Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Yes, Your Honor!" sabay na saad ni attorney Collins at attorney Lucas.

"Proceed."

Maayos ang tindig ni attorney Collins. Nag-uumapaw sa otoridad ang presensiyang dulot nito.

"So in September 13, 2020, a multiple surgeries happened in Bridgestone Medical Center. Six patients to be exact, undergone surgeries under great doctors," huminto muna saglit si attorney Collins at bahagyang tiningnan isa-isa ang anim na magagaling na doktor.

Napayuko ang mga ito at nahihiyang salubungin ang titig ng tanyag na abogado.

"Their patients received one thing in common..." pambibitin niya na siyang nagbibigay ng matinding tensiyon sa lahat. "An unsuccessful operation," dugtong nito.

There was a long pause of silence until...

attorney Collins broke the ice.

"Looking back, as I visited the house of the bereaved families, I discovered something. I recorded our conversation with their permission. You need to hear this, Your Honor!" seryosong saad ni attorney Collins sa tatlong nakakataas na hukuman.

The judges nodded as the middle seat judge motioned his right hand to the court lady as a signal to assist attorney Collins.

Magalang na ibinigay ni attorney Collins ang kanyang pen recorder sa court lady. Ito ay naglalaman ng impormasyon tungkol sa mga pasyente.

"Lumaking masayahin ang aking anak, attorney. Mabait at masunuring bata. Ni minsan ay hindi ito nagtanim ng sama ng loob sa amin. She was 18 years old back then when she started feeling a sudden chest pain pero nawawala rin naman bigla. We tried to convinced her a lot of times to go to the hospital para sana magpacheck-up but no to avail. Ayaw niyang pumayag kasi hindi naman daw ganun kalala..."

Katahimikan.

Mahabang katahimikan ang siyang namutawi sa paligid.

Sunod-sunod na hikbi ang siyang narinig nila.

Naging emosyonal ang pamilya ng biktima.

"We can end it here Mrs. Monteverde."

Sunod na narinig nila ang boses ni attorney Collins at galaw ng upuan.

"No, I'm okay," agarang saad ni Mrs. Monteverde. "Sorry for being emotional. I-I'm just lonely missing my daughter," dagdag pa nito.

Bigla na naman nilang narinig ang pag-galaw ng upuan. Kung hindi sila nagkakamali ay tunog ito galing sa upuan ni attorney Collins na siyang bumalik sa pagkaka-upo.

"Everything seems so fine with her even after three years had passed. It was just recently when she was admitted to Bridgestone Medical Center due to difficulties of breathing. And that's the moment when we discovered and she was diagnosed with heart failure. Ang lakas ng anak ko, attorney. Even after hearing that news, hindi nawala sa kaniyang mukha ang ngiting palagi nitong dala. Naalala ko pa ang minsan sinabi niya na magpakatatag raw ako, dahil lalaban raw siya. So we started looking for a heart donor. Sobrang tuwa niya noong may nahanap kaming donor. Sabi niya pa na pagkatapos na pagkatapos ng successful operation niya ay dadalo daw siya sa concert ng BLACKPINK. Pero... hindi na 'yon matutuloy pa..." mahihimigan mo ang lungkot ng boses ng nagsasalita. "Nakikiusap ako, attorney, tulungan niyo po akong makamit ang hustisya para sa pagkamatay ng anak ko. Kahit 'yon man lang ay magawa ko para sa kaniya," desididong saad nito.

"Ms. Kessa Monteverde. Twenty-one years old. Only child of Mr. and Mrs. Monteverde. Diagnosed with heart failure but her parent quickly found a donor for her heart transplant surgery. Also received a high probability of successful operation in the last consultation. But during the surgery, the doctor-in-charge encountered errors due to dizziness," pagpapaliwanag nito."To support my claim, I hereby present to you the testimony of the people who assisted doctor Raven Matsunaga during the surgery. Please take a look, Your Honor!"

The judges flip the pages until it reached the said documents.

Attorney Collins also presented the documents via projection presentation for the crowd to see.

The documents stated the entire story of what happened inside the emergency room, in detailed.

