on with some scenes in the series. One of them is riding a motor bike which he obliged to actually study. Other than that, the special effects and sequences that require very physical work was a cinch with Bella because she's been able to learn a lot from the movies she made with the Padilla clan last year.

From make up, to prosthetics and set design, you are sure that you will never be shortchanged in this program because the whole staff painstakingly took a lot of effort to make sure what you'll see on GMA News TV would be worthy to either equal or even surpass the other masterpieces shown in documentaries from the same channel. "Sa Puso Ni Dok" will be show on July 26, 2014, that's a Saturday 7PM on GMA News TV.

Don't miss it!

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