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G.R. No. 171127. March 11, 2015.*

 
NOEL CASUMPANG, RUBY SANGA-
MIRANDA and SAN JUAN DE DIOS
HOSPITAL, petitioners, vs. NELSON
CORTEJO, respondent.

G.R. No. 171217. March 11, 2015.*

 
DRA. RUBY SANGA-MIRANDA, petitioner, vs.
NELSON CORTEJO, respondent.

_______________

*  SECOND DIVISION.

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Casumpang vs. Cortejo

G.R. No. 171228. March 11, 2015.*

 
SAN JUAN DE DIOS HOSPITAL, petitioner, vs.
NELSON CORTEJO, respondent.

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Remedial Law; Civil Procedure; Appeals; Petition

for Review on Certiorari; The settled rule is that the
Court’s jurisdiction in a petition for review on
certiorari under Rule 45 of the Rules of Court is
limited only to the review of pure questions of law.—
The settled rule is that the Court’s jurisdiction in a
petition for review on certiorari under Rule 45 of the
Rules of Court is limited only to the review of pure
questions of law. It is not the Court’s function to
inquire on the veracity of the appellate court’s factual
findings and conclusions; this Court is not a trier of
facts. A question of law arises when there is doubt as
to what the law is on a certain state of facts, while
there is a question of fact when the doubt arises as to
the truth or falsity of the alleged facts.
Civil Law; Quasi-Delicts; Medical Malpractice;
Negligence; To successfully pursue a medical
malpractice suit, the plaintiff (in this case, the
deceased patient’s heir) must prove that the doctor
either failed to do what a reasonably prudent doctor
would have done, or did what a reasonably prudent
doctor would not have done; and the act or omission
had caused injury to the patient.—The claim for
damages is based on the petitioning doctors’
negligence in diagnosing and treating the deceased
Edmer, the child of the respondent. It is a medical
malpractice suit, an action available to victims to
redress a wrong committed by medical professionals
who caused bodily harm to, or the death of, a patient.
As the term is used, the suit is brought whenever a
medical practitioner or health care provider fails to
meet the standards demanded by his profession, or
deviates from this standard, and causes injury to the
patient. To successfully pursue a medical malpractice
suit, the plaintiff (in this case, the deceased patient’s
heir) must prove that the doctor either failed to do

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what a reasonably prudent doctor would have done, or

did what a reasonably prudent doctor would not have
done; and the act or omission had caused injury to the
patient. The patient’s heir/s bears the burden of
proving his/her cause of action.

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Same; Same; Same; Physician-Patient

Relationship; A physician-patient relationship is
created when a patient engages the services of a
physician, and the latter accepts or agrees to provide
care to the patient; The mere fact that an individual
approaches a physician and seeks diagnosis, advice or
treatment does not create the duty of care unless the
physician agrees.—The elements of medical
negligence are: (1) duty; (2) breach; (3) injury; and
(4) proximate causation. Duty refers to the
standard of behavior that imposes restrictions on
one’s conduct. It requires proof of professional
relationship between the physician and the patient.
Without the professional relationship, a physician
owes no duty to the patient, and cannot therefore
incur any liability. A physician-patient relationship is
created when a patient engages the services of a
physician, and the latter accepts or agrees to provide
care to the patient. The establishment of this
relationship is consensual, and the acceptance by the
physician essential. The mere fact that an individual
approaches a physician and seeks diagnosis, advice or
treatment does not create the duty of care unless the
physician agrees.

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Same; Same; Same; Same; Once a physician-

patient relationship is established, the legal duty of
care follows. The doctor accordingly becomes duty-
bound to use at least the same standard of care that a
reasonably competent doctor would use to treat a
medical condition under similar circumstances.—Once
a physician-patient relationship is established, the
legal duty of care follows. The doctor accordingly
becomes duty-bound to use at least the same standard
of care that a reasonably competent doctor would use
to treat a medical condition under similar
circumstances. Breach of duty occurs when the doctor
fails to comply with, or improperly performs his duties
under professional standards. This determination is
both factual and legal, and is specific to each
individual case. If the patient, as a result of the
breach of duty, is injured in body or in health,
actionable malpractice is committed, entitling the
patient to damages. To successfully claim damages,
the patient must lastly prove the causal relation
between the negligence and the injury. This
connection must be direct, natural, and should be
unbroken by any intervening efficient causes. In other
words, the negligence must be the proximate
cause of the injury. The injury or damage is
proximately caused by the physician’s negligence
when it appears, based on the evidence and the expert
testimony, that the negligence played an integral part
in causing the injury or damage, and that the injury

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or damage was either a direct result, or a

reasonably probable consequence of the physician’s
negligence.
Same; Same; Same; Same; With respect to Dr.
Miranda, her professional relationship with Edmer
arose when she assumed the obligation to provide
resident supervision over the latter.—With respect to
Dr. Miranda, her professional relationship with
Edmer arose when she assumed the obligation to
provide resident supervision over the latter. As second
year resident doctor tasked to do rounds and assist
other physicians, Dr. Miranda is deemed to have
agreed to the creation of physician-patient
relationship with the hospital’s patients when she
participated in the diagnosis and prescribed a course
of treatment for Edmer. The undisputed evidence
shows that Dr. Miranda examined Edmer twice (at
around 12:00 and 3:30 in the afternoon of April 23,
1988), and in both instances, she prescribed treatment
and participated in the diagnosis of Edmer’s medical
condition. Her affirmative acts amounted to her
acceptance of the physician-patient relationship, and
incidentally, the legal duty of care that went with it.
Same; Same; Same; Same; Expert Witnesses; It is
in this aspect of medical malpractice that expert
testimony is essential to establish not only the
professional standards observed in the medical
community, but also that the physician’s conduct in
the treatment of care falls below such standard.—A
determination of whether or not the petitioning
doctors met the required standard of care involves a
question of mixed fact and law; it is factual as
medical negligence cases are highly technical in
nature, requiring the presentation of expert witnesses
to provide guidance to the court on matters clearly
falling within the domain of medical science, and
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legal, insofar as the Court, after evaluating the

expert testimonies, and guided by medical literature,
learned treatises, and its fund of common knowledge,
ultimately determines whether breach of duty took
place. Whether or not Dr. Casumpang and Dr.
Miranda committed a breach of duty is to be
measured by the yardstick of professional standards
observed by the other members of the medical
profession in good standing under similar
circumstances. It is in this aspect of medical
malpractice that expert testimony is essential to
establish not only the professional standards observed
in the medical community, but also that the
physician’s conduct in the treatment of care falls
below such standard.

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Same; Same; Same; Same; In Spouses Flores v.

Spouses Pineda, 571 SCRA 83 (2008), a case involving
a medical malpractice suit, the Supreme Court (SC)
ruled that the petitioner doctors were negligent because
they failed to immediately order tests to confirm the
patient’s illness.—In Spouses Flores v. Spouses
Pineda, 571 SCRA 83 (2008), a case involving a
medical malpractice suit, the Court ruled that the
petitioner doctors were negligent because they failed
to immediately order tests to confirm the patient’s
illness. Despite the doctors’ suspicion that the patient
could be suffering from diabetes, the former still
proceeded to the D&C operation. In that case, expert
testimony showed that tests should have been ordered
immediately on admission to the hospital in view of
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the symptoms presented. The Court held: When a

patient exhibits symptoms typical of a particular
disease, these symptoms should, at the very least,
alert the physician of the possibility that the patient
may be afflicted with the suspected disease.
Same; Same; Same; Same; A wrong diagnosis is
not by itself medical malpractice.—Even assuming
that Edmer’s symptoms completely coincided with the
diagnosis of bronchopneumonia (so that this diagnosis
could not be considered “wrong”), we still find Dr.
Casumpang guilty of negligence. First, we
emphasize that we do not decide the
correctness of a doctor’s diagnosis, or the
accuracy of the medical findings and treatment.
Our duty in medical malpractice cases is to decide —
based on the evidence adduced and expert opinion
presented — whether a breach of duty took place.
Second, we clarify that a wrong diagnosis is not
by itself medical malpractice. Physicians are
generally not liable for damages resulting from a bona
fide error of judgment. Nonetheless, when the
physician’s erroneous diagnosis was the result of
negligent conduct (e.g., neglect of medical history,
failure to order the appropriate tests, failure to
recognize symptoms), it becomes an evidence of
medical malpractice. Third, we also note that
medicine is not an exact science; and doctors, or even
specialists, are not expected to give a 100% accurate
diagnosis in treating patients who come to their clinic
for consultations. Error is possible as the exercise of
judgment is called for in considering and reading the
exhibited symptoms, the results of tests, and in
arriving at definitive conclusions. But in doing all
these, the doctor must have acted according to
acceptable medical practice standards.

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Same; Same; Same; Same; Apart from failing to

promptly detect dengue fever, Dr. Casumpang also
failed to promptly undertake the proper medical
management needed for this disease.—Apart from
failing to promptly detect dengue fever, Dr.
Casumpang also failed to promptly undertake the
proper medical management needed for this
disease. As Dr. Jaudian opined, the standard medical
procedure once the patient had exhibited the classic
symptoms of dengue fever should have been: oxygen
inhalation, use of analgesic, and infusion of fluids or
dextrose; and once the patient had twice vomited fresh
blood, the doctor should have ordered: blood
transfusion, monitoring of the patient every 30
minutes, hemostatic to stop bleeding, and oxygen if
there is difficulty in breathing. Dr. Casumpang failed
to measure up to these standards. The evidence
strongly suggests that he ordered a transfusion of
platelet concentrate instead of blood transfusion. The
tourniquet test was only conducted after Edmer’s
second episode of bleeding, and the medical
management (as reflected in the records) did not
include antibiotic therapy and complete physical
examination.
Same; Same; Same; Same; While attending and
resident physicians share the collective responsibility
to deliver safe and appropriate care to the patients, it
is the attending physician who assumes the principal
responsibility of patient care.—The attending
physician, on the other hand, is primarily responsible
for managing the resident’s exercise of duties. While
attending and resident physicians share the collective
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responsibility to deliver safe and appropriate care to

the patients, it is the attending physician who
assumes the principal responsibility of patient care.
Because he/she exercises a supervisory role over the
resident, and is ultimately responsible for the
diagnosis and treatment of the patient, the standards
applicable to and the liability of the resident for
medical malpractice is theoretically less than that of
the attending physician. These relative burdens and
distinctions, however, do not translate to immunity
from the legal duty of care for residents, or from the
responsibility arising from their own negligent act.
Same; Same; Same; Same; Expert Witnesses; The
competence of an expert witness is a matter for the
trial court to decide upon in the exercise of its
discretion.—The competence of an expert witness is a
matter for the trial court to decide upon in the
exercise of its discretion. The test of qualification is
necessarily a relative one, depending

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 upon the subject matter of the investigation, and

the fitness of the expert witness. In our jurisdiction,
the criterion remains to be the expert witness’ special
knowledge experience and practical training
that qualify him/her to explain highly technical
medical matters to the Court.
Same; Same; Same; Same; Same; United States
(US) jurisprudence on medical malpractice
demonstrated the trial courts’ wide latitude of
discretion in allowing a specialist from another field to

