The Philippine Medical Association is standing by its member Dr. Esterlina Luzares Tan who was tagged by singer Yeng Constantino in a traumatic vlog recalling her Siargao experience.
“The Philippine Medical Association stands in full support of Dr. Esterlina Luzares Tan, a life member of PMA, against the statement of Ms. Yeng Constantino in the recent incident in Dapa Siargao Hospital,” the medical group said in a statement.
Constantino complained about Tan’s alleged lack of sense of urgency involving an incident about her husband having accidentally lost memory following a diving incident.
“Dr. Esterlina Luzares Tan’s calm and composed attitude during the incident is commendable. Her extra effort to study how to operate an Infra Scanner, a new modality in her area, to ensure that Ms. Yeng Constantino’s husband does not suffer from any intra-cerebral hemorrhage which may be obtained from cliff diving, is also admirable,” PMA said.
The organization added that it will not tolerate any form of doctor-shaming of its members.
“The Philippine Medical Association will not allow its members to be subjected to unnecessary shaming while doing their duties, which is to save lives,” the group said.
On Monday, Constantino apologized to Tan saying her statements were due to her emotions following her husband’s accident.
“I would like to apologize to Dr. Esterlina Tan and the other medical staff for the hurt that my post and vlog has caused them. Whatever concerns I had should have been coursed through the proper forum. It was unfair to call her out on social media and I’m taking down the posts and the vlog immediately,” Constantino posted.
