Doing God’s will

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

          WE need to realize more deeply the crucial role of doing the

will of God in our life. We have to understand that it is doing God’s

will that would make us his image and likeness as we are meant to be.

It’s how we live our life with God, as it is meant to be. This truth

of faith should be very clear in our mind and should be made an

operative principle in our daily life.

          We are reminded of this truth of our faith when Christ

talked about the two sons who were asked by their father to work in

the vineyard. (cfr. Mt 21,28-32) The first said, yes, but actually did

not go, while the second said, no, but eventually went.

          Christ concluded, of course, that of the two, it was the

second who did the father’s will which is what is truly important.

It’s an episode in the gospel that somehow wants to convey the truth

that it is in obeying and doing God’s will that we truly become his

image and likeness.

          No wonder then that Christ said that the greatest

commandment is to love God with our whole heart, which, in concrete

terms, means that we have to carry out God’s commandments. St. John in

his first letter said as much: “This is the love of God, that we keep

his commandments.” (5,3)

          We have to find ways of how we can always feel the impulse

and the urge to be guided by God’s will and commandments rather than

simply guided by our own will. We have to realize more deeply that our

will cannot and should not be working simply on its own, and that by

working on its own puts it in a dangerous condition. Our will needs to

be always referred to and be animated by God’s will.

          For this purpose, we may have to develop certain practices

of piety that would help us in this direction. Like, spending time in

prayer, in meditation, in regularly reading the contemplating the

gospel, in rectifying our intentions, referring them always to God. We

have to develop virtues like humility, detachment, holy purity,

patience and optimism, fortitude, etc.

          Very important in this regard would be to familiarize

ourselves with the teaching, deeds and the very life of Christ

himself, fully convinced that he is the very pattern of our humanity.

We have to make Christ alive in us to such an extent that we can truly

say that we are “alter Christus,” another Christ, as we are meant to

be.

          In this regard, we have to be convinced that our life should

also be a liturgical life, since it is in the liturgy where the whole

mystery of Christ and his redemptive work is made present and

effective in our life. It is in the liturgy, especially in the Holy

Mass, where we can most fittingly do our part in corresponding to that

whole mystery of Christ and his mission. It’s where we can be one with

him, sharing in his redemptive mission.

          We need to feel the need for doing a widespread catechesis

on this truth of our faith. With gift of tongue and making use of

today’s powerful technologies, let us reach out to others, leading

them to realize the crucial role that doing and living God’s will has

in our life.

          Just like what St. Paul once said, we have to “preach the

Word, be prepared in season and out of season…” (2 Tim 4)

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

THOU ART THE ONE

The faults we see in others often reveal our own imperfections. We frequently criticize our own shortcomings when we see them in others. 

Very often, we hear from friends and others things they seem to hate. They even criticize others about their looks or activities during weekends, vacations or off days. 

In social networks, we are able to read comments and posts in a very bad manner about other people's houses and gardens. 

Most of the time, gossiping ruins one's life. Gossips come about because of envy. 

I know it's not that easy. But why not try to love the unlovables instead of giving them so many negative comments. And one step further: why not examine ourselves first before criticizing others?

Upon examination of my own life, I am annoyed when others are late for an appointment and keep me waiting. I feel angry when parents speak harshly and treat their children cruelly. I feel upset when individuals in a meeting monopolize the conservation. I could give you more and more examples, my dear readers.

But, at such times when I look inward, I hear the words, "Thou are the one"! I realize that imperfections I see in others are often my own.

When the Lord looks at us, He sees not only what we are but what He enables us to become. Very important - we can learn not to expect  too much for ourselves that we become discouraged. The grace of God does not change us unless we respond. It can change our outlook and with our outlook, our attitudes. With changed attitudes, we can become whatever we would never be.

Kindness, helpfulness, hospitality, obligingness, ready to do favors - and our moment of virtue  will not be destroyed by time's storm. Love and mercifulness from the bottom of our heart shared with people who will cross our path - and nobody will forget us.

Trapped in one’s own trap

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

          IN the Bible, there are a number of passages that talk about

how some people, usually the wicked and evil ones, fall into their own

snare that were supposed to be made for the others.