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testify against a defendant specialist.—A close

scrutiny of Ramos v. Court of Appeals, 321 SCRA 584
(1999), and Cereno v. Court of Appeals, 682 SCRA 18
(2012), reveals that the Court primarily based the
witnesses’ disqualification to testify as an expert on
their incapacity to shed light on the standard of care
that must be observed by the defendant-physicians.
That the expert witnesses’ specialties do not match
the physicians’ practice area only constituted, at most,
one of the considerations that should not be taken out
of context. After all, the sole function of a medical
expert witness, regardless of his/her specialty, is to
afford assistance to the courts on medical matters,
and to explain the medical facts in issue.
Furthermore, there was no reasonable indication in
Ramos and Cereno that the expert witnesses possess a
sufficient familiarity with the standard of care
applicable to the physicians’ specialties. US
jurisprudence on medical malpractice demonstrated
the trial courts’ wide latitude of discretion in allowing
a specialist from another field to testify against a
defendant specialist.
Same; Same; Same; Same; Same; Although he
specializes in pathology, it was established during
trial that he had attended not less than thirty (30)
seminars held by the Pediatric Society, had exposure
in pediatrics, had been practicing medicine for sixteen
(16) years, and had handled not less than fifty (50)
dengue-related cases.—In the case and the facts before
us, we find that Dr. Jaudian is competent to testify on
the standard of care in dengue fever cases. Although
he specializes in pathology, it was established during
trial that he had attended not less than 30 seminars
held by the Pediatric Society, had exposure in
pediatrics, had been practicing medicine for 16 years,
and had handled not less than 50 dengue related
cases. As a licensed medical practitioner specializing
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in pathology, who had practical and relevant exposure

in pediatrics and dengue-related cases, we are
convinced that Dr. Jaudian demonstrated sufficient
familiarity with the standard of care to be applied in
dengue fever cases. Furthermore,

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we agree that he possesses knowledge and

experience sufficient to qualify him to speak with
authority on the subject.
Same; Same; Same; Same; Dr. Casumpang failed
to timely diagnose Edmer with dengue fever despite
the presence of its characteristic symptoms; and as a
consequence of the delayed diagnosis, he also failed to
promptly manage Edmer’s illness.—Dr. Casumpang
failed to timely diagnose Edmer with dengue fever
despite the presence of its characteristic symptoms;
and as a consequence of the delayed diagnosis, he also
failed to promptly manage Edmer’s illness. Had he
immediately conducted confirmatory tests, (i.e.,
tourniquet tests and series of blood tests) and promptly
administered the proper care and management
needed for dengue fever, the risk of complications or
even death, could have been substantially reduced.
Furthermore, medical literature on dengue shows that
early diagnosis and management of dengue is critical
in reducing the risk of complications and avoiding
further spread of the virus. That Edmer later died of
“Hypovolemic Shock/hemorrhagic shock,” “Dengue
Hemorrhagic Fever Stage IV,” a severe and fatal form
of dengue fever, established the causal link between
Dr. Casumpang’s negligence and the injury.
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Labor Law; Employer-Employee Relationship;

Independent Contractors; Based on the records, no
evidence exists showing that San Juan de Dios
Hospital (SJDH) exercised any degree of control over
the means, methods of procedure and manner by
which the petitioning doctors conducted and
performed their medical profession. SJDH did not
control their diagnosis and treatment; In these lights,
the petitioning doctors were not employees of SJDH,
but were mere independent contractors.—In
determining whether an employer-employee
relationship exists between the parties, the following
elements must be present: (1) selection and
engagement of services; (2) payment of wages; (3) the
power to hire and fire; and (4) the power to control not
only the end to be achieved, but the means to be used
in reaching such an end. Control, which is the most
crucial among the elements, is not present in this
case. Based on the records, no evidence exists showing
that SJDH exercised any degree of control over the
means, methods of procedure and manner by which
the petitioning doctors conducted and performed their
medical profession. SJDH did not control their
diagnosis and treatment. Likewise, no evidence was
presented to show that SJDH monitored,

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supervised, or directed the petitioning doctors in

the treatment and management of Edmer’s case. In
these lights, the petitioning doctors were not
employees of SJDH, but were mere independent
contractors.
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Same; Same; Same; As a rule, hospitals are not

liable for the negligence of its independent contractors.
—Despite the absence of employer-employee
relationship between SJDH and the petitioning
doctors, SJDH is not free from liability. As a rule,
hospitals are not liable for the negligence of its
independent contractors. However, it may be found
liable if the physician or independent contractor acts
as an ostensible agent of the hospital. This exception
is also known as the “doctrine of apparent
authority.”
Civil Law; Hospitals; Vicarious Liability; A
hospital can be held vicariously liable for the negligent
acts of a physician (or an independent contractor)
providing care at the hospital if the plaintiff can prove
these two (2) factors: first, the hospital’s
manifestations; and second, the patient’s reliance.—A
hospital can be held vicariously liable for the
negligent acts of a physician (or an independent
contractor) providing care at the hospital if the
plaintiff can prove these two factors: first, the
hospital’s manifestations; and second, the patient’s
reliance.
Same; Quasi-Delicts; Medical Malpractice; Health
Care Plans; The only effect of the availment of her
Fortune Care card benefits is that her choice of
physician is limited only to physicians who are
accredited with Fortune Care. Thus, her use of health
care plan in this case only limited the choice of doctors
(or coverage of services, amount etc.) and not the
liability of doctors or the hospital.—We also stress
that Mrs. Cortejo’s use of health care plan (Fortune
Care) did not affect SJDH’s liability. The only effect of
the availment of her Fortune Care card benefits is
that her choice of physician is limited only to
physicians who are accredited with Fortune Care.
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Thus, her use of health care plan in this case only

limited the choice of doctors (or coverage of services,
amount etc.) and not the liability of doctors or the
hospital.

PETITIONS for review on certiorari of the

decision and resolution of the Court of Appeals.

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The facts are stated in the opinion of the

Court.
  Arturo D. Magdaong for Noel Casumpang.
  Palabrica & Palabrica for Nelson Cortejo.
  Romulo, Mabanta, Buenaventura, Sayoc &
De Los Angeles for San Juan de Dios Hospital.
  Chavez, Miranda, Aseoche Law Offices for
Dr. Ruby Sanga-Miranda.

 
BRION, J.:
 
We resolve the three (3) consolidated petitions
for review on certiorari1 involving medical
negligence, commonly assailing the October 29,
2004 decision2 and the January 12, 2006
resolution3 of the Court of Appeals (CA) in C.A.-
G.R. CV No. 56400. This CA decision affirmed in
toto the ruling of the Regional Trial Court
(RTC), Branch 134, Makati City.
The RTC awarded Nelson Cortejo
(respondent) damages in the total amount of
P595,000.00, for the wrongful death of his son
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allegedly due to the medical negligence of the

petitioning doctors and the hospital.
 
Factual Antecedents
 
The common factual antecedents are briefly
summarized below.
On April 22, 1988, at about 11:30 in the
morning, Mrs. Jesusa Cortejo brought her 11-
year-old son, Edmer Cortejo (Edmer), to the
Emergency Room of the San Juan de Dios

_______________

1  Under Rule 45 of the Rules of Court.

2  Rollo (G.R. No. 171127), pp. 19-32, penned by Associate
Justice Vicente Q. Roxas, and concurred in by Associate
Justices Salvador J. Valdez, Jr. and Juan Q. Enriquez, Jr.
3  Id., at pp. 34-38.

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Hospital (SJDH) because of difficulty in

breathing, chest pain, stomach pain, and fever.4
Dr. Ramoncito Livelo (Dr. Livelo) initially
attended to and examined Edmer. In her
testimony, Mrs. Cortejo narrated that in the
morning of April 20, 1988, Edmer had developed
a slight fever that lasted for one day; a few hours
upon discovery, she brought Edmer to their
family doctor; and two hours after administering
medications, Edmer’s fever had subsided.5

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After taking Edmer’s medical history, Dr.

Livelo took his vital signs, body temperature,
and blood pressure.6 Based on these initial
examinations and the chest x-ray test that
followed, Dr. Livelo diagnosed Edmer with
“bronchopneumonia.”7 Edmer’s blood was also
taken for testing, typing, and for purposes of
administering antibiotics. Afterwards, Dr. Livelo
gave Edmer an antibiotic medication to lessen
his fever and to loosen his phlegm.
Mrs. Cortejo did not know any doctor at
SJDH. She used her Fortune Care card and was
referred to an accredited Fortune Care
coordinator, who was then out of town. She was
thereafter assigned to Dr. Noel Casumpang (Dr.
Casumpang), a pediatrician also accredited with
Fortune Care.8
At 5:30 in the afternoon of the same day, Dr.
Casumpang for the first time examined Edmer
in his room. Using only a stethoscope, he
confirmed the initial diagnosis of
“Bronchopneumonia.”9
At that moment, Mrs. Cortejo recalled
entertaining doubts on the doctor’s diagnosis.
She immediately advised Dr.

_______________

4  TSN, Jesusa Cortejo, November 27, 1990, pp. 2-3; TSN,

Ramoncito Livelo, February 16, 1993, pp. 5-6. (per Rollo
[G.R. No. 171228], pp. 106-107)
5  TSN, May 2, 1991, pp. 12-16.
6  TSN, Dr. Ramoncito Livelo, February 16, 1993, pp. 5-6.
7  Id.
8  TSN, Jesusa Cortejo, November 27, 1990, pp. 5-7.
9  Id., at p. 7.

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Casumpang that Edmer had a high fever, and

had no colds or cough10 but Dr. Casumpang
merely told her that her son’s “blood pressure is
just being active,”11 and remarked that “that’s
the usual bronchopneumonia, no colds, no
phlegm.”12
Dr. Casumpang next visited and examined
Edmer at 9:00 in the morning the following
day.13 Still suspicious about his son’s illness,
Mrs. Cortejo again called Dr. Casumpang’s
attention and stated that Edmer had a fever,
throat irritation, as well as chest and stomach
pain. Mrs. Cortejo also alerted Dr. Casumpang
about the traces of blood in Edmer’s sputum.
Despite these pieces of information, however, Dr.
Casumpang simply nodded, inquired if Edmer
has an asthma, and reassured Mrs. Cortejo that
Edmer’s illness is bronchopneumonia.14
At around 11:30 in the morning of April 23,
1988, Edmer vomited “phlegm with blood
streak”15 prompting the respondent (Edmer’s
father) to request for a doctor at the nurses’
station.16
Forty-five minutes later, Dr. Ruby Sanga-
Miranda (Dr. Miranda), one of the resident
physicians of SJDH, arrived. She claimed that
although aware that Edmer had vomited
“phlegm with blood streak,” she failed to
examine the blood specimen because the
respondent washed it away. She then advised
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the respondent to preserve the specimen for

examination.
Thereafter, Dr. Miranda conducted a physical
checkup covering Edmer’s head, eyes, nose,
throat, lungs, skin and abdo-

_______________

10  Id., at pp. 4-5.

11  Id., at p. 14.
12  Id., at p. 8.
13  Id.
14  Id., at pp. 5-7.
15  More of coffee ground material.
16   TSN, Nelson Cortejo, July 16, 1991, pp. 6-8. Nelson
Cortejo testified that his son vomited a brown liquid and
particles that look like dead blood.

