Showing posts with label medico-legal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label medico-legal. Show all posts

PostHeaderIcon Lack of forensic science logistics in the Maguindanao massacre probe

11/27/2009 | Posted by Anonymous | Edit Post




It is like what happened to the sinking of the passenger ship Princess of the Sea at the height of a typhoon which drowned 800 or more people on June 22, 2008. The Maguindanao political massacre is posing the same problem for the investigators. The basic lack of facilities to store 57 dead bodies has hampered the probe.

The government has not done anything new to prepare for instances of mass deaths. With the global outrage over the barbaric bloodbath, the Philippines is under pressure by the human rights groups and the United Nations (UN) to come out with a clean and fair pursuit of justice.

Dr. Ben Molino who works in the group CenterLaw Philippines said he feels sad for government doctors who have to face the lack of logistics to deal with the investigation of a massacre with so many fatalities. The working conditions of the probers are bad, endangeriing and probably compromising the integrity of the investigation results. Such helplessness and embarassment have obviously been ignored by the Philippine authorities.

The investigators quickly dug the bodies by a land-fill excavator and by hands without employing caution to preserve as much evidence. Gloves were hard to find. They employ the crude lime to retard the decomposition of the bodies, many wrapped in banana leaves in the absence of freezers.

“Dr. Molino lamented that there were no refrigerators to store the bodies, nor even just air-conditioning. In a CenterLaw Philippines report, he said: “They could have at least used lime to slow down the process of composition but I did not see any indication that they did that."”—GMAnews.Tv (November 21,/2009)

Obviously, the morale of the medico-legal investigators is low. It is reported that their autopsies have been “completed,” but the doctors refuse to be interviewed. Their initial findings point to gunshot wounds as the cause of the victim's death. But it is unsure whether they have identified the brutalized bodies for proper disposition.

I have occasions of working with Dr. Ben Molino in the 1980's in similar difficult probe situations. I feel there is nothing much which changed to improve the state of forensic science in the Philippines. It is an area that the government must urgently look into to bring justice and avoid embarrassing the country in the world.(Photo Credits: Erik de Castro/ Reuters x 2) =0=

RELATED BLOG: "The Ferry Tragedy: Lack Of Body Bags And The Dearth Of Forensic Expertise" Posted by mesiamd at 6/27/2008; Maguindanao Massacre: death toll climbs with 22 mediamen dead Posted by mesiamd at 11/25/2009; Maguindanao bloodbath blamed on Ampatuans Posted by mesiamd at 11/24/2009
=============================================================
Labels: , , , , , , , , , ,

PostHeaderIcon Dr. Vicki Belo: a lesson on cosmetic surgery, sex, & "quackery"?

11/07/2009 | Posted by Anonymous | Edit Post


As a physician, Dr. Vicki Belo is an exception. She is the sexy owner of the Belo Medical Group, a professional practice which takes care of the aesthetic aspects of medicine--- especially for the movie stars and famous people of Manila. In the proces, she has become a stand-out doctor and a celebrity of sorts.

Like her famous patients, the lady MD has been entangled in a string of sensational controversies. Her personal life has been closely tissed together with her work. She draws public interest like the moth hovering over the proverbial lamp. Some burning here and there keeps the doctor's fame and notoriety.

A few months ago, she and boyfriend Dr. Hayden Kho, a cocky doctor in her group, were the subjects of searing gossips of romance, sexual escapades, and lewd videos. At least a couple of movie starlets were involved that brought curious senators liking to investigate in the name of legislation. The news that followed was risque and unheard of in the medical profession.

It was embarrassing for all parties that something obscene had to be laid bare in all corners of the world. Video tapes of carnal pleasures were surreptitiously passed on and illegally sold in the sidewalks. Their story was red hot--- catching the attention of institutions like the Philippine Medical Association, the Senate Committee on Youth, Women and Family Relations, The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, and the National Bureau of Investigation.

More recently, Dr. Belo is again in the news. A 40-year old patient Josefina Norcio who asked for a butt job accused the doctor of tax evasion, estafa, and bad medical practice.

According to the patient, she almost died from an unsafe agent used by Dr. Belo and her assistants during a surgery to improve the looks of her buttocks. Shelling out the right money for the procedure, Norcio was disgruntled. She claimed she was not given a receipt. Norcio accused Dr. Belo of malpractice: engaging in medical "quackery" and using misleading advertising in her job.