          For example, in the Book of Psalms, we have the following

passages: “Let the wicked fall into their own nets…” (141,10) “I did

nothing wrong, but they tried to trap me. For no reason at all, they

dug a pit to catch me. So let them fall into their own traps. Let them

stumble into their own nets.” (35,7) “They have dug a pitfall in my

path. But look! They themselves have fallen into it!” (57,6)

          This was also what happened when the chief priests and some

elders of the people tried to trick Christ by asking him about the

authority he had for doing what he was doing. (cfr. Mt 21,23-27)

          As the gospel narrated, Christ, of course, outsmarted them

and asked them a question that they themselves could not answer, since

any answer they would give would put them on the spot.

          We have to be most wary of any temptation to trick God by

playing around with the truth. We just have to be very truthful even

if we may have to suffer because of it, since by resorting to some

trickery, we would just expose ourselves to greater shame sooner or

later.

          In this regard, St. Augustine once said, “They love truth

when it enlightens them, but hate when it accuses them. In this

attitude of reluctance to be deceived and intent to deceive others

they love truth when it reveals itself but hate it when it reveals

them. Truth will therefore take its revenge: when people refuse to be

shown up by it, truth will show them up willy-nilly and yet elude

them.”

          We should therefore be most truthful, knowing how to grow in

that virtue of truthfulness especially these days when things can get

very complicated. In this we need to understand that truthfulness can

only start with our proper relationship with God. Other than that, our

truthfulness, even in what we may consider as its best form, would

always be suspect and vulnerable to elements that undermine the truth.

          In short, we can only be truthful and sincere when we are

with God who revealed himself in fullness insofar as we are concerned

in his Son who became man, Jesus Christ.

          Thus, Christ clearly said that he is “the way, the truth,

and the life. No one goes to the Father except through him.” In other

words, we can only be truthful through him. We can only find the

proper way for whatever is good for us through him. We can only have

the real life, proper to us, in him.

          Christ said it very clearly. “Let your ‘Yes’ mean ‘Yes,’ and

your ‘No’ mean ‘No.’ Anything more is from the Evil One.” (Mt 5,37)

          Truthfulness therefore starts with our relationship with

God, and with how well we maintain that relationship. This is

something we have to realize more deeply, since very often we get

contented with mere human criteria for truthfulness, that are often

subjective, incomplete, imperfect, and vulnerable to be maneuvered and

manipulated.

          When we are not with God, then we can very easily play

around with the facts and data, and pass them around as truth, but

serving some self-interest instead of the common good, for example.

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE),Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

PAL plane skids off runway; several flights diverted

PLANE TROUBLE. A Philippine Airlines plane skids off the runaway at Mactan-Cebu International Airport in Lapu-Lapu City on a rainy Friday morning, Dec. 10, 2021. No one was harmed during the incident. 

AT LEAST 34 flights to and from Cebu have been diverted or cancelled after a Philippine Airlines flight from Caticlan, Aklan skidded off the runway upon arrival Friday, December 10, 2021.

The Mactan-Cebu International Airport (MCIA) confirmed this, saying the wheels of PAL flight PR 2369 veered into the grass at the side edge of the runway as it arrived from Caticlan, Aklan around 11:40 a.m. It was raining at the time.

GMR Megawide Cebu Airport Corp. spokesperson Edilyth Maribojoc said the plane encountered the issue during the landing.

All the 29 passengers and four crew members on the plane were safe and were taken to Terminal 1.

The aircraft was retrieved and cleared from the runway at 2:18 p.m., said Maribojoc. The runway was opened for operations at 2:38 p.m., she added.

PAL issued an apology over the incident.

“We apologize for the inconvenience caused by the partial blockage of the runway,” it said in a statement.

PAL said its operations teams assisted the passengers and promised to provide assistance.

The airline carrier said safety is its top priority and it is fully cooperating with the airport and aviation authorities conducting an investigation on the incident. (FVQ, JOB)

DO LIVE FOR SOMETHING!

Admittedly, this sounds like a very easy request. Already, Thomas Chalmers (1780-1847), a Scottish minister, professor of theology, political economist, and a leader of both the Church of Scotland and of the Free Church of Scotland, treated that topic already with plenty of flowering words. 