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men; and found that Edmer had a low-grade

non-continuing fever, and rashes that were not
typical of dengue fever.17 Her medical findings
state:

the patient’s rapid breathing and then the lung

showed sibilant and the patient’s nose is flaring which
is a sign that the patient is in respiratory distress; the
abdomen has negative finding; the patient has low
grade fever and not continuing; and the rashes in the
patient’s skin were not “Herman’s Rash” and not
typical of dengue fever.18

 
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At 3:00 in the afternoon, Edmer once again

vomited blood. Upon seeing Dr. Miranda, the
respondent showed her Edmer’s blood specimen,
and reported that Edmer had complained of
severe stomach pain and difficulty in moving his
right leg.19
Dr. Miranda then examined Edmer’s “sputum
with blood” and noted that he was bleeding.
Suspecting that he could be afflicted with
dengue, she inserted a plastic tube in his nose,
drained the liquid from his stomach with ice cold
normal saline solution, and gave an instruction
not to pull out the tube, or give the patient any
oral medication.
Dr. Miranda thereafter conducted a
tourniquet test, which turned out to be
negative.20 She likewise ordered the monitoring
of the patient’s blood pressure and some blood
tests. Edmer’s blood pressure was later found to
be normal.21
At 4:40 in the afternoon, Dr. Miranda called
up Dr. Casumpang at his clinic and told him
about Edmer’s condition.22 Upon being informed,
Dr. Casumpang ordered several proce-

_______________

17  Id., at p. 10.
18  TSN, Ruby Sanga-Miranda, June 8, 1988, pp. 13-19.
19  TSN, Nelson Cortejo, July 16, 1991, p. 12.
20  Id., at pp. 11-13.
21  Id.
22  TSN, Ruby Sanga-Miranda, June 10, 1993, pp. 35-36.

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dures done including: hematocrit, hemoglobin,

blood typing, blood transfusion and tourniquet
tests.
The blood test results came at about 6:00 in
the evening.
Dr. Miranda advised Edmer’s parents that
the blood test results showed that Edmer was
suffering from “Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever.”
One hour later, Dr. Casumpang arrived at
Edmer’s room and he recommended his transfer
to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU), to which the
respondent consented. Since the ICU was then
full, Dr. Casumpang suggested to the respondent
that they hire a private nurse. The respondent,
however, insisted on transferring his son to
Makati Medical Center.
After the respondent had signed the waiver,
Dr. Casumpang, for the last time, checked
Edmer’s condition, found that his blood pressure
was stable, and noted that he was “comfortable.”
The respondent requested for an ambulance but
he was informed that the driver was nowhere to
be found. This prompted him to hire a private
ambulance that cost him P600.00.23
At 12:00 midnight, Edmer, accompanied by
his parents and by Dr. Casumpang, was
transferred to Makati Medical Center.
Dr. Casumpang immediately gave the
attending physician the patient’s clinical history
and laboratory exam results. Upon examination,
the attending physician diagnosed “Dengue
Fever Stage IV” that was already in its
irreversible stage.

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Edmer died at 4:00 in the morning of April

24, 1988.24 His Death Certificate indicated the
cause of death as “Hypovolemic
Shock/hemorrhagic shock”; “Dengue
Hemorrhagic Fever Stage IV.”
Believing that Edmer’s death was caused by
the negligent and erroneous diagnosis of his
doctors, the respondent insti-

_______________

23  TSN, Nelson Cortejo, July 16, 1991, p. 20.

24  RTC Records, p. 211.

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Casumpang vs. Cortejo

tuted an action for damages against SJDH,

and its attending physicians: Dr. Casumpang
and Dr. Miranda (collectively referred to as the
“petitioners”) before the RTC of Makati City.
 
The Ruling of the Regional Trial Court
 
In a decision25 dated May 30, 1997, the RTC
ruled in favor of the respondent, and awarded
actual and moral damages, plus attorney’s fees
and costs.
In ruling that the petitioning doctors were
negligent, the RTC found untenable the
petitioning doctors’ contention that Edmer’s
initial symptoms did not indicate dengue fever.
It faulted them for heavily relying on the chest
x-ray result and for not considering the other

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manifestations that Edmer’s parents had

relayed. It held that in diagnosing and treating
an illness, the physician’s conduct should be
judged not only by what he/she saw and knew,
but also by what he/she could have reasonably
seen and known. It also observed that based on
Edmer’s signs and symptoms, his medical
history and physical examination, and also the
information that the petitioning doctors gathered
from his family members, dengue fever was a
reasonably foreseeable illness; yet, the
petitioning doctors failed to take a second look,
much less, consider these indicators of dengue.
The trial court also found that aside from
their self-serving testimonies, the petitioning
doctors did not present other evidence to prove
that they exercised the proper medical attention
in diagnosing and treating the patient, leading it
to conclude that they were guilty of negligence.
The RTC also held SJDH solidarily liable
with the petitioning doctors for damages based
on the following findings of facts: first, Dr.
Casumpang, as consultant, is an ostensible
agent of SJDH because before the hospital
engaged his medical services, it scrutinized and
determined his fitness,

_______________

25  CA Rollo, pp. 535-551.

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qualifications, and competence as a medical

practitioner; and second, Dr. Miranda, as
resident physician, is an employee of SJDH
because like Dr. Casumpang, the hospital,
through its screening committee, scrutinized and
determined her qualifications, fitness, and
competence before engaging her services; the
hospital also exercised control over her work.
The dispositive portion of the decision reads:

WHEREFORE, judgment is hereby rendered in

favor of the plaintiff and against the defendants,
ordering the latter to pay solidarily and severally
plaintiff the following:
(1) Moral damages in the amount of P500,000.00;
(2) Costs of burial and funeral in the amount of
P45,000.00;
(3) Attorney’s fees of P50,000.00; and
(4) Cost of this suit.
SO ORDERED.

 
The petitioners appealed the decision to the
CA.
 
The Ruling of the Court of Appeals
 
In its decision dated October 29, 2004, the CA
affirmed in toto the RTC’s ruling, finding that
SJDH and its attending physicians failed to
exercise the minimum medical care, attention,
and treatment expected of an ordinary doctor
under like circumstances.
The CA found the petitioning doctors’ failure
to read even the most basic signs of “dengue
fever” expected of an ordinary doctor as medical
negligence. The CA also considered the
petitioning doctors’ testimonies as self-serving,
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noting that they presented no other evidence to

prove that they exercised due diligence in
diagnosing Edmer’s illness.
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Casumpang vs. Cortejo

The CA likewise found Dr. Rodolfo Jaudian’s

(Dr. Jaudian) testimony admissible. It gave
credence to his opinion26 that: (1) given the
exhibited symptoms of the patient, dengue fever
should definitely be considered, and
bronchopneumonia could be reasonably ruled
out; and (2) dengue fever could have been
detected earlier than 7:30 in the evening of April
23, 1988 because the symptoms were already
evident; and agreed with the RTC that the
petitioning doctors should not have solely relied
on the chest x-ray result, as it was not
conclusive.
On SJDH’s solidary liability, the CA ruled
that the hospital’s liability is based on Article
2180 of the Civil Code. The CA opined that the
control which the hospital exercises over its
consultants, the hospital’s power to hire and
terminate their services, all fulfill the employer-
employee relationship requirement under Article
2180.
Lastly, the CA held that SJDH failed to
adduce evidence showing that it exercised the
diligence of a good father of a family in the
hiring and the supervision of its physicians.

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26  “[If] the patient is admitted for chest pain, abdominal

pain, and difficulty of breathing, dengue fever will definitely
be considered”; “if the patient expectorated coffee ground, and
with the presence of bleeding, it is a clear case of dengue
fever, bronchopneumonia could be reasonably ruled out”; “if
the patient complained of rapid breathing, chest and stomach
pain, the management should be oxygen inhalation,
analgesic, and infuse liquids or dextrose”; “if the patient had
expectorated fresh blood twice already and thrombocytopenia
has occurred, management should be blood transfusion,
monitoring every 30 minutes, give hemostatic to stop
bleeding, and oxygen if there is difficulty in breathing”;
“where the platelet count drops to 47,000, dengue fever is
foremost in physician’s mind, and the management should be
fresh blood infusion and supportive measures like oxygen and
inhalation”; “that if presented with symptoms, tourniquet test
and management is the proper treatment of this disease, and
that it is possible that dengue fever could be detected earlier
than 7:30 PM of April 23, 1988 because the symptoms were
physically noted even by the parents and hospital personnel
due to bleeding coupled with history of fever.”

 
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The petitioners separately moved to

reconsider the CA decision, but the CA denied
their motion in its resolution of January 12,
2006; hence, the present consolidated petitions
pursuant to Rule 45 of the Rules of Court.
 
The Petitions
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      I. Dr. Casumpang’s Position (G.R. No.
171127)
 
Dr. Casumpang contends that he gave his
patient medical treatment and care to the best of
his abilities, and within the proper standard of
care required from physicians under similar
circumstances. He claims that his initial
diagnosis of bronchopneumonia was supported
by the chest x-ray result.
Dr. Casumpang also contends that dengue
fever occurs only after several days of
confinement. He alleged that when he had
suspected that Edmer might be suffering from
dengue fever, he immediately attended and
treated him.
Dr. Casumpang likewise raised serious
doubts on Dr. Jaudian’s credibility, arguing that
the CA erred in appreciating his testimony as an
expert witness since he lacked the necessary
training, skills, and experience as a specialist in
dengue fever cases.
 
II. Dr. Miranda’s Position (G.R. No.
171217)
 
In her petition, Dr. Miranda faults the CA for
holding her responsible for Edmer’s wrong
diagnosis, stressing that the function of making
the diagnosis and undertaking the medical
treatment devolved upon Dr. Casumpang, the
doctor assigned to Edmer, and who confirmed
“bronchopneumonia.”
Dr. Miranda also alleged that she exercised
prudence in performing her duties as a
physician, underscoring that it was her
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professional intervention that led to the correct

diagnosis of “Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever.”
Furthermore, Edmer’s Complete Blood Count
(CBC) showed leukopenia and an increase in
balance as shown by the differential count,
demon-
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Casumpang vs. Cortejo

strating that Edmer’s infection, more or less,

is of bacterial and not viral in nature.
Dr. Miranda as well argued that there is no
causal relation between the alleged erroneous
diagnosis and medication for
“Bronchopneumonia,” and Edmer’s death due to
“Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever.”
Lastly, she claimed that Dr. Jaudian is not a
qualified expert witness since he never
presented any evidence of formal residency
training and fellowship status in Pediatrics.
 
III. SJDH’s Position (G.R. No. 171228)
 
SJDH, on the other hand, disclaims liability
by asserting that Dr. Casumpang and Dr.
Miranda are mere independent contractors and
“consultants” (not employees) of the hospital.
SJDH alleges that since it did not exercise
control or supervision over the consultants’
exercise of medical profession, there is no
employer-employee relationship between them,
and consequently, Article 2180 of the Civil Code
does not apply.