According to them, doctor Raven Matsunaga suddenly felt dizzy in the middle of performing surgery. They tried to call his attention and snap his consciousness back but no to avail. They cannot take over for they do not know how to do it themselves.

Doctor Raven Matsunaga became unconscious those times and it is too late when they hear the flat line sound of a machine. The child heart's suddenly stop...

beating.

Gasped.

The crowd were in deep shocked. They cannot believed that such operation happened inside Bridgestone Medical Center.

"As you can see, according to their testimony, the doctor-in-charge failed to do his job, Your Honor!"

The family involved started being emotional— they were close to crying.

The judges just remained quiet but they keep that in mind.

They are not allowed to show some emotions to avoid misunderstanding and bias situation.

They should act with authority even if  it involved showing no emotions at all.

Attorney Collins played the next audio.

"At the age of twenty, my daughter diagnosed with brain tumor. Lumapit na kami sa maraming hospital, attorney. Pero walang tumanggap sa anak ko dahil raw sa kakulangan nila ng kagamitan. So they recommended us to Bridgestone Medical Center. Umabot pa kami ng ilang buwan to set an appointment to that hospital. My daughter recently turned twenty-one this year. Despite having brain tumor, my daughter's faith and trust to this hospital was strong. She told us not to worry a thing. She even had research about this hospital, reading feedbacks and reviews. She showed us that this hospital is trustworthy and undergone successful operation. Based on our last consultation, the doctor said that we do not have to worry. We were given a high probability of successful operation. We just need to signed a paper that states that we permit them to perform surgery to my daughter. She just need to undergo brain surgery to remove the brain tumor and then she will need chemotherapy and radiation treatment. B-But... unfortunately the surgery does not goes well. H-Her dream to attend BTS concert is no longer reachable."

Another series of commotion.

"Miss Friam Fernandez. Twenty-one years old. Diagnosed with brain tumor under doctor Adler Costillas. Faced the same fate in the midst of the surgery. Failed to perform successful operation to his patient that leads to her death."

The bereaved family were enraged and they are crying their heart out, remembering the souls of their lost precious children.

"On the fifth day of July, 2020, my daughter showed some symptoms of diabetes. Some symptoms are: blurry vision, always thirsty, nausea, obesity, usually feeling tired and experiencing urinary tract infection or UTI. We sent her to Bridgestone Medical Center as soon as we observed those symptoms. And our question has been answered. She was diagnosed with diabetes. The doctor-in-charge, doctor Kim Gonzaga suggested to undergo bariatric surgery through gastric bypass. He explained to us how bariatric surgery works and scheduled us on September 13 for her surgery. He assured us a high probability of successful operation but... failed at the end. No more EXO concert."

"Miss Jho Samantha Lee. Twenty years old. Diagnosed with diabetes. Diabetes is a silent killer that needs urgent care. So they go for bariatric surgery through gastric bypass, am I right Mrs. Lee?" pagtatanong niya sa magulang ng pasyente.

Mrs. Lee nodded in agreement.

From facing Mrs. Lee, attorney Collins shifted his attention to the judges.

The judges nodded.

"Attorney Lucas, can you explained to us how bariatric surgery through gastric bypass works?" pagtatanong ng middle seat judge sa attorney ng kabilang panig.

"Yes, Your Honor!" Magalang na sagot nito. "Bariatric surgery through gastric bypass is a traditional weight loss. It created small pouch to bypass the stomach. Most patients will lose about 70% of their excess weight, and it usually cures most associated medical problems such as diabetes and highblood pressures. That is exactly why doctor Kim Gonzaga suggested bariatric bypass surgery. That's all, Your Honor!"

"The probability rate is high, but the surgery did not go well. I see, plaintiff attorney please continue."

"Yes, Your Honor!" agarang sagot ni attorney Collins. "To put it simply, the doctor-in-charge in bariatric bypass surgery, doctor Kim Gonzaga also failed to perform successful operation."

The crowd were acting out of control. They were cursing the doctors to death.

The middle seat judge slammed his gavel three times against the wooden sound block creating a loud noise that makes the crowd shut their mouth.

The crowd automatically went silence after that.

