IRRESPONSIBLE
By Rich Mazon
PhilBoxing.com
Sun, 06 Jan 2013
Dr. Rustico Jimenez was the most popular physician in the Philippines last week. He vested other celebrity doctors in the country by grabbing headlines both in the Philippines and abroad albeit in an infamous manner. The neurologist was the subject of criticism because of his public remark that Manny Pacquiao is showing early signs of Parkinson's disease.
Yes, Dr. Jimenez was a man of medicine and is qualified to state such an opinion. He is also certified in neurology where the diagnosis and treatment of the disease falls under its category. But his authority ends there.
Dr. Jimenez made a diagnosis that Pacquiao is in the early stages of the disease which has afflicted popular figures in the sport. But there is one problem, the doctor has not seen Pacquiao as a patient nor has even seen him up close.
The doctor, whose other credential include being the head of the country's association of private hospitals based his "medical" opinion by observing Pacquiao 's hand twitching on television.
Yes, the highly qualified neurologist drew his conclusion by watching the boxer in the boob tube.
There were no series of tests, no consultations where a thorough physical assessment is done and no one on one interaction between physician and patient was present for Dr. Jimenez to make such remark.
Dr. Jimenez, out of the blue, armed with his very skillful eye of assessment through the airwaves and because of the association between Parkinson's disease and the sport of boxing and passed on his "medical" judgment on Pacquiao who suffered a brutal knockout in the ring a month ago in Las Vegas.
I did not know that it was possible to do that. But somehow, Dr. Jimenez did so and with the sole tool of good old television. He even prescribed Pacquiao a treatment, which is to stop boxing. He even cautioned him that he may have Alzheimer's disease in the future.
Hand twitching is one of the early symptoms of Parkinson's disease. But it is not confined to the disease alone. Medical conditions like having a low blood sugar, a low level of calcium in the blood and a reaction to stress can cause such movements. Diseases like Lou Gehrig, Epilepsy, Dementia and yes, Parkinson's are a culprit as well.
But to single out one disorder without concrete medical evidence is a contradiction to the present norms of diagnosing a certain disease. Everything is ruled out prior to forming a medical diagnosis and clearly Dr. Jimenez did not.
Why is Dr. Jimenez making such statements, and in public at that? Did the presence of a TV camera, a microphone and an oblivious reporter stop the good doctor in practicing proper professional decorum? Did the opportunity for him to make his two-cents-of-fame take over his observance of proper medical ethics?
And even if he is Pacquiao's physician, he has no right to divulge his findings to the world which will be a clear violation of doctor-patient relationship.
And if he says, "Well I am not his physician." Then, that is one reason that he should have not made such a careless statement in the first place.
Dr. Jimenez may just be expressing his concern at the county's most popular public figure. But he did it callously and without regard to the boxer who is also a member of the House of Representatives.
He could have used his connections in the medical profession to extend his concerns for Pacquiao instead of doing it in public. He should have thought of the damage it will cause to Pacquiao, his career as both an athlete and a politician and most especially his family by him giving out his unsolicited opinion.
But the good doctor does not share the blame alone. The burden of this also falls on the members of the media who reported this story. Dharel Placido and Ronnie Nathanielsz failed to exercise due care in their duties as journalists in their rush to report on one of the hottest subject of the country.
Placido and Nathanielsz failed to reach out to Pacquiao whose reputation is greatly affected by this. I questioned their intentions and the manner they presented this story.
Speculations are that, mere speculations even if it came from a highly qualified person like Dr. Jimenez. Both Placido and Nathanielsz should have broadened their research and not depended on one source whose opinion was questionable in the first place. They should have also reached out to Pacquiao who will be greatly affected by their story.
Doctors and journalists alike have a set of values to practice, Jimenez, Placido and Nathanielsz failed to do so in this instance. Their irresponsibility costs a good man undue anxiety, stress and pain. They should correct the errors of their way as soon as possible.
You can reach the author at rrmaze24@aol.com
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Rich Mazon .
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