Doctor, Doctor, Am I Sick?

St. Luke's Reputation Of Excellence Doomed To Fail? For Political Or Medical Reasons?

Dr. Mario Ver, MD, FPOA, FPCS, Surgery, Orthopedic, active consultant at the Institute of Orthopedic and Sports Medicine

Dr. Juliet Gopez-Cervantes, MD, Gastroenterology, Arroyo’s attending physician

Dr. Roberto Mirasol, MD , Endocrinology & Diabetes

All from St. Luke's Medical Center Global City.



In her October 21 affidavit, Cervantes certified that Arroyo has metabolic bone disease but maintained that she "should fully recover from her spine surgery in six to eight months, barring any complications."

Mirasol, meanwhile, stated in the October 22 abstract that "an underlying rare metabolic bone disease could not be totally ruled out and she may require a bone biopsy."

Ver’s medical abstract prepared last October 24, however, failed to mention any metabolic bone disease at all.

"Everyone has right to an improved quality of life. I will pity anyone who will wear halo vest and Minerva brace but the picture that they attached in their petition was taken in July, the last operation only needed 6 to 8 months of recuperation, and doctors said she is now in a much improved condition.”

The Senate panel will ask Arroyo's doctors whether her mineral bone disease and hypoparathyroidism are life threatening and really require "urgent" treatment abroad.

"The Philippine Medical Association, through Dr. Leo Olarte said the medical facilities and the doctors here are enough to treat GMA (Arroyo)'s condition. But GMA's camp say there are no facilities or doctors here. We need to look into this,"

Olarte, PMA governor for Manila, has also said the bone biopsy that Arroyo's spokesperson said she needed done can be performed in the Philippines even by doctors who are not specialists.

The senators admitted the doctors might invoke doctor-patient confidentiality to refuse answering questions but said "we'll cross that bridge when we get there."

The DOJ has also requested the SC to summon Arroyo's doctors to shed some expert medical opinion. It was important for Arroyo’s doctors to inform the justices of her actual physical condition. They are directing the doctors to submit Arroyo’s latest medical abstract.

Determining Arroyo’s state of health will put to rest “lingering questions as to whether her current condition places her life in danger.

The doctors should come out and explain her present medical state to help determine if it is necessary to put her under hospital arrest.

Arroyo was forbidden to leave the country on the basis of Health Secretary Enrique Ona’s statement that “her condition is not life-threatening and that she requires no immediate medical treatment.”

Questionable also was the authority of a lawyer-doctor Ivy Patdu, who discussed the “intricacies of biopsy” during the oral arguments.

Apart from being a lawyer of Arroyo, Patdu has not been qualified “as an expert on the matter.”

Determining Arroyo’s real health condition would also help the government consider transferring the latter to a public hospital or detention facility. “If possible, she may also be taken to a jail facility with enough amenities so that her condition would not be at risk.”

In a letter of Arroyo’s legal counsel to the Supreme Court, Arroyo is asking to be allowed to go to three countries — Singapore, Germany, and Spain — for medical consultation.

However, in her request for permission from the House of Representatives, Arroyo added two more destinations: Switzerland and United States.

“Ang hamon ko sa kanila, ilabas niyo ang doktor at siya ang magpatunay na talagang life-threatening ang medical condition ng kanilang pasyente,"

"For the past few weeks, we have not heard from the doctors the current medical status of the former President. All we have heard are statements coming from the various spokespersons. The best person to testify as to the true medical condition of the former President would be the doctors themselves,"

Only the attending doctors can determine Arroyo’s true medical condition. “Without that, the Supreme Court cannot base their decision on a factual medical condition if the doctors are not called to testify."

Pasay City Regional Trial Court will not be able to determine the propriety of a hospital arrest if it will not be able to see for itself Mrs. Arroyo’s true medical condition.

“We agree that the doctors themselves, not the spokespersons, should be telling the public, telling the courts, the Supreme Court and the regional trial court, the true medical condition of the former president,"

“Ang sabi po natin sa batas, he who alleges must prove the same. They alleged she is in a life-threatening condition, dapat nilang patunayan na totoong hindi gumaganda ang kalagayan ni dating Pangulong Arroyo,"

He further said that the Aquino administration’s offer to fly in foreign medical specialists to the country remains, but the Arroyo camp couldn’ t identify the physicians they want to bring in.

Mike Arroyo was heard saying that what they are fighting for here is the right to travel freely, and the medical condition of her wife should not be the topic of discussion.

The recent events in the news leaves us only to any of these possible conclusions:

1. Arroyo requires no further treatment, whether immediate or later. Her condition has gone better and her previous operations only required her a few months rest.

2. Arroyo does not need to go abroad, treatment can be done locally. We have doctors and facilities here that could perform the needed bone biopsy.

3. Arroyo just wants to leave the country. Now that she couldnt leave due to the arrest, she still would not accept the government's offer to bring in their preferred specialists.

4. Arroyo is well-loved by her "abogado de kampanilya" lawyers, Justices from the Supreme KuraCourt, and Allies at the House of Representathieves. A pro bono lawyer has even offered one of his "balls" for her.

5. Arroyo is just pulling our eggs - I mean legs. She is not sick at all. This is just a tele-drama incited to invoke symphaty from the public.

6. Arroyo couldn't fool the majority of the Pilipino people. The surveys and online community uproar says it all.

7. Arroyo is now currently the most pitiful and shameful President in Philippine history since Erap.