"Mae my daughter suffered painful periods or simply called dysmenorrhea, excessive bleeding, and pain with bowel movements of urination monthly. She was always complaining about it. She told us that she felt dying. That must be too painful for her to utter those words. So we went to Bridgestone Medical Center to consult a doctor. The consultation in that hospital may be high and expensive, but it does not matter. We only want our daughter to be treated and live a happy life with her future family without worrying of being infertile. She was diagnosed with endometriosis. And doctor Jaro Madjos introduced us to endometriosis surgical excision surgery and promised us of successful operation but... ended up f-failing."

"Mae Ann Montefalco. Twenty-one years old. A graduating college student with just two years course. Diagnosed with endometriosis. It is characterized by the excessive growth of the lining of the uterus. The symptoms often associated with endometriosis include heavy, painful and long menstrual periods, urinary urgency, rectal bleeding and premenstrual spotting. Excisional surgery has a 70% to 80% chance of substantial pain relief with an increase in fertility rates with the best results even in the most severe conditions.

Most of these procedures can be done via laparoscopy. The goal of the surgery is to address the endometrial lesions, improve symptoms, and improve fertility in women who desire pregnancy. Excision or the removal of the entire lesions is considered as the gold standard. Surgical excision at the time of laparoscopy, a procedure performed under anesthesia that allows thorough inspection of all pelvic structures results in greater improvement in pain symptoms, and lower rate of recurrence. The propability of successful operation is high but during the surgery, doctor Jaro Madjos failed to perform successful operation for following the wrong process of surgical excision."

Silence.

Attorney Collins played the next audio.

"My daughter Desiree is a brand ambassador in a famous cosmetic products. But she was subjected to bullying. She was bullied by her co-models because of the size of her breast. So we went to Bridgestone Medical Center and set for private appointment regarding cosmetic breast surgery. The doctor-in-charge, doctor Sebastian Alcantara promised us not to disclose any information regarding this matter and ensure us for successful operation. But... failed to perform successful operation"

Miss Desiree's co-models cried in silence. Regretting how they treated her. And making fun of her physical appearance that lead her to undergo cosmetic breast surgery.

"Miss Desiree Alejo. Nineteen years old. A young model of a cosmetic products. Unfortunately, the doctor-in-charge of her operation, doctor Sebastian Alcantara made a terrible mistake that resulted to lost Miss Desiree's life."

The revelations were quite hard to process. They were in complete shock.

Indeed, even a great doctor who studied hard and known as the best doctors in their own field of expertise still had a chance of encountering failure.

Attorney Collins played the last audio.

"Jamel, my son, is a strong man with a big dreams in life. He suffered heart failure. He was the one who convinced us for a heart transplant surgery. The surgery is a not 100% guarantee of successful operation but he fully trusted the doctor-in-charge, doctor Arvi Ruiz, who performed countless of successful operation. Performing his heart transplant surgery is just a piece of cake to doctor Arvi Ruiz , he said. So we go for it. Doctor Arvi Ruiz also ensure us for successful operation but ended up... screwing."

"Mr. Jamel Rosales. Nineteen years old. Diagnosed with heart failure and undergone heart transplant surgery. But did not make it to the end. He lost his life not because of himself, but because of the doctor who operated him," tiim-bagang saad ni attorney Collins.

Kasalukuyang nakatungo lang ang mga doktor na sangkot sa operasyon.

"Six innocent souls lost in just one night. Where the only thing they did, are trusting their doctors. 'To a patient, an illness is despair, and a doctor is a hope. If the doctor does nothing, the patient's torment doesn't stop'. But in these cases, the doctor recklessly performed surgery while under the influence of alcohol. Please flip the next pages, Your Honor!"

Agad namang tumalima ang tatlong nakakataas na hukuman.

On the other hand, attorney Collins showed the crowd the result of the doctor's medical result. He requested them as an evidence.

"Alcohol found in the doctor's body as shown in their medical result. A clear indication that they were performing surgery while under the influence of alcohol. They were in a drunken state when they fulfilled their job as a doctor but turns out failing. The hope that the young children hold unto just shattered in pieces. Instead of helping them to be cured, they caused them more pain, much worst—death. Doctors who act recklessly when there are lives involved, does not deserve to be a doctor in the first place."

