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Mon-Tue, August 24-25, 2020
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Erring
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TO err is human - to forgive is divine. The British poet Alexander Pope (1688-1744) created this saying. And, in my opinion, he was so very right. Erring - having failed to adhere to the proper or accepted standards. How many times have we done something wrong? In our daily life struggles, we also pass innumerable periods of splendid isolation and act, as William Shakespeare said, “Thoughts are free” by hurting and insulting relatives, friends, and colleagues. Many times we err, and, even if we know it, we don’t care. BAHALA SILA... Maybe we pray and ask for forgiveness. And, we are so sure of having our complimentary ticket in our pockets and pouches. Nobody is perfect - sure! Me too! Yes, I confess! But that’s no excuse for broken promises. How many times do we commit a mistake? How many times are we mistaken, or get astray? How many times do we sin? How often do we catch ourselves being roving, wandering, and acting eccentric, changeable, capri-
cious, and not dependable? Or, how many people in our surroundings do we meet daily, who err terribly on their decisions? I am not talking about the deviation from right or truth and the sins, blunders, and mistakes, which we make in our daily life. To err is human, sure - but not if we err willfully, intentionally, or if legal premeditation is done. But the second part of my today’s column here is much more important: forgiveness! Yes, forgiveness is divinity - meaning to say: godhead and theological together. I looked into my dictionaries and found innumerable explanations: “If we can forgive, we are belonging to, or, we are having the nature of God. We might be holy, sacred, heavenly, or a superhuman -being a priest, a pastor, a clergy, or theologian!” I guess it’s already a wonderful situation, after being insulted or hurt by someone to hear the simple expression “SORRY!” Yes, it’s coming from the bottom of the heart. “SORRY!” ... - and I ask God also to forgive all my sins and my
Klaus Doring
wrongdoings to others. Regarding “seeking forgiveness” we can find plenty of passages in our Holy Bible. The most touching part for me is being found in Proverbs 28:13: “You will never succeed in life if you try to hide your sins. Confess them and give them up, then God will show mercy to you!” “Erring” taxi drivers never die out. When I returned from my last long trip before Covid-19 stopped all travel plans, I met one, asking me an extra charge of 50 Pesos because of the incalculable waiting period at the airport. The taxi number and company are noted. Just in case... Of course, I didn’t pay the extra charge and boarded another taxi.... +++ Email: doringklaus@ gmail.com or follow me on Facebook, Linkedin or Twitter or visit www.germanexpatinthephilippines.blogspot.com or www.klausdoringsclassicalmusic.blogspot.com.
Letters from Davao
SPMC the vile critics didn’t know
IF the opposition and their propaganda machiner y think they scored big with what they claim was a damaging revelation that the Southern Philippines Medical Center received a huge sum of reimbursements from the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, they better save the cow for their party because their tirade displays their ignorance. If they think that the amount of PhP326 million is huge for one hospital, they better look again because simple arithmetic will tell them SPMC is in fact shortchanged. As usual, Maria Ressa, the Manila-based darling of the western press, thought she stumbled on a huge stockpile of explosives that can be detonated and reduce her pet peeve Rodrigo Duterte to smithereens. She did try to ignite some but it backfired. Doctors and health workers at SPMC were mad by the careless insinuations of Ressa for not checking on her facts but thank her anyway, for now, it is known nationwide that SPMC, which is based in Davao City, is, in fact, the biggest tertiary hospital in the country which means it is very well equipped and with a phalanx of specialist physicians. At this point let me quote verbatim what Dr. Bernard Chiew, a Davao City-based internal medicine and adult cardiology specialist, has to
say: 1. SPMC is in Davao City. Davao Regional Medical Center (DRMC) is in another province, at Tagum City in Davao Del Norte. 2. SPMC is the biggest government hospital in the country with 1500 beds. PGH is second with 1100 beds. 3. How big is SPMC? For the Department of Internal Medicine alone, which is largely responsible for taking care of COVID patients, there are 83 medical residents and 95 medical consultants. Our department is bigger than the whole medical staff and trainees of most hospitals. The total number of residents/fellows and consultants for all the departments of SPMC? 475 residents and fellows, 399 consultants. 4. SPMC is the ONLY government hospital in Davao City, serving the whole of Mindanao as a medical center. For SPMC, there is no such thing as “puno na ang hospital. Lumipat na lang kayo sa iba!”. The buck stops here. 5. As for Covid-19, SPMC is the only Covid center in the Davao area. BECAUSE WE ARE SMART HERE IN DAVAO, we centralized the treatment of Covid. Until recently, private hospitals were not allowed to admit Covid. Now, only mild cases of COVID are allowed in private hospitals. It is still
Jun Ledesma
SPMC which is ground zero for the COVID treatment. By doing this, we are able to maximize manpower and resources and streamline our response. 6. SPMC is not just an “infirmary clinic” that others make it appear. Since the start of the Covid Pandemic, on average, SPMC is taking care of more than 130 inpatient Covid cases daily (about 100 adult Covid patients and 30 pediatric Covid cases). This does not include hundreds of other non-Covid cases in the hospital. 7. In Metro Manila, unlike in Davao City’s SPMC, PGH does not bear the brunt of ALL Covid cases. Covid cases are being admitted in private hospitals and other government hospitals in Metro Manila. 8. Actually, Metro Manila got the biggest share of Covid-a9 funds at PhP592 million (PGH, National Kidney and Transplant Institute, and Quirino Memorial Medical Center). Davao CIty (SPMC) got PhP326 million. So! For those of you who just comment without doing research, it’s either you are ignorant or intellectually See CRITICS, page 11
