CEBU CITY – Four cardiologists from the Philippine Heart Association (PHA)-Cebu chapter bagged prestigious awards in the 55th PHA Convention and Scientific Meeting Convocation and Opening Ceremonies on Tuesday, May 27, at the EDSA Shangri-La Manila in Mandaluyong City.
DR. Lerma Noval (center) is among the four cardiologists recognized in the 55th Philippine Heart Association Convention and Scientific Meeting Convocation and Opening Ceremonies on Tuesday, May 27, at EDSA Shangri-La Manila in Mandaluyong City. (Contributed photo)
Dr. Alex Junia, Association of Southeast Asian Nations Federation of Cardiology (AFC) president, was named 2025 Golden Heart Awardee, becoming the 14th recipient of the most coveted accolade that is bestowed on a past PHA president.
The award recognized Junia for nurturing and shaping the local and ASEAN cardiovascular landscape.
Junia is known for being a visionary leader and passionate advocate for heart health who has made a lasting impact on both the national and international fronts.
Transforming heart care through advocacy, education, and research, Junia is the mind behind the CPR-ReadyPH campaign that spawned the passage of Republic Act 10871, an Act that requires K-12 students in both public and private schools to undergo age-appropriate hands-only CPR and conduct of the nationwide Mass CPR Training and CPR on Wheels and Wings (CWW) launched in 2016.
Three other prominent figures in cardiovascular education, research, and advocacy undertakings also reaped awards.
Dr. Lerma Noval won the Distinguished Fellow Award 2025, Dr. Wilfredo Ypil copped the Distinguished Teacher 2025, and Dr. Maria Rosan Trani bagged the Distinguished Loyalty Award.
The trio is known for their pro bono services.
Ypil has been a prime mover in the propagation of medical education and holistic development of medical students and cardiology trainees.
Noval was the architect of the Chong Hua Hoa Hospital Heart Institute and Cardiology Fellowship Training.
Trani’s most groundbreaking feat was putting up the only cardiac rehabilitation clinical and research training program outside Metro Manila.