VIRAL: Doctor Comes to UST OB-Gyn Resident’s Defense

Earlier this week, an OB-Gyn resident from the University of Sto. Tomas (UST) hospital in the Philippines earned the ire of netizens after a certain Andrew Pelayo accused her of refusing the admission of his pregnant wife due to financial considerations. Pelayo blamed Dr. Ana Liezel Sahagun for the untimely death of his baby.

Through a viral Facebook post, Dr. James Abraham Dacanay Malala, an alumnus of the UST Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, has expressed his support for the controversial resident physician. Believing that Sahagun was “judged and accused wrongly”, Malala mentioned five points about the incident.

According to Malala, the UST hospital is not a charity or government hospital and admission in the clinical division is per cash basis. Patients need to shoulder fees for procedures and medications but the doctor’s fee and room service are free of charge.

Malala also claimed that Sahagun, a resident OB-Gyn in the said hospital, does not have a professional fee and will not benefit from the patient’s money. Sahagun was just following the protocols of the hospital, according to Malala.

The doctor further stressed that Pelayo and his wife were informed early on to transfer to another hospital. Malala pointed out that Sahagun ensured that Pelayo’s wife and the baby were stable when she gave the advice.

Moreover, Malala mentioned that Pelayo and his wife had 7 to 9 months to prepare money for the hospital expenses. Also, Malala is puzzled as to why the couple did not invest on Philhealth.

Towards the end of his post, Malala urged netizens to know the whole story first before judging or condemning a person.

“Our healthcare system may suck hence the occurrence of such problems but the laymen should probably let the resident physician/hospital explain its side first (in private) before they judge & curse,” he wrote.

See the full Facebook post below.

Points to ponder after reading the recent viral FB post where a resident physician was judged and accused wrongly.1.)…

Posted by James Abraham Dacanay Malala on Tuesday, February 23, 2016

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