Whether the allegations are true or not, it’s a hell of a situation to be in the doctor’s position. Though Dr. Belo is the main target, there are those who mistakenly think that it’s the medical profession which has to be judged in the scandals. (Photo Credit: www.tvpinoy.info) =0=

RELATED BLOGS: "As the Kho-Halili sex scandal is investigated, obscene video sells briskly in the sidewalk" Posted by mesiamd at 5/29/2009; "A cosmetic surgeon shows off his sex video" Posted by mesiamd at 5/20/2009

============================================================
Labels: , , , , , , , ,

PostHeaderIcon Reconciling dental records and the identity of Ruby Rose Jimenez

8/03/2009 | Posted by Anonymous | Edit Post


In forensic investigations which involve dental records, usually, identification of human remains is not difficult. The landmarks of a person’s teeth and jawbone are unique that when x-rays are compared, the match or mismatch is easily evident. The dentition, the relation of the teeth to the bones, and presence of cavities, dental fillings and appliance are usually enough.

Apparently, this is not the case of a woman found in a steel drum on June 10, 2009. The conflicting report of the National Police and pathologists Dr. Raquel Fortun and Dr. Danilo Magtanong of the University of the Philippines on the identity of suspected murder victim Ruby Rose Barrameda Jimenez is marred by questions on the inconsistency of the dental findings. The controversy casts doubt on the competence of our investigators.

According to Magtanong, the dental charts failed to match because the body had ”a first molar and a missing third molar while Ruby Rose’s 1996 records indicated she had no first molar. “

That is not hard to understand. If such findings are true (barring tampering,) then that skull or jawbone is not that Ruby Rose. Surely, there are other unique features of the remains that may be used to help corroborate the conclusion. This is of paramount importance for any error can bring someone to answer a crime.

The unfortunate tug-of-war among forensic “experts’ has caused tremendous embarrassment and loss of credibility among our investigators. Those in the crime laboratory need not challenge the public about giving up their licenses if only to prove that they are correct in their findings. They must focus on the evidence using the tools of forensic science to arrive at the right conclusion. (Photo Credit: rontgen1) =0=

=============================================================
Labels: , , , , , , , , ,

PostHeaderIcon P263K of bills detain a patient in a Bicol hospital?

8/23/2008 | Posted by Anonymous | Edit Post

After weeks of treatment following wounds and fractures sustained in a vehicular accident, injured-patient and cancer-sufferer Elizabeth Evangelio, widow of Ibalonian George Evangelio who died in the road accident last month is allegedly being held by the Bicol Regional Training and Teaching Hospital (BRTHH) of Albay for nonpayment of bills (P263,000.00)in spite of guarantees made by the bus company involved in the accident. (PhotoCredit: BRTTH after Reming by Bibal, J) Through a text message however, Joshua Evangelio, the son, said his mom's release from the hospital may be granted next week.

A test case for the law's implementation, Evangelio's situation demonstrates the pros and cons of having a legislation which puts innocent citizens and hospitals in hot water over the financial aspects of catastrophic illnesses and injuries. The Philippines passed the Hospital Dentention Law last year. On a medical standpoint which BRTTH probably subscribes to, there's no benefit keeping a patient longer than necessary especially in so far as finances are concerned. Hospital detention exposes a patient from hospital-borne disease and uses up beds that can be used by other patients. It's unclear whether this legislation is ever followed or is subject to negotiations in healthcare centers all over the country.

In a separate post, I'll share with you an article entitled "Hospital Detention Act: Pro-Poor or Anti-Hospital" I wrote which was published last year in New York Filipino Reporter and Bicol Mail in Naga City. I hope it can provide some information about the healthcare problem on which you can frame your opinion and course of action. =0=
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , ,

PostHeaderIcon The Ferry Tragedy: Lack Of Body Bags And The Dearth Of Forensic Expertise

6/27/2008 | Posted by Anonymous | Edit Post
The advice of UP pathologist Dr. Raquel Fortun that "there must be a detailed external examination of all remains recovered while the soft tissues are still intact for documentation and proper identification" seems to be what we know from a pathology textbook. But for those who are aware of how forensic science is practiced in the Philippines, this recommendation is a pipe dream, especially for those who lost loved ones in the Princess of the Stars tragedy.