“Innumerable human beings live, move and have to pass away – free from worries but unknown and unnoticed. Incomprehensible and inscrutable: no line written and no word talk by themselves are still in the memories of their bereaved. Their gleams of light switched out in the darkness of life’s night”.

Why do people like to live like this even knowing they have to leave the platform of their lives one day? Still in mind is the one question of Brother Francis Castro of the Little Brothers of Jesus about the “burning flame inside him that makes him jump out of his bed … and hurry to work…”. The Little Brothers of Jesus congregation was established in the Philippines in 1977. It now has two communities — in the Diocese of Antipolo, northeast of Manila, and in the Quezon City district of the Archdiocese of Manila. Four brothers — three Filipinos and a native Vietnamese with French nationality — live in the communities with a French priest of the order.

Brother Francisco C. Castro, head of the congregation´s Philippine region, reflects on his experiences of quiet witnessing among poor Filipinos as part of spirituality.

In our daily life, we do have plenty of situations where we could show our real calling. Thomas Chalmers describes it as follows, “Good deeds are shining like stars from heaven”!

So, do live for something. For your beloved fellow creatures in your private surroundings as well as at your workplace. And do it for yourself. Do it now!
Kindness, helpfulness, hospitality, obligingness, ready to do favors – and our moment of virtue  will not be destroyed by time’s storm. Love and mercifulness from the bottom of our heart is shared with people who will cross our path – and nobody will forget you.

I really wish you time for this. Time for special thoughts and doings. I wish you time, but not for haste, hurry and precipitation, but time for contentment and satisfaction. I wish you time to sort out yourself everyday and every hour, simply to find strength. I wish you, my dear reader, a continued blessed Advent season.

+++

Email: doringklaus@gmail.com or follow me on Facebook, Linkedin or Twitter or visit my www.germanexpatinthephilippines.blogspot.com or www.klausdoringsclassicalmusic.blogspot.com .

Being Compassionate

 

By Engr. Carlos V. Cornejo *

* Former Chairman of the Electronics Engineering Department of Mary Our Help Technical Institute, a Don Bosco Engineering School for Women in Minglanilla, Cebu.  Teaches subjects on engineering, business, values and Catholic doctrine.  Has Masters in Business Administration from University of San Carlos and Masters in Telecommunications Engineering from University of Melbourne.  

Compassion means empathizing and caring for the unfortunate situation of others.  When we have compassion, we put ourselves in the shoes of others in their misfortunes and feel what they feel.  Compassion is supposed to not only feel pity but also to try to remedy the sufferings of others.  

When we feel compassion for a friend who has lost a loved one, we try to tell him we feel his sorrow and that we are united with him in his suffering, perhaps with a word or two of condolence.  We could not fully remedy his pain and our condolences are all we could offer. But it would be a big help to alleviate his pain.  

St. Thomas Aquinas discussed the virtue of compassion in his Summa Theologiae by asking a question: “Whether pain and sorrow are alleviated by the compassion of friends?” The question may seem odd to the modern mind because the answer seems obvious.  But St. Thomas' reasoning however is enlightening.  He offers two reasons.  First, as mentioned it is to lessen the weight of the burden of others by telling them we are united with their sufferings.  His second reason however is more positive.  He argues that because the virtue of compassion is rooted in love, when a person who is suffering witnesses the love his friends have for him, he experiences a care that he has not experienced before.  In short, it’s not just compassion but also love.  The friends of the grieving person are therefore telling him, “We love you, that’s why we feel sorry for your misfortune.”

Being compassionate also means being generous with others or being helpful especially to those who are in need materially or spiritually.  The Catholic Church lists down two kinds of compassionate actions that we could render to others that are based on Scripture.  One is corporal or bodily in nature and the other spiritual.  These are the corporal works of mercy and the spiritual works of mercy.  The corporal works of mercy are:  to feed the hungry, to give drink to the thirsty, to clothe the naked, to give shelter to travelers or homeless, to visit the sick, to visit the imprisoned, and to bury the dead.  The spiritual works of mercy are:  to instruct the ignorant (especially with religious knowledge), to counsel the doubtful (especially giving spiritual advice), to admonish the sinners (correcting others with love or practicing tough love), to bear wrongs patiently (patience with the weaknesses of others), to forgive offenses, and to pray for the living and the dead.  