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SJDH likewise anchored the absence of

employer-employee relationship on the following
circumstances: (1) SJDH does not hire
consultants; it only grants them privileges to
admit patients in the hospital through
accreditation; (2) SJDH does not pay the
consultants wages similar to an ordinary
employee; (3) the consultants earn their own
professional fees directly from their patients;
SJDH does not fire or terminate their services;
and (4) SJDH does not control or interfere with
the manner and the means the consultants use
in the treatment of their patients. It merely
provides them with adequate space in exchange
for rental payment.
Furthermore, SJDH claims that the CA
erroneously applied the control test when it
treated the hospital’s practice of accrediting
consultants as an exercise of control. It
explained that the control contemplated by law
is that which the employer exercises over the: (i)
end result; and the (ii) manner

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398 SUPREME COURT REPORTS

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Casumpang vs. Cortejo

and means to be used to reach this end, and

not any kind of control, however significant, in
accrediting the consultants.
SJDH moreover contends that even if the
petitioning doctors are considered employees
and not merely consultants of the hospital,
SJDH cannot still be held solidarily liable under

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Article 2180 of the Civil Code because it

observed the diligence of a good father of a
family in their selection and supervision as
shown by the following: (1) the adequate
measures that the hospital undertakes to
ascertain the petitioning doctors’ qualifications
and medical competence; and (2) the
documentary evidence that the petitioning
doctors presented to prove their competence in
the field of pediatrics.27
SJDH likewise faults the CA for ruling that
the petitioning doctors are its agents, claiming
that this theory, aside from being inconsistent
with the CA’s finding of employment
relationship, is unfounded because: first, the
petitioning doctors are independent contractors,
not agents of SJDH; and second, as a medical
institution, SJDH cannot practice medicine,
much more, extend its personality to physicians
to practice medicine on its behalf.
Lastly, SJDH maintains that the petitioning
doctors arrived at an intelligently deduced and
correct diagnosis. It claimed that based on
Edmer’s signs and symptoms at the time of
admission (i.e., one day fever,28 bacterial
infection,29

_______________

27  As to Dr. Casumpang: i. Certification of Residency in

Pediatrics; ii. Certificate of Award certifying that he was
considered to be the Most Outstanding Resident Physician in
the Department of Pediatrics; and iii. Certificate of
recognition as a Diplomate issued by the Philippine
Pediatrics Society.
As to Dr. Miranda: i. Board Examination Certificate
showing that she passed the board examination; ii.

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Certification of Completion of Residency Training; and iii.

Certificate of recognition as a Diplomate in Pediatrics. (per
Rollo [G.R. No. 171228], pp. 42-43)
28   As stated by Dr. Miranda, and as SJDH claims,
dengue manifests as a high grade fever that is continuous for
two (2) to seven

399

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Casumpang vs. Cortejo

and lack of hemorrhagic manifestations),30

there was no reasonable indication yet that he
was suffering from dengue fever, and
accordingly, their failure to diagnose dengue
fever, does not constitute negligence on their
part.
 
The Case for the Respondent
 
In his comment, the respondent submits that
the issues the petitioners raised are mainly
factual in nature, which a petition for review on
certiorari under Rule 45 of the Rules of Courts
does not allow.
In any case, he contends that the petitioning
doctors were negligent in conducting their
medical examination and diagnosis based on the
following: (1) the petitioning doctors failed to
timely diagnose Edmer’s correct illness due to
their nonobservance of the proper and
acceptable standard of medical examination; (2)
the petitioning doctors’ medical examination was
not comprehensive, as they were always in a

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rush; and (3) the petitioning doctors employed a

guessing game in diagnosing bronchopneumonia.
The respondent also alleges that there is a
causal connection between the petitioning
doctors’ negligence and Edmer’s untimely death,
warranting the claim for damages.

_______________

(7) days. In this case, the petitioner doctors were presented

with a patient with a clinical history of one day fever. (id., at
pp. 56-57)
29   In its petition, SJDH claimed that as opposed to
Edmer’s white blood cell (WBC) profile indicating a bacterial
infection, dengue fever is caused not by a bacterium, but by a
virus. (id.)
30   SJDH substantiated its claim that there were no
indications of dengue fever yet at the time of Edmer’s
admission by claiming that the latter was not
hemoconcentrated and did not have thrombocytopenia. It also
claimed that Edmer had no hemorrhagic manifestations at
the time of his admission and until the following day. (id., at
pp. 56-58)

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The respondent, too, asserted that SJDH is

also negligent because it was not equipped with
proper paging system, has no bronchoscope, and
its doctors are not proportionate to the number
of its patients. He also pointed out that out of
the seven resident physicians in the hospital,

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only two resident physicians were doing rounds

at the time of his son’s confinement.
 
The Issues
 
The case presents to us the following issues:
1. Whether or not the petitioning doctors had
committed “inexcusable lack of precaution” in
diagnosing and in treating the patient;
2. Whether or not the petitioner hospital is
solidarily liable with the petitioning doctors;
3. Whether or not there is a causal connection
between the petitioners’ negligent act/omission
and the patient’s resulting death; and
4. Whether or not the lower courts erred in
considering Dr. Rodolfo Tabangcora Jaudian as
an expert witness.
 
Our Ruling
 
We find the petition partly meritorious.
 
A Petition for Review on Certiorari under
Rule 45 of the Rules of Court is Limited to
Questions of Law
 
The settled rule is that the Court’s
jurisdiction in a petition for review on certiorari
under Rule 45 of the Rules of Court is limited
only to the review of pure questions of law. It is
not the Court’s function to inquire on the
veracity of the appellate
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court’s factual findings and conclusions; this

Court is not a trier of facts.31
A question of law arises when there is doubt
as to what the law is on a certain state of facts,
while there is a question of fact when the doubt
arises as to the truth or falsity of the alleged
facts.32
These consolidated petitions before us involve
mixed questions of fact and law. As a rule,
we do not resolve questions of fact. However, in
determining the legal question of whether the
respondent is entitled to claim damages under
Article 2176 of the Civil Code for the petitioners’
alleged medical malpractice, the determination
of the factual issues — i.e., whether the
petitioning doctors were grossly negligent in
diagnosing the patient’s illness, whether there is
causal relation between the petitioners’
act/omission and the patient’s resulting death,
and whether Dr. Jaudian is qualified as an
expert witness — must necessarily be resolved.
We resolve these factual questions solely for the
purpose of determining the legal issues raised.
 
Medical Malpractice Suit as a Specialized
Area of Tort Law
 
The claim for damages is based on the
petitioning doctors’ negligence in diagnosing and
treating the deceased Edmer, the child of the
respondent. It is a medical malpractice suit,
an action available to victims to redress a wrong
committed by medical professionals who caused
bodily harm to, or the death of, a patient.33 As
the term is used, the suit is brought whenever a
medical practitioner or health care pro-
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_______________

31   First Metro Investment Corporation v. Este Del Sol

Mountain Reserve, Inc., 420 Phil. 902, 914; 396 SCRA 99, 111
(2001).
32   Land Bank of the Philippines v. Yatco Agricultural
Enterprises, G.R. No. 172551, January 15, 2014, 713 SCRA
370, 379.
33  Flores v. Pineda, 591 Phil. 699, 706; 571 SCRA 83, 91
(2008).

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vider fails to meet the standards demanded

by his profession, or deviates from this standard,
and causes injury to the patient.
To successfully pursue a medical malpractice
suit, the plaintiff (in this case, the deceased
patient’s heir) must prove that the doctor either
failed to do what a reasonably prudent doctor
would have done, or did what a reasonably
prudent doctor would not have done; and the act
or omission had caused injury to the patient.34
The patient’s heir/s bears the burden of proving
his/her cause of action.
 
The Elements of a Medical Malpractice Suit
 
The elements of medical negligence are: (1)
duty; (2) breach; (3) injury; and (4)
proximate causation.
Duty refers to the standard of behavior that
imposes restrictions on one’s conduct.35 It
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requires proof of professional relationship

between the physician and the patient. Without
the professional relationship, a physician owes
no duty to the patient, and cannot therefore
incur any liability.
A physician-patient relationship is created
when a patient engages the services of a
physician,36 and the latter accepts or agrees to
provide care to the patient.37 The establishment
of this relationship is consensual,38 and the
acceptance by the physician essential. The mere
fact that an individual ap-

_______________

34   Garcia-Rueda v. Pascasio, 344 Phil. 323, 331; 278

SCRA 769, 778 (1997).
35   Martin, C.R.A., Law Relating to Medical Malpractice
(2nd ed.), p. 361.
36  Lucas v. Tuaño, 604 Phil. 98, 121; 586 SCRA 173, 200
(2009).
37  61 Am Jur 2d §130 p. 247.
38  Findlay v. Board of Supervisors of Mohave County, 72
Ariz 58, 230 P2.d 526, 24 A.L.R.2d.

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proaches a physician and seeks diagnosis,

advice or treatment does not create the duty of
care unless the physician agrees.39
The consent needed to create the relationship
does not always need to be express.40 In the
absence of an express agreement, a physician-
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patient relationship may be implied from the

physician’s affirmative action to diagnose and/or
treat a patient, or in his participation in such
diagnosis and/or treatment.41 The usual
illustration would be the case of a patient who
goes to a hospital or a clinic, and is examined
and treated by the doctor. In this case, we can
infer, based on the established and customary
practice in the medical community that a
patient-physician relationship exists.
Once a physician-patient relationship is
established, the legal duty of care follows. The
doctor accordingly becomes duty-bound to use at
least the same standard of care that a
reasonably competent doctor would use to treat
a medical condition under similar circumstances.
Breach of duty occurs when the doctor fails to
comply with, or improperly performs his duties
under professional standards. This
determination is both factual and legal, and is
specific to each individual case.42
If the patient, as a result of the breach of
duty, is injured in body or in health, actionable
malpractice is committed, entitling the patient
to damages.43

_______________

39   Basic Elements of the Legal System of Physician

Liability for Negligent Patient Injury in the United States
With Comparisons to England and Canada, Frank G. Feeley,
Wendy K. Mariner, 4 February 2000,
http://dcc2.bumc.bu.edu/RussianLegalHealthReform/Project
Documents/n740.IIG.Bkgd.pdf.
40  Problems in Health Care Law, Robert Miller, Rebecca
C. Hutton, 8th edition.

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41  Kelley v. Middle Tennessee Emergency Physicians, 133

SW3d 587, 596 (Tenn 2004).
42   Basic Elements of the Legal System of Physician
Liability, supra.
43  Supra note 33.

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To successfully claim damages, the patient

must lastly prove the causal relation between
the negligence and the injury. This connection
must be direct, natural, and should be unbroken
by any intervening efficient causes. In other
words, the negligence must be the
proximate cause of the injury.44 The injury
or damage is proximately caused by the
physician’s negligence when it appears, based on
the evidence and the expert testimony, that the
negligence played an integral part in causing the
injury or damage, and that the injury or damage
was either a direct result, or a reasonably
probable consequence of the physician’s
negligence.45
 
a. The Relationship Between Dr.
Casumpang and Edmer
 
In the present case, the physician-patient
relationship between Dr. Casumpang and
Edmer was created when the latter’s parents
sought the medical services of Dr. Casumpang,
and the latter knowingly accepted Edmer as a
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patient. Dr. Casumpang’s acceptance is implied

from his affirmative examination, diagnosis and
treatment of Edmer. On the other hand, Edmer’s
parents, on their son’s behalf, manifested their
consent by availing of the benefits of their health
care plan, and by accepting the hospital’s
assigned doctor without objections.
 
b. The Relationship Between Dr.
Miranda and Edmer
 
With respect to Dr. Miranda, her professional
relationship with Edmer arose when she
assumed the obligation to provide resident
supervision over the latter. As second year
resident doctor tasked to do rounds and assist
other physicians, Dr. Miranda is deemed to have
agreed to the creation of physi-

_______________

44   Jarcia, Jr. v. People, G.R. No. 187926, February 15,

2012, 666 SCRA 336, 351-359.
45   Dissecting Philippine Law and Jurisprudence on
Medical Malpractice, Darwin P. Angeles, A Framework of
Philippine Medical Malpractice Law, 85 PHIL. L.J. 895,
(2011).