In spite of advanced forensic technology currently in use today, our investigators are mostly operating on antiquated scientific grounds, very much like the outdated travel guidelines Sulpicio Lines followed which led to the ill-fated ship to its seabed grave. Our forensic doctors may well be 50 years behind in what modern science normally does to deal with deaths of this magnitude.

We don’t have enough freezers and body bags to keep our cadavers. There is no central repository of bodies that’s needed to secure material evidence and specimens for testing. We lack the manpower and logistics to deal with such a catastrophe which upsets all of us. With no time to put up a coordinated team, pressure to bury decomposing bodies builds up. The public is afraid of potential contamination and outbreak of diseases.

Since I left UP-PGH in the 1980’s, little had changed in our way of medico-legal investigation. In those days, as member of the Department of Pathology, I volunteered to help examine remains---a thankless job I did for free, because few pathologists in the academe were willing to do it. I believed it was a calling which I must sustain for those who sought justice. I joined the National Bureau Investigation (NBI,) Commission on Human Rights (CHR,) and some cause-oriented groups perform autopsies and identifications, mostly for victims of violence and killings during Marcos’s time.

The reasons for the dearth of interest in forensic science are largely predictable. For years, the systemic lack of budget has spawned a culture of waiting, inaction, and helplessness on the part of the government. Gruesome and messy as necropsies may be, forensic science is a tedious job. Few doctors go into the specialty for lack of appreciation of its contribution to our society. It appears a sizeable number of medico-legal doctors stick to their jobs as their source of livelihood, not because they gain professional satisfaction in caring for the dead and in seeking the truth behind a person’s passing.

Many medico-legal doctors in the Philippines are trained on the routine crime scene investigation, identification of bodies and autopsy, but they sorely lack support. As basic as a steady supply of gloves, sharp scalpels, or a good morgue assistant, pathologists don’t have standard modern autopsy facilities. Besides, they have only a few credible laboratories with state-of-the-art capabilities which can help put their cases to rest.

The routine death investigations do not usually pose problems. It is the sensational demise, those that hug the news and cause public controversy and pain that bring embarrassment to our medico-legal capabilities. In our ranks, we have forensic workers who are slowed by the endemic problems of the profession: job-overload, lack of facilities, inadequate budgetary support, turf wars, and a dearth in trained manpower.

There are times when we don’t believe what our medico-legal investigators say. Questionable results of past cases make them appear untrustworthy. The question of competence and honesty often crop up, making them cynical and defensive. Burdened by their deficiencies, they end up as apologists and defenders of an institution that needs total overhaul.

Body retrieval and identification disturb us. In mass deaths, our instinct is to ask help from forensic experts abroad, believing that it’s the only way a reliable medico-legal investigation can be carried out. Our unending dependence on foreign assistance makes us lose our drive to learn, work hard, and trust in ourselves.

Who then will do the examination, documentation, procurement of tissue samples that may aid in identifying the dead? Who will provide the freezers that Dr. Fortun asks for (Inguirer, 06/27/08, Uy, J.)---so that the NBI and medico-legal experts like her could do their job to the satisfaction of the grieving public? When will we get the central repository of remains and tissue samples of unidentified victims?

The main purpose of postmortem examination in the tragedy is to recognize the dead as quickly as possible so that their relatives can give them decent burial. Body retrieval and identification will help bring closure to the grief of loved ones. Necropsy is important in the prosecution of case(s) against the culpable. It's vital in pursuing justice for the victims.

At this time, it is less important to know the victim’s circumstance and manner of dying, for without the ship’s sinking, all the passengers could be presumed alive to reach their destination. Most of those who perished probably drowned.

More than 20 years after I left UP-PGH, I doubt if precise identification could be done on many victims of Sulpicio Lines. An overwhelming number of decomposing bodies, in various stages of decay, at different sites in the islands, some drifting from the shipwreck have been found floating or washed to shore. It appears the manpower and forensic expertise to do a credible job on these bodies, are meager and inadequate. =0=
Labels: , , , , , , , , , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)

Topics/Categories

Feedjit Live Blog Stats

Topics/Categories

Add to Technorati Favorites

Ateneo de Naga HS Batch 74

Loading...

ABS-CBN News

Loading...

GMA News.tv

Loading...

Philippine Commentary

Loading...

Inquirer Breaking News

Loading...

Blogger Template created by AVGWEB.