CEBU CITY—On certain conditions, the Garcia family would be willing to have a dialogue with the management of Chong Hua Hospital (CHH) where two Garcia siblings were admitted due to coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and later died.
One of the eight Garcia siblings, lawyer Winston Garcia, said they would only sit for a dialogue if the hospital provides the family the medical records of Nelson and Marlon Garcia, who died last September 1 and 6, respectively.
Aside from releasing Marlon and Nelson’s medical records, the two doctors who attended to the deceased siblings have to be present, Winston said.
"We are open to dialogue but before that, provide us all the records that we are asking like the clinical record, the nurses’ notes and all the records and procedures that were done. Because we want to know that after letting us spend almost P9 million, our two brothers still died," said Winston in a teleconference with reporters.
In a statement, CHH management extended its sympathies to the Garcias, and requested for dialogue to clear out the issues.
Winston, former general manager and president of the Government Service and Insurance System (GSIS), said the family was hoping that CHH was sincere in their request for a dialogue as it had a lot of demands from the family.
"They were demanding the death certificates of our brothers. They were the ones who issued the death certificates and now they were asking the death certificates before they will give us the record,” said Winston.
CHH was also asking a special power of attorney from the Garcia family, said Winston.
“Our two brothers are already dead, how can they have special power of attorney?” said Winston.
"They are giving us all excuses not to give us the records. If they have nothing to hide and if they can explain to us why, after letting us spend almost P9 million, our two brothers still died? Then give us the records first and let's go with the dialogue,” said Winston.
Winston described the amount that the family spent for their two brothers as “scandalous.”
Both Marlon and Nelson were admitted at CHH for a month. Excluding doctor’s fees, Marlon and Nelson’s hospital bills reached P5.2 million and P3.2 million, respectively.
Based on the death certificates, Nelson died due to “immediate cardio pulmonary arrest secondary to probable massive pulmonary embolism” while Marlon succumbed to “septic shock secondary to catheter related blood stream infection, ventilator associated pneumonia.”
For the personal protective equipment alone, Marlon and Nelson were billed P800,000 each, said Winston.
Winston said he had friends who were admitted in other private hospitals in the city for also a month but did not spend a single centavo after PHilHealth, the government’s insurance company, shouldered the expenses.
Winston said the almost P9 million billed for Marlon and Nelson were puzzling since he only spent P2.5 million for his kidney transplant at St. Luke’s Medical Center last year.
“That is a premier hospital in the country. I was in executive suite which is next to the presidential suite. I only spent P2.5 million, including the operation of my kidney donor,” said Winston.
Winston said the two doctors have to face them in the dialogue, especially the one who convinced Marlon to be intubated.
Winston revealed that in their August 24 teleconference, the doctor was adamant to have Marlon intubated “because a lot of people will be happy if he dies.”
“You can quote me on that. Marlon’s wife and my sister (Cebu governor Gwen Garcia) were there,” said Winston.
Winston also debunked criticisms that the Garcias were just resorting to “doctor-shaming.”
“Whatever they say, my brothers died after spending almost P9 million. Can we not question the procedures? We are entitled to explanation after letting us spend almost P9 million,” said Winston.
Read more: Cebu hospital ready to talk with Garcias on death of 2 siblings