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cian-patient relationship with the hospital’s

patients when she participated in the diagnosis
and prescribed a course of treatment for Edmer.

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The undisputed evidence shows that Dr.

Miranda examined Edmer twice (at around
12:00 and 3:30 in the afternoon of April 23,
1988), and in both instances, she prescribed
treatment and participated in the diagnosis of
Edmer’s medical condition. Her affirmative acts
amounted to her acceptance of the physician-
patient relationship, and incidentally, the legal
duty of care that went with it.
In Jarcia, Jr. v. People of the Philippines,46
the Court found the doctors who merely passed
by and were requested to attend to the patient,
liable for medical malpractice. It held that a
physician-patient relationship was established
when they examined the patient, and later
assured the mother that everything was fine.
In the US case of Mead v. Legacy Health
System,47 the Court also considered the
rendering of an opinion in the course of the
patient’s care as the doctor’s assent to the
physician-patient relationship. It ruled that the
relationship was formed because of the doctor’s
affirmative action.
  Likewise, in Wax v. Johnson,48 the court
found that a physician-patient relationship was
formed between a physician who “contracts,
agrees, undertakes, or otherwise assumes” the
obligation to provide resident supervision at a
teaching hospital, and the patient with whom
the doctor had no direct or indirect contract.
 
Standard of Care and Breach of Duty
 
A determination of whether or not the
petitioning doctors met the required standard of
care involves a question of

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46  Supra note 44.

47  231, Or App 451, 220 P3d 118 (Or 2009).
48  42 SW3d 168 (Tex App-Houston 1st Dist 2001).

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mixed fact and law; it is factual as medical

negligence cases are highly technical in nature,
requiring the presentation of expert witnesses to
provide guidance to the court on matters clearly
falling within the domain of medical science,
and legal, insofar as the Court, after evaluating
the expert testimonies, and guided by medical
literature, learned treatises, and its fund of
common knowledge, ultimately determines
whether breach of duty took place.
Whether or not Dr. Casumpang and Dr.
Miranda committed a breach of duty is to be
measured by the yardstick of professional
standards observed by the other members of the
medical profession in good standing under
similar circumstances.49 It is in this aspect of
medical malpractice that expert testimony is
essential to establish not only the professional
standards observed in the medical community,
but also that the physician’s conduct in the
treatment of care falls below such standard.50
In the present case, expert testimony is
crucial in determining first, the standard
medical examinations, tests, and procedures that
the attending physicians should have undertaken
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in the diagnosis and treatment of dengue fever;

and second, the dengue fever signs and
symptoms that the attending physicians should
have noticed and considered.
Both the RTC and the CA relied largely on
Dr. Jaudian’s expert testimony on dengue
diagnosis and management to support their
finding that the petitioning doctors were guilty
of breach of duty of care.
Dr. Jaudian testified that Edmer’s rapid
breathing, chest and stomach pain, fever, and
the presence of blood in his saliva are classic
symptoms of dengue fever. According to him,

_______________

49   Cruz v. Court of Appeals, 346 Phil. 872, 883; 282

SCRA 188, 200 (1997).
50  Solidum v. People, G.R. No. 192123, March 10, 2014,
718 SCRA 263.

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Casumpang vs. Cortejo

if the patient was admitted for chest pain,

abdominal pain, and difficulty in breathing
coupled with fever, dengue fever should
definitely be considered;51 if the patient spits
coffee ground with the presence of blood, and the
patient’s platelet count drops to 47,000, it
becomes a clear case of dengue fever, and
bronchopneumonia can be reasonably ruled
out.52

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Furthermore, the standard of care according

to Dr. Jaudian is to administer oxygen
inhalation, analgesic, and fluid infusion or
dextrose.53 If the patient had twice vomited
fresh blood and thrombocytopenia has already
occurred, the doctor should order blood
transfusion, monitoring of the patient every 30
minutes, hemostatic to stop bleeding, and oxygen
if there is difficulty in breathing.54
We find that Dr. Casumpang, as Edmer’s
attending physician, did not act according
to these standards and, hence, was guilty of
breach of duty. We do not find Dr. Miranda
liable for the reasons discussed below.
 
Dr. Casumpang’s Negligence
 
a. Negligence in the Diagnosis
 
At the trial, Dr. Casumpang declared that a
doctor’s impression regarding a patient’s illness
is 90% based on the physical examination, the
information given by the patient or the latter’s
parents, and the patient’s medical history.55 He
testified that he did not consider either dengue
fever or dengue hemorrhagic fever because the
patient’s history showed that Edmer had low
breath and voluntary submission, and

_______________

51  TSN, January 30, 1992, p. 11.

52  Id.
53  Id., at p. 15.
54  Id.
55  Id., at p. 10.

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that he was up and about playing

basketball.56 He based his diagnosis of
bronchopneumonia on the following
observations: “difficulty in breathing, clearing
run nostril, harsh breath sound, tight air, and
sivilant sound.”57
It will be recalled that during Dr.
Casumpang’s first and second visits to Edmer,
he already had knowledge of Edmer’s laboratory
test result (CBC), medical history, and
symptoms (i.e., fever, rashes, rapid breathing,
chest and stomach pain, throat irritation,
difficulty in breathing, and traces of blood in the
sputum). However, these information did
not lead Dr. Casumpang to the possibility
that Edmer could be suffering from either
dengue fever, or dengue hemorrhagic
fever, as he clung to his diagnosis of
bronchopneumonia. This means that given
the symptoms exhibited, Dr. Casumpang already
ruled out the possibility of other diseases like
dengue.
In other words, it was lost on Dr. Casumpang
that the characteristic symptoms of dengue (as
Dr. Jaudian testified) are: patient’s rapid
breathing; chest and stomach pain; fever; and the
presence of blood in his saliva. All these
manifestations were present and known to Dr.
Casumpang at the time of his first and second
visits to Edmer. While he noted some of these
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symptoms in confirming bronchopneumonia, he

did not seem to have considered the patient’s
other manifestations in ruling out dengue fever
or dengue hemorrhagic fever.58 To our mind, Dr.
Casumpang selectively appreciated some, and
not all of the symptoms; worse, he casually
ignored the pieces of information that could have
been material in detecting dengue fever. This is
evident from the testimony of Mrs. Cortejo:

_______________

56  Id.
57  Id., at p. 8.
58  Id., at pp. 11-13.

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TSN, Mrs. Cortejo, November 27, 1990

Q: Now, when Dr. Casumpang visited your son for
the first time at 5:30 p.m., what did he do, if any?
A: He examined my son by using stethoscope and
after that, he confirmed to me that my son was
suffering from bronchopneumonia.
Q: After he confirmed that your son was suffering
bronchopneumonia, what did you say if any?
A: Again, I told Dr. Casumpang, how come it
was bronchopneumonia when my son has no
cough or colds.
Q: What was the answer of Dr. Casumpang to
your statement?
x x x x

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A: And then, Dr. Casumpang answered

“THAT’S THE USUAL BRONCHOPNEUMONIA,
NO COLDS, NO PHLEGM.”
Q: How long did Dr. Casumpang stay in your son’s
room?
A: He stayed for a minute or 2.
x x x x
Q: When Dr. Casumpang arrived at 9:00 o’clock
a.m. on April 23, what did you tell him, if any?
x x x x
A: I told Dr. Casumpang… After examining
my son using stethoscope and nothing more, I
told Dr. Casumpang about the traces of blood in
my son’s sputum and I told him what is all about
and he has throat irritation.
Q: What did he tell you?
A: He just nodded his head but he did not
take the initiative of looking at the throat of my
son.

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Q: So what happened after that?

A: I also told Dr. Casumpang about his chest
pain and also stomach pain.
Q: So what did Dr. Casumpang do after you
have narrated all these complaints of your son?
A: Nothing. He also noticed the rapid
breathing of my son and my son was almost
moving because of rapid breathing and he is
swaying in the bed.

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Q: Do you know what action was taken by Dr.

Casumpang when you told him that your son is
experiencing a rapid breathing?
A: No action. He just asked me if my son has
an asthma but I said none.
Q: So how long did Dr. Casumpang stay and
attended your son on April 23?
A: More or less two (2) minutes then I
followed him up to the door and I repeated
about the fever of my son.
Q: What did he tell you, if any, regarding that
information you gave him that your son had a
fever?
A: He said, that is bronchopneumonia, it’s
only being active now.
  [Emphasis supplied]

 
We also find it strange why Dr. Casumpang
did not even bother to check Edmer’s throat
despite knowing that as early as 9:00 in the
morning of April 23, 1988, Edmer had blood
streaks in his sputum. Neither did Dr.
Casumpang order confirmatory tests to confirm
the source of bleeding. The Physician’s Progress
Notes59 stated: “Blood streaks on phlegm can be
due to bronchial irritation or congestion,” which
clearly showed that Dr. Casumpang merely
assumed, without con-

_______________

59  Rollo (G.R. No. 171228), pp. 263-265.

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Casumpang vs. Cortejo

firmatory physical examination, that

bronchopneumonia caused the bleeding.
Dr. Jaudian likewise opined that Dr.
Casumpang’s medical examination was not
comprehensive enough to reasonably lead to a
correct diagnosis.60 Dr. Casumpang only used a
stethoscope in coming up with the diagnosis that
Edmer was suffering from bronchopneumonia;
he never confirmed this finding with the use of a
bronchoscope. Furthermore, Dr. Casumpang
based his diagnosis largely on the chest x-ray
result that is generally inconclusive.61
Significantly, it was only at around 5:00 in
the afternoon of April 23, 1988 (after Edmer’s
third episode of bleeding) that Dr. Casumpang
ordered the conduct of hematocrit, hemoglobin,
blood typing, blood transfusion and tourniquet
tests. These tests came too late, as proven by: (1)
the blood test results that came at about 6:00 in
the evening, confirming that Edmer’s illness had
developed to “Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever”; and
(2) Dr. Jaudian’s testimony that “dengue fever
could have been detected earlier than 7:30 in the
evening of April 23, 1988 because the symptoms
were already evident.”62
In Spouses Flores v. Spouses Pineda,63 a case
involving a medical malpractice suit, the Court
ruled that the petitioner doctors were negligent
because they failed to immediately order tests to
confirm the patient’s illness. Despite the doctors’
suspicion that the patient could be suffering
from diabetes, the former still proceeded to the
D&C operation. In that case, expert testimony
showed that tests should have been ordered

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immediately on admission to the hospital in

view of the symptoms presented. The Court held:

_______________

60  Rollo (G.R. No. 171127), p. 62.

61  Id., at pp. 64-65.
62  TSN, February 27, 1992, p. 8.
63  Supra note 33.

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When a patient exhibits symptoms typical of a

particular disease, these symptoms should, at the
very least, alert the physician of the possibility that
the patient may be afflicted with the suspected
disease.