Attorney Grey Collins is now using his appeal to emotion card, wherein he attempted to manipulate an emotional response in place of a valid or compelling arguments. He make used of their emotional state to strengthen their claims and get a satisfactory verdict, right and just.

Poor children, they trusted the wrong doctors, he uttered mentally.

"I request a three years imprisonment, Your Honor!"

"Objection, Your Honor! We do accept all the claims of attorney Collins, and we plead guilty. But we asked for your mercy, Your Honor! My clients are  competent doctors, they strive hard to reached where they are now. One mistake does not make them incompetent and unable. We are greatly sorry for the lost of the bereaved family," he said and faced the families of the deceased.

He bowed down as a sign of asking for an apology. Doctors involved stood up and also did the same thing. They bowed their head and showed great repentance.

"Where are they before the surgery happened, attorney Lucas?" pagputol na saad na punong hukom.

"They were promoted on their positions for being great doctors in the field. They had a drink as a small celebration of their achievement. Out of excitement, they got themselves drunk and totally forgot about the surgeries at the moment. They were still conscious when they suddenly remembered the surgeries that will happen on that specific night. They rushed to the hospital, half running. Forgetting about their headaches. At only thought about their surgeries."

"Objection, Your Honor!" attorney Collins objected. "They stirred up trouble and ended up losing their patient's lives. A hospital has its own orders and rules. And they are not allowed to operate surgeries in a drunken state. I request to have their licenses revoked, Your Honor. I rest my case," pagtatapos ni attorney Collins.

He put their case to an end and gave the judges the final decision.

The judges nodded.

"As we thoroughly read about their basic information we noticed that they are all married. And one of them has a pregnant wife. They all have wives back home. Does not it means that they are a bit irresponsible? Drinking like do not have a responsibility in hospital at back home? Who took care of their wives then? Especially the pregnant wife?" sunod-sunod na tanong punong hukuman kay attorney Lucas.

"They were all taken care of by their families while their husbands are still on duty, Your Honor!"

The judges nodded.

Abalang nag-uusap ang tatlong hukom tungkol sa kaparusahang ipapataw sa anim na doktor.

Sa kabilang banda, nanatiling nakayuko lang ang mga doktor. Tahimik na tinanggap na ang magiging resulta ng kanilang pagiging pabaya.

It is their fault after all. And they are guilty for what they did to those young children who trusted them wholeheartedly. They just kill their dreams. And they are now ready to accept any punishment bestowed upon them.

The crowd is in deep chaos, they were now acting unethically. Especially attorney Collins's side. They were uncontrollable, which is partly understandable. They were in pain, the wound is still fresh.

Isang tikhim galing sa punong hukom ang nakakapagtigil sa ingay ng paligid.

"The court will now announce the final verdict," the middle seat judged announced.

"The defendants are found guilty for medical malpractice. Under the Republic act  5527 section 12, Removal of Board Members. Wherein any member of the board may be removed by the president of the Philippines..." sabay lingon ng punong hukom sa president ng bansa na siyang dumalo din sa paglilitis ng kaso."for neglect of duty, incompetency, malpractice or unprofessional, unethical, immoral or dishonorable conduct after having been given opportunity to defend himself in a proper and administrative investigation: Provided, that during the process of investigation, the president shall have the power to suspend such member under investigation and appoint a temporary member in his place. The court will have your license revoked. Also talk to bereaved family for the settlement."

The judge slammed his gavel three times as a sign of dismissal.

"Case closed. All rise."

Tahimik na lumabas ang presidente ng matapos ang paglilitis kasama ang mga bodyguards nito.

Sunod-sunod na nag-alisan ang mga tao.

Ang mga doktor ay tahimik na lumabas at tinanggap ang hatol sa kanila.

Sunod na lumabas rin ang mga pamilya ng biktima pagkatapos magpasalamat kay attorney Collins.

Huling lumabas ang dalawang attorney ng magkabilang panig— attorney Collins and attorney Lucas.

Nasa kalagitnaan ng pagliligpit si attorney Collins ng nilapitan ito ni attorney Lucas.

Magalang na inilahad nito ang kaniyang kamay at pormal na nagpakilala.

"Attorney Lucas Winterlake. I'm glad to finally meet you... again, attorney."