DOH identifies 4 more in Cebu surgery scandal

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Health (DoH) on Tuesday identified four more medical practitioners involved in the so-called Cebu rectal surgery scandal at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Hospital (VSMMC). In a press briefing, lawyer Ronald de Vera of the DoH legal service division identified the four as Dr Marlowe Parreño, VSMMC consultant; Isabelita Remulta, senior operating room nurse supervisor; Consuelo Tecling, senior operating room nurse; and Ida Sumayang, senior operating room nurse on call. De Vera said the DoH had already ordered the second batch of identified individuals to explain why complaints should not be lodged against them. The four have three days to explain their side under oath. Last April 16, the DoH identified the three doctors and two nurses involved in the January operation – Dr Philips Leo Arias, head surgeon; Dr Angelo Alinawagan, assisting surgeon; Dr Max Joseph Montecillo, surgeon at an adjacent operating room; nursing attendant Rosemarie Villareal; and circulating nurse Carmiña Sapio. The show-cause order for the previously identified doctors and nurses was sent to them last April 22. It was not immediately known if they had already responded. The scandal involved an operation being conducted by more than 10 medical practitioners on a man to remove a perfume canister out of his rectum. It became controversial when a video footage of the surgery appeared on YouTube, a popular video-sharing website in the Internet. The video showed the medical practitioners giggling and cheering as the canister was being removed from the patient’s rectum. De Vera said they were still in the process of identifying who among the nine identified people or the student nurses present in the operating room uploaded the video clip on the Internet. He said they had already commissioned the National Bureau of Investigation’s Computer Crimes Division to help them identify the culprit. The DoH had said that the embroiled individuals would face administrative charges for breach of protocol and procedures during a medical operation and for using cell phone cameras without the patient’s consent. The victim, identified only as Jan-Jan, is seeking P5 million in exemplary damages and P1 million in moral damages from the medical team and from the VSMMC. He said the incident caused him “mental anxiety, social humiliation, wounded feelings, and sleepless nights." Aside from Jan-Jan, gender equality groups Ang Ladlad and Gahum have also threatened to file administrative charges against the medical practitioners linked to the scandal. - Mark Merueñas, GMANews.TV