 
The Court also ruled that reasonable
prudence would have shown that diabetes and
its complications were foreseeable harm.
However, the petitioner doctors failed to take
this into consideration and proceeded with the
D&C operation. Thus, the Court ruled that they
failed to comply with their duty to observe the
standard of care to be given to
hyperglycemic/diabetic patients.
Similarly, in Jarcia,64 involving the
negligence of the doctors in failing to exercise
reasonable prudence in ascertaining the extent
of the patient’s injuries, this Court declared that:

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In failing to perform an extensive medical

examination to determine the extent of Roy Jr.’s
injuries, Dr. Jarcia and Dr. Bastan were remiss
of their duties as members of the medical
profession. Assuming for the sake of argument that
they did not have the capacity to make such thorough
evaluation at that stage, they should have referred
the patient to another doctor with sufficient training
and experience instead of assuring him and his
mother that everything was all right. [Emphasis
supplied]

 
Even assuming that Edmer’s symptoms
completely coincided with the diagnosis of
bronchopneumonia (so that this diagnosis could
not be considered “wrong”), we still find Dr.
Casumpang guilty of negligence.
First, we emphasize that we do not
decide the correctness of a doctor’s
diagnosis, or the accuracy of the medical
findings and treatment. Our duty in medical

_______________

64   Supra note 44. This is a criminal case for reckless

imprudence resulting to serious physical injuries filed
against Dr. Jarcia, Dr. Bastan, and Dr. Pamittan.

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malpractice cases is to decide — based on the

evidence adduced and expert opinion presented
— whether a breach of duty took place.
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Second, we clarify that a wrong

diagnosis is not by itself medical
malpractice.65 Physicians are generally not
liable for damages resulting from a bona fide
error of judgment. Nonetheless, when the
physician’s erroneous diagnosis was the result of
negligent conduct (e.g., neglect of medical
history, failure to order the appropriate tests,
failure to recognize symptoms), it becomes an
evidence of medical malpractice.
Third, we also note that medicine is not an
exact science;66 and doctors, or even specialists,
are not expected to give a 100% accurate
diagnosis in treating patients who come to their
clinic for consultations. Error is possible as the
exercise of judgment is called for in considering
and reading the exhibited symptoms, the results
of tests, and in arriving at definitive conclusions.
But in doing all these, the doctor must have
acted according to acceptable medical practice
standards.
In the present case, evidence on record
established that in confirming the diagnosis of
bronchopneumonia, Dr. Casumpang selectively
appreciated some and not all of the symptoms
presented, and failed to promptly conduct the
appropriate tests to confirm his findings. In sum,
Dr. Casumpang failed to timely detect dengue
fever, which failure, especially when reasonable
prudence would have shown that indications of
dengue were evident and/or foreseeable,
constitutes negligence.

_______________

65   61 Am Jur 2d, 190; the question in professional

malpractice suits is not whether a physician had made a

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mistake but whether he or she used ordinary care.

66  22A Am Jur 2d, 570.

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a. Negligence in the Treatment and

Management of Dengue
 
Apart from failing to promptly detect
dengue fever, Dr. Casumpang also failed to
promptly undertake the proper medical
management needed for this disease.
As Dr. Jaudian opined, the standard medical
procedure once the patient had exhibited the
classic symptoms of dengue fever should have
been: oxygen inhalation, use of analgesic, and
infusion of fluids or dextrose;67 and once the
patient had twice vomited fresh blood, the doctor
should have ordered: blood transfusion,
monitoring of the patient every 30 minutes,
hemostatic to stop bleeding, and oxygen if there is
difficulty in breathing.68
Dr. Casumpang failed to measure up to these
standards. The evidence strongly suggests that
he ordered a transfusion of platelet concentrate
instead of blood transfusion. The tourniquet test
was only conducted after Edmer’s second episode
of bleeding, and the medical management (as
reflected in the records) did not include
antibiotic therapy and complete physical
examination.
Dr. Casumpang’s testimony states:

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Q: Now, after entertaining — After considering

that the patient Edmer Cortero was already suffering
from dengue hemorrhagic fever, what did you do, if
any?
A: We ordered close monitoring of the blood
pressure, the cardiac rate and respiratory rate
of the patient.
Q: Now, was your instructions carried on?
A: Yes, sir.

_______________

67   TSN, January 30, 1992, p. 15 (per Rollo [G.R. No.

171228], p. 82).
68  Id.

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Q: What was the blood pressure of the patient?

A: During those times, the blood pressure of the
patient was even normal during those times.
Q: How about the respiratory rate?
A: The respiratory rate was fast because the
patient in the beginning since admission had
difficulty in breathing.
Q: Then, after that, what did you do with the
patient? Doctor?
A: We transfused platelet concentrate and at
the same time, we monitor [sic] the patient.
Q: Then, who monitor [sic] the patient?
A: The pediatric resident on duty at that time.
Q: Now, what happened after that?

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A: While monitoring the patient, all his vital signs

were _____; his blood pressure was normal so we
continued with the supportive management at that
time.
Q: Now, after that?
A: In the evening of April 23, 1988, I stayed in the
hospital and I was informed by the pediatric resident
on duty at around 11:15 in the evening that the blood
pressure of the patient went down to .60 palpatory.
Q: What did you do upon receipt of that
information?
A: I immediately went up to the room of the
patient and we changed the IV fluid from the
present fluid which was D5 0.3 sodium chloride
to lactated ringers solution.
Q: You mean to say you increased the dengue
[sic] of the intervenus [sic] fluid?
A: We changed the IV fluid because lactated
ringers was necessary to resume the volume
and to bring back the blood pressure, to
increase the blood pressure. [Emphasis supplied]

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Although Dr. Casumpang presented the

testimonies of Dr. Rodolfo Jagonap and Dr.
Ellewelyn Pasion (Dr. Pasion), Personnel Officer
and Medical Director of SJDH, respectively as
well as the testimonies of Dr. Livelo and Dr.
Reyes (the radiologist who read Edmer’s chest x-
ray result), these witnesses failed to dispute the
standard of action that Dr. Jaudian established

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in his expert opinion. We cannot consider them

expert witnesses either for the sole reason that
they did not testify on the standard of care in
dengue cases.69
On the whole, after examining the totality of
the adduced evidence, we find that the lower
courts correctly did not rely on Dr. Casumpang’s
claim that he exercised prudence and due
diligence in handling Edmer’s case. Aside from
being self-serving, his claim is not supported by
competent evidence. As the lower courts did, we
rely on the uncontroverted fact that he failed, as
a medical professional, to observe the most
prudent medical procedure under the
circumstances in diagnosing and treating
Edmer.
 
Dr. Miranda is Not Liable for Negligence
 
In considering the case of Dr. Miranda, the
junior resident physician who was on-duty at the
time of Edmer’s confinement, we see the need to
draw distinctions between the responsibilities
and corresponding liability of Dr. Casumpang, as
the attending physician, and that of Dr.
Miranda.
In his testimony, Dr. Pasion declared that
resident applicants are generally doctors of
medicine licensed to practice in the Philippines
and who would like to pursue a particular
specialty.70 They are usually the frontline
doctors responsible for the first contact with the
patient. During the scope of the

_______________

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69   These witnesses were presented as ordinary

witnesses.
70  TSN, January 26, 1993, p. 6.

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residency program,71 resident physicians (or

“residents”)72 function under the supervision of
attending physicians73 or of the hospital’s
teaching staff. Under this arrangement,
residents operate merely as subordinates who
usually defer to the attending physician on the
decision to be made and on the action to be
taken.
The attending physician, on the other hand, is
primarily responsible for managing the
resident’s exercise of duties. While attending
and resident physicians share the collective
responsibility to deliver safe and appropriate
care to the patients,74 it is the attending
physician who assumes the principal
75
responsibility of patient care. Because he/she
exercises a supervisory role over the resident,
and is ultimately responsible for the diagnosis
and treatment of the patient, the standards
applicable to and the liability of the resident for
medical malpractice is theoretically less than
that of the attending physician. These relative
burdens and distinctions, however, do not
translate to immunity from the legal duty of care
for residents,76 or from the responsibility arising
from their own negligent act.

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71   Residency is a period of advanced medical training

and education that normally follows graduation from medical
school and licensing to practice medicine and that consists of
a specialty in a hospital and in its outpatient department
and instruction from specialists on the hospital staff.
Merriam-Webster’s Medical Dictionary, p. 648.
72   A physician serving a residency; Merriam-Webster’s
Medical Dictionary, p. 648.
73   A physician or surgeon on the staff of a hospital,
regularly visiting and treating patients, and often
supervising students, fellows, and the house staff; Merriam-
Webster’s Medical Dictionary, p. 58.
74   Professional Liability Issues in Graduate Medical
Institution, www.Ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15339896.
75  755 ILCS 35/2(a); Illinois Jurisprudence, Health Law.
76   Mercil v. Mathers, No. C3-93-140, 1994 WL 1114
(Minn Ct App Jan. 4, 1994).

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In Jenkins v. Clark,77 the Ohio Court of

Appeals held that the applicable standard of
care in medical malpractice cases involving first
year residents was that of a reasonably prudent
physician and not that of interns. According to
Jenkins:

It is clear that the standard of care required of

physicians is not an individualized one but of
physicians in general in the community. In order to
establish medical malpractice, it must be shown by a
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preponderance of the evidence that a physician did

some particular thing or things that a physician or
surgeon of ordinary skill, care and diligence would not
have done under like or similar conditions or
circumstances, or that he failed or omitted to do some
particular thing or things that a physician or surgeon
of ordinary skill, care and diligence would have done
under like or similar conditions or circumstances, and
that the inquiry complained of was the direct result of
such doing or failing to do such thing or things.
We note that the standard of instruction given by
the court was indeed a proper one. It clearly
informed the jury that the medical care
required is that of reasonably careful
physicians or hospital emergency room
operators, not of interns or residents. [Emphasis
supplied]

 
 A decade later, Centman v. Cobb,78 affirmed
the Jenkins ruling and held that interns and
first year residents are “practitioners of medicine
required to exercise the same standard of care
applicable to physicians with unlimited licenses
to practice.” The Indiana Court held that
although a first year resident practices under a
temporary medical permit, he/she impliedly
contracts that he/she has the reasonable and
ordinary qualifications of her profession and
that he/she will exercise reasonable skill,
diligence, and care in treating the patient.

_______________

77  7 Ohio App. 3d 93, 101 (1982).

78  581 N.E.2d 1286 (Ind Ct App 1991).

419
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We find that Dr. Miranda was not

independently negligent. Although she had
greater patient exposure, and was subject to the
same standard of care applicable to attending
physicians, we believe that a finding of
negligence should also depend on several
competing factors, among them, her authority to
make her own diagnosis, the degree of
supervision of the attending physician over her,
and the shared responsibility between her and
the attending physicians.
In this case, before Dr. Miranda attended to
Edmer, both Dr. Livelo and Dr. Casumpang had
diagnosed Edmer with bronchopneumonia. In
her testimony, Dr. Miranda admitted that she
had been briefed about Edmer’s condition, his
medical history, and initial diagnosis;79 and
based on these pieces of information, she
confirmed the finding of bronchopneumonia.
Dr. Miranda likewise duly reported to Dr.
Casumpang, who admitted receiving updates
regarding Edmer’s condition.80 There is also
evidence supporting Dr. Miranda’s claim that
she extended diligent care to Edmer. In fact,
when she suspected — during Edmer’s second
episode of bleeding — that Edmer could be
suffering from dengue fever, she wasted no time
in conducting the necessary tests, and promptly
notified Dr. Casumpang about the incident.
Indubitably, her medical assistance led to the
finding of dengue fever.
We note however, that during Edmer’s second
episode of bleeding,81 Dr. Miranda failed to
immediately examine and note the cause of the
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blood specimen. Like Dr. Casumpang, she

merely assumed that the blood in Edmer’s
phlegm was caused by bronchopneumonia. Her
testimony states:

TSN, June 8, 1993:

Q: Let us get this clear, you said that the father
told you the patient cocked [sic] out phlegm.
A: With blood streak.

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79  TSN, June 8, 1993, pp. 11-13.

80  TSN, March 2, 1993, pp. 23, 31-33; April 1, 1993, p. 6.
81  At 11:30 in the morning of April 23, 1988.

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Q: Now, you stated specimen, were you not

able to examine the specimen?
A: No, sir, I did not because according to the
father he wash [sic] his hands.
x x x x
Q: Now, from your knowledge, what does that
indicate if the patient expels a phlegm and blood
streak?
A: If a patient cocked [sic] out phlegm then the
specimen could have come from the lung alone.82
[Emphasis supplied]
x x x x
TSN, June 17, 1993:
Q: Now, in the first meeting you had, when that
was relayed to you by the father that Edmer Cortejo
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had coughed out blood, what medical action did you

take?
A: I examined the patient and I thought that, that
coughed out phlegm was a product of
bronchopneumonia.
x x x x
Q: So what examination did you specifically
conduct to see that there was no internal bleeding?
A: At that time I did not do anything to
determine the cause of coughing of the blood
because I presumed that it was a mucous (sic)
produced by bronchopneumonia, and besides
the patient did not even show any signs of any
other illness at that time.83

 
Based on her statements we find that Dr.
Miranda was not entirely faultless.
Nevertheless, her failure to discern the
import of Edmer’s second bleeding does not
necessarily amount to negligence as the
respondent himself admitted

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82  TSN, June 8, 1993, p. 16.

83  TSN, June 17, 1993, pp. 27-28.

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that Dr. Miranda failed to examine the blood

specimen because he washed it away. In
addition, considering the diagnosis previously
made by two doctors, and the uncontroverted
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fact that the burden of final diagnosis pertains

to the attending physician (in this case, Dr.
Casumpang), we believe that Dr. Miranda’s
error was merely an honest mistake of judgment
influenced in no small measure by her status in
the hospital hierarchy; hence, she should not be
held liable for medical negligence.
 
Dr. Jaudian’s Professional Competence and
Credibility
 
One of the critical issues the petitioners
raised in the proceedings before the lower court
and before this Court was Dr. Jaudian’s
competence and credibility as an expert witness.
The petitioners tried to discredit his expert
testimony on the ground that he lacked the
proper training and fellowship status in
pediatrics.
 
Criteria in Qualifying as an Expert Witness
 
The competence of an expert witness is a
matter for the trial court to decide upon in the
exercise of its discretion. The test of qualification
is necessarily a relative one, depending upon the
subject matter of the investigation, and the
fitness of the expert witness.84 In our
jurisdiction, the criterion remains to be the
expert witness’ special knowledge
experience and practical training that
qualify him/her to explain highly technical
medical matters to the Court.
In Ramos v. Court of Appeals,85 the Court
found the expert witness, who is a
pulmonologist, not qualified to testify on the

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field of anesthesiology. Similarly, in Cereno v.

Court of Ap-

_______________

84  Tomasa Vda. de Jacob v. Court of Appeals, 371 Phil.

693, 709; 312 SCRA 772, 780 (1999).
85  378 Phil. 1198; 321 SCRA 584 (1999).

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peals,86 a 2012 case involving medical

negligence, the Court excluded the testimony of
an expert witness whose specialty was
anesthesiology, and concluded that an
anesthesiologist cannot be considered an expert
in the field of surgery or even in surgical
practices and diagnosis.
Interestingly in this case, Dr. Jaudian, the
expert witness was admittedly not a pediatrician
but a practicing physician who specializes in
pathology.87 He likewise does not possess any
formal residency training in pediatrics.
Nonetheless, both the lower courts found his
knowledge acquired through study and practical
experience sufficient to advance an expert
opinion on dengue-related cases.
We agree with the lower courts.
A close scrutiny of Ramos and Cereno reveals
that the Court primarily based the witnesses’
disqualification to testify as an expert on their
incapacity to shed light on the standard of care

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that must be observed by the defendant-

physicians. That the expert witnesses’
specialties do not match the physicians’ practice
area only constituted, at most, one of the
considerations that should not be taken out of
context. After all, the sole function of a medical
expert witness, regardless of his/her specialty, is
to afford assistance to the courts on medical
matters, and to explain the medical facts in
issue.
Furthermore, there was no reasonable
indication in Ramos and Cereno that the expert
witnesses possess a sufficient familiarity with
the standard of care applicable to the physicians’
specialties.
US jurisprudence on medical malpractice
demonstrated the trial courts’ wide latitude of
discretion in allowing a specialist from another
field to testify against a defendant specialist.

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86  G.R. No. 167366, September 26, 2012, 682 SCRA 18.

87   Pathology is the study of diseases, their essential
nature, causes, and development, and the structural and
functional changes produced by them. (Webster’s Third New
International Dictionary, p. 1655)

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In Brown v. Sims,88 a neurosurgeon was

found competent to give expert testimony
regarding a gynecologist’s standard of pre-

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surgical care. In that case, the court held that

since negligence was not predicated on the
gynecologist’s negligent performance of the
operation, but primarily on the claim that the
preoperative histories and physicals were
inadequate, the neurosurgeon was competent to
testify as an expert.
Frost v. Mayo Clinic,89 also allowed an
orthopedic surgeon to testify against a
neurologist in a medical malpractice action. The
court considered that the orthopedic surgeon’s
opinion on the “immediate need for
decompression” need not come from a specialist
in neurosurgery. The court held that:

It is well-established that “the testimony of a

qualified medical doctor cannot be excluded simply
because he is not a specialist x  x  x.” The matter of
“x  x  x training and specialization of the witness goes
to the weight rather than admissibility x x x.”
x x x x
It did not appear to the court that a medical doctor
had to be a specialist in neurosurgery to express the
opinions permitted to be expressed by plaintiffs’
doctors, e.g., the immediate need for a decompression
in the light of certain neurological deficits in a post-
laminectomy patient. As stated above, there was no
issue as to the proper execution of the neurosurgery.
The medical testimony supported plaintiffs’ theory of
negligence and causation. (Citations omitted)

 
In another case,90 the court declared that it is
the specialist’s knowledge of the requisite
subject matter, rather than his/her
specialty that determines his/her
qualification to testify.

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88  538 So. 2d 901 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1989).

89  304 F. Supp. 285 (1969).
90  McLean v. Hunter, 495 So. 2d 1298 (1986).

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 Also in Evans v. Ohanesian,91 the court set a

guideline in qualifying an expert witness:

To qualify a witness as a medical expert, it must be

shown that the witness (1) has the required
professional knowledge, learning and skill of
the subject under inquiry sufficient to qualify
him to speak with authority on the subject; and
(2) is familiar with the standard required of a
physician under similar circumstances; where a
witness has disclosed sufficient knowledge of the
subject to entitle his opinion to go to the jury, the
question of the degree of his knowledge goes more to
the weight of the evidence than to its admissibility.
x x x x
Nor is it critical whether a medical expert is a
general practitioner or a specialist so long as he
exhibits knowledge of the subject. Where a duly
licensed and practicing physician has gained
knowledge of the standard of care applicable to
a specialty in which he is not directly engaged
but as to which he has an opinion based on
education, experience, observation, or
association wit that specialty, his opinion is
competent. (Emphasis supplied)
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Finally, Brown v. Mladineo92 adhered to the
principle that the witness’ familiarity, and not
the classification by title or specialty, which
should control issues regarding the expert
witness’ qualifications:

_______________

91  39 Cal. App. 3d 121, 112 Cal. Rptr. 236 (1974). This is
a dental medical malpractice suit brought against a
practitioner of general dentistry.
92  504 So. 2d. 1201 (1987). The issue involved in this case
is whether the testimony of a pathologist-general surgeon
may be admitted as expert testimony on the medical
negligence of an OB-gynecologist.

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The general rule as to expert testimony in medical

malpractice actions is that “a specialist in a particular
branch within a profession will not be required.” Most
courts allow a doctor to testify if they are satisfied of
his familiarity with the standards of a specialty,
though he may not practice the specialty himself. One
court explained that “it is the scope of the witness’
knowledge and not the artificial classification by title
that should govern the threshold question of
admissibility.” (Citations omitted)

 
Application to the Present Case
 

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In the case and the facts before us, we find

that Dr. Jaudian is competent to testify on the
standard of care in dengue fever cases.
Although he specializes in pathology, it was
established during trial that he had attended not
less than 30 seminars held by the Pediatric
Society, had exposure in pediatrics, had been
practicing medicine for 16 years, and had
handled not less than 50 dengue-related cases.
As a licensed medical practitioner specializing
in pathology, who had practical and relevant
exposure in pediatrics and dengue related cases,
we are convinced that Dr. Jaudian demonstrated
sufficient familiarity with the standard of care to
be applied in dengue fever cases. Furthermore,
we agree that he possesses knowledge and
experience sufficient to qualify him to speak
with authority on the subject.
 
The Causation Between Dr. Casumpang’s
Negligent Act/Omission, and the Patient’s
Resulting Death was Adequately Proven
 
Dr. Jaudian’s testimony strongly suggests
that due to Dr. Casumpang’s failure to timely
diagnose Edmer with dengue, the latter was not
immediately given the proper treatment. In fact,
even after Dr. Casumpang had discovered
Edmer’s real

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illness, he still failed to promptly perform the

standard medical procedure. We agree with
these findings.
As the respondent had pointed out, dengue
fever, if left untreated, could be a life
threatening disease. As in any fatal diseases, it
requires immediate medical attention.93 With
the correct and timely diagnosis, coupled with
the proper medical management, dengue fever is
not a life-threatening disease and could easily be
cured.94
Furthermore, as Dr. Jaudian testified, with
adequate intensive care, the mortality rate of
dengue fever should fall to less than 2%. Hence,
the survival of the patient is directly related to
early and proper management of the illness.95
To reiterate, Dr. Casumpang failed to timely
diagnose Edmer with dengue fever despite the
presence of its characteristic symptoms; and as a
consequence of the delayed diagnosis, he also
failed to promptly manage Edmer’s illness. Had
he immediately conducted confirmatory tests,
(i.e., tourniquet tests and series of blood tests)
and promptly administered the proper care and
management needed for dengue fever, the risk of
complications or even death, could have been
substantially reduced.
Furthermore, medical literature on dengue
shows that early diagnosis and management of
dengue is critical in reducing the risk of
complications and avoiding further spread of the
virus.96 That Edmer later died of “Hypovolemic
Shock/hemorrhagic shock,” “Dengue
Hemorrhagic Fever Stage IV,” a severe and fatal
form of dengue fever, established the causal link
between Dr. Casumpang’s negligence and the
injury.
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93  Rollo (G.R. No. 171127), p. 128.

94  Id., at p. 62.
95  TSN, February 27, 1992, p. 12.
96   WHO, Dengue and Severe Dengue;
http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs117/en/.

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Based on these considerations, we rule that

the respondent successfully proved the element
of causation.
 
Liability of SJDH
 
We now discuss the liability of the hospital.
The respondent submits that SJDH should
not only be held vicariously liable for the
petitioning doctors’ negligence but also for its
own negligence. He claims that SJDH fell short
of its duty of providing its patients with the
necessary facilities and equipment as shown by
the following circumstances:
 
(a) SJDH was not equipped with proper
paging system;
(b) the number of its doctors is not
proportionate to the number of patients;
(c) SJDH was not equipped with a
bronchoscope;
(d) when Edmer’s oxygen was removed, the
medical staff did not immediately provide him
with portable oxygen;
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(e) when Edmer was about to be transferred

to another hospital, SJDH’s was not ready and
had no driver; and
(f) despite Edmer’s critical condition, there
was no doctor attending to him from 5:30 p.m. of
April 22, to 9:00 a.m. of April 23, 1988.
 
SJDH on the other hand disclaims liability by
claiming that the petitioning doctors are not its
employees but are mere consultants and
independent contractors.
We affirm the hospital’s liability not on the
basis of Article 2180 of the Civil Code, but on the
basis of the doctrine of apparent authority or
agency by estoppel.

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There is No Employer-Employee
Relationship Between SJDH and the
Petitioning Doctors
 
In determining whether an employer-
employee relationship exists between the
parties, the following elements must be present:
(1) selection and engagement of services; (2)
payment of wages; (3) the power to hire and fire;
and (4) the power to control not only the end to
be achieved, but the means to be used in
reaching such an end.97
Control, which is the most crucial among the
elements, is not present in this case.

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Based on the records, no evidence exists

showing that SJDH exercised any degree of
control over the means, methods of procedure
and manner by which the petitioning doctors
conducted and performed their medical
profession. SJDH did not control their diagnosis
and treatment. Likewise, no evidence was
presented to show that SJDH monitored,
supervised, or directed the petitioning doctors in
the treatment and management of Edmer’s case.
In these lights, the petitioning doctors were not
employees of SJDH, but were mere independent
contractors.
 
SJDH is Solidarily Liable based on the
Principle of Agency or Doctrine of Apparent
Authority
 
Despite the absence of employer-employee
relationship between SJDH and the petitioning
doctors, SJDH is not free from liability.98
As a rule, hospitals are not liable for the
negligence of its independent contractors.
However, it may be found liable if

_______________

97  Ramos v. Court of Appeals, supra note 85.

98  Nogales v. Capitol Medical Center, 540 Phil. 225, 245-
247; 511 SCRA 204, 228 (2006).

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the physician or independent contractor acts

as an ostensible agent of the hospital. This
exception is also known as the “doctrine of
apparent authority.”99
The US case of Gilbert v. Sycamore Municipal
Hospital100 abrogated the hospitals’ immunity to
vicarious liability of independent contractor
physicians. In that case, the Illinois Supreme
Court held that under the doctrine of apparent
authority, hospitals could be found vicariously
liable for the negligence of an independent
contractor:

Therefore, we hold that, under the doctrine of

apparent authority, a hospital can be held vicariously
liable for the negligent acts of a physician providing
care at the hospital, regardless of whether the
physician is an independent contractor, unless the
patient knows, or should have known, that the
physician is an independent contractor. The elements
of the action have been set out as follows:
For a hospital to be liable under the doctrine of
apparent authority, a plaintiff must show that: (1)
the hospital, or its agent, acted in a manner that
would lead a reasonable person to conclude that
the individual who was alleged to be negligent
was an employee or agent of the hospital; (2)
where the acts of the agent create the
appearance of authority, the plaintiff must also
prove that the hospital had knowledge of and
acquiesced in them; and (3) the plaintiff acted in
reliance upon the conduct of the hospital or its
agent, consistent with ordinary care and
prudence. (Emphasis supplied)

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99   Id.
100  156 Ill. 2d 511, 622 N.E. 2d 788 (1993).

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The doctrine was applied in Nogales v.

Capitol Medical Center101 where this Court,
through the ponencia of Associate Justice
Antonio T. Carpio, discussed the two factors in
determining hospital liability as follows:

The first factor focuses on the hospital’s

manifestations and is sometimes described as an
inquiry whether the hospital acted in a manner which
would lead a reasonable person to conclude that the
individual who was alleged to be negligent was an
employee or agent of the hospital. In this regard, the
hospital need not make express representations to the
patient that the treating physician is an employee of
the hospital; rather a representation may be general
and implied.
x x x x
The second factor focuses on the patient’s reliance.
It is sometimes characterized as an inquiry on
whether the plaintiff acted in reliance upon the
conduct of the hospital or its agent, consistent with
ordinary care and prudence. (Citation omitted)

 
In sum, a hospital can be held vicariously
liable for the negligent acts of a physician (or an
independent contractor) providing care at the
hospital if the plaintiff can prove these two
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factors: first, the hospital’s manifestations; and

second, the patient’s reliance.
 
a. Hospital’s manifestations
 
It involves an inquiry on whether the hospital
acted in a manner that would lead a reasonable
person to conclude that the individual alleged to
be negligent was an employee or agent of the
hospital. As pointed out in Nogales, the hospital
need not make express representations to the
patient that the

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101  Supra note 98 at p. 246; pp. 223, 226.

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physician or independent contractor is an

employee of the hospital; representation may be
general and implied.102
 In Pamperin v. Trinity Memorial Hospital,103
questions were raised on “what acts by the
hospital or its agent are sufficient to lead a
reasonable person to conclude that the
individual was an agent of the hospital.” In
ruling that the hospital’s manifestations can be
proven without the express representation by
the hospital, the court relied on several cases
from other jurisdictions, and held that:
 

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(1) the hospital, by providing emergency room

care and by failing to advise patients that they
were being treated by the hospital’s agent and
not its employee, has created the appearance of
agency; and
(2) patients entering the hospital through the
emergency room, could properly assume that the
treating doctors and staff of the hospital were
acting on its behalf.
 
In this case, the court considered the act of
the hospital of holding itself out as provider of
complete medical care, and considered the
hospital to have impliedly created the
appearance of authority.
 
b. Patient’s reliance
 
It involves an inquiry on whether the plaintiff
acted in reliance on the conduct of the hospital
or its agent, consistent with ordinary care and
prudence.104
In Pamperin, the court held that the
important consideration in determining the
patient’s reliance is: whether the plaintiff is
seeking care from the hospital itself or whether
the

_______________

102  Id.
103  144 Wis. 2d 188, 207, 423 N.W. 2d. 848, 855 (1988).
104  PSI v. Court of Appeals, 568 Phil. 158, 166-167; 544
SCRA 170, 180 (2008), citing Diggs v. Novant Health, Inc.,
628 S.E.2d 851 (2006) and Hylton v. Koontz, 138 N.C. App.
629 (2000).

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plaintiff is looking to the hospital merely as a

place for his/her personal physician to provide
medical care.105
Thus, this requirement is deemed satisfied if
the plaintiff can prove that he/she relied upon
the hospital to provide care and treatment,
rather than upon a specific physician. In this
case, we shall limit the determination of the
hospital’s apparent authority to Dr. Casumpang,
in view of our finding that Dr. Miranda is not
liable for negligence.
 
SJDH Clothed Dr. Casumpang with
Apparent Authority
 
SJDH impliedly held out and clothed Dr.
Casumpang with apparent authority leading the
respondent to believe that he is an employee or
agent of the hospital.
Based on the records, the respondent relied
on SJDH rather than upon Dr. Casumpang, to
care and treat his son Edmer. His testimony
during trial showed that he and his wife did not
know any doctors at SJDH; they also did not
know that Dr. Casumpang was an
independent contractor. They brought their
son to SJDH for diagnosis because of their
family doctor’s referral. The referral did not
specifically point to Dr. Casumpang or even to
Dr. Miranda, but to SJDH.
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Significantly, the respondent had relied on

SJDH’s representation of Dr. Casumpang’s
authority. To recall, when Mrs. Cortejo
presented her Fortune Care card, she was
initially referred to the Fortune Care
coordinator, who was then out of town. She was
thereafter referred to Dr. Casumpang, who is
also accredited with Fortune Care. In both
instances, SJDH through its agent failed to
advise Mrs. Cortejo that Dr. Casumpang is an
independent contractor.

_______________

105   Pamperin v. Trinity Memorial Hospital, supra note

103.

433

VOL. 752, MARCH 11, 2015 433

Casumpang vs. Cortejo

Mrs. Cortejo accepted Dr. Casumpang’s

services on the reasonable belief that such were
being provided by SJDH or its employees,
agents, or servants. By referring Dr.
Casumpang to care and treat for Edmer,
SJDH impliedly held out Dr. Casumpang,
not only as an accredited member of
Fortune Care, but also as a member of its
medical staff. SJDH cannot now disclaim
liability since there is no showing that Mrs.
Cortejo or the respondent knew, or should have
known, that Dr. Casumpang is only an
independent contractor of the hospital. In this
case, estoppel has already set in.

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We also stress that Mrs. Cortejo’s use of

health care plan (Fortune Care) did not affect
SJDH’s liability. The only effect of the availment
of her Fortune Care card benefits is that her
choice of physician is limited only to physicians
who are accredited with Fortune Care. Thus, her
use of health care plan in this case only limited
the choice of doctors (or coverage of services,
amount, etc.) and not the liability of doctors or
the hospital.
WHEREFORE, premises considered, this
Court PARTLY GRANTS the consolidated
petitions. The Court finds Dr. Noel Casumpang
and San Juan de Dios Hospital solidarily liable
for negligent medical practice. We SET ASIDE
the finding of liability as to Dr. Ruby Sanga-
Miranda. The amounts of P45,000.00 as actual
damages and P500,000.00 as moral damages
should each earn legal interest at the rate of six
percent (6%) per annum computed from the date
of the judgment of the trial court. The Court
AFFIRMS the rest of the Decision dated
October 29, 2004 and the Resolution dated
January 12, 2006 in C.A.-G.R. CV No. 56400.
SO ORDERED.

Carpio (Chairperson), Villarama, Jr.,**

Mendoza and Leonen, JJ., concur.

_______________

* * Designated as additional member, in lieu of Associate

Justice Mariano C. Del Castillo, per Raffle dated February 9,
2015.

434

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434 SUPREME COURT REPORTS

ANNOTATED
Casumpang vs. Cortejo

Consolidated petitions partly granted, finding

of liability as to Dr. Ruby Sanga-Miranda set
aside. Judgment and resolution affirmed.

Notes.—Medical malpractice or, more

appropriately, medical negligence, is that type of
claim which a victim has available to him or her
to redress a wrong committed by a medical
professional which has caused bodily harm.
(Dela Torre vs. Imbuido, 736 SCRA 655 [2014])
It is settled that a physician’s duty to his
patient relates to his exercise of the degree of
care, skill and diligence which physicians in the
same general neighborhood, and in the same
general line of practice, ordinarily possess and
exercise in like cases. (Id.)
——o0o——

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