Compassion seems to be the modern world’s favorite virtue.  It is the slogan of those seeking social justice.  We often hear cries of compassion towards the poor and the marginalized, the downtrodden of society, the discriminated people such as those of different skin color other than white, the bias against women in the workplace, etc. These are good causes in themselves but sometimes there is a kind of compassion related to this that is misplaced.  We refer to the kind of compassion that is used to justify abortion and euthanasia.  With abortion some groups feel compassionate towards the distraught mother who perhaps could not afford to raise the child therefore the baby ought to be aborted.  With euthanasia on the other hand, it seems to offer a stronger argument because they are trying to relieve dying people of unnecessary pain when death is inevitable.  Dr. Peter Kreeft, would counter that the life of a person is more important than our feelings of compassion for the dying.  We are not the creators of life therefore we have no authority to take it away.  We can’t act like gods.  Only God is God.  As the Muslims would say in their Shahadah, there is no god but God.  Therefore, only God can decide when to take away a person’s life.   

The joy of Advent

By Fr. Roy Cimagala *

          THAT’S what the main theme of the 3rd Sunday of Advent

reminds us of. There is joy in this season of Advent even as we

prepare ourselves for the birth of Christ with practices of penance

that are proper to this season.

          The 3rd Sunday of Advent is also called the “Gaudete”

Sunday. The expression comes from the entrance antiphon of the Mass

that cites some words of St. Paul, “Rejoice in the Lord always; again

I say, rejoice! The Lord is near.” (Phil 4,4)

          It’s important that we don’t lose sight of our need for joy

even as we go through the exercise of penance which is what is called

for in this season of Advent. And that’s because, as St. Paul said,

the Lord is near. This piece of news should gladden our heart even as

we intensify our penitential acts to prepare ourselves properly to

receive him.

          This Good News, which with faith we can consider as already

done, should remind us of the bigger picture about ourselves. We come

from God and not just from our parents. We are meant to be with God in

our definitive state of life in eternity. Our life here on earth is

simply a training and testing ground to see if what God wants us to be

is also what we want to be.

          Joy is the ideal condition for us to be in while we are here

on earth. Yes, even when we encounter difficulties and all the

negative things in life, we can and should try to live in joy, but

understanding it as a joy in and with Christ. Especially in these

pandemic times, we should avoid feeling sad, empty, helpless, or

feeling overwhelmed.

          This was what Christ promised to give us if we are united to

him, like a branch to the vine. “If you keep my commands, you will

remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain

in his love,” he said. “I have told you this so that my joy may be in

you and that your joy may be complete.” (Jn 15,10-11)

          With these words, we are clearly told where our true and

complete joy will come from. It’s from Christ, from God, and not just

from some earthly and temporal source. It’s a joy that we can always

have in any season or weather, fair or foul. It’s a joy that

transcends whatever earthly and temporal condition we may be in.

Whether we are up or down, successful or defeated and lost, we can

still have that joy.

          We need to work out our true union with Christ to have this

kind of joy. To be sure, Christ is already with us. We should just be

with him. And it’s not difficult to be with Christ, because he is

already with us always. Being the pattern of our humanity, the savior

of our damaged humanity, he cannot be absent from us. It’s rather us

who can dare to ignore and resist him. We have to be wary of that

tendency and do something about it.

          For this, we really have to activate our faith that, if

lived well, can always give us hope, in spite of the tragedies that we

can encounter in life. Faith lived well also gives us the ability to

love everybody, whatever the conditions may be. A faith-based love

makes everything beautiful and lovable, even if by worldly standards

things are bad and ugly. This is what makes us live in joy despite

whatever!

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

France under PH red list amid Omicron variant threat

By THIRD ANNE PERALTA-MALONZO, SunStar

THE Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) on Emerging Infectious Diseases has included France in the list of countries under red list amid the threat of the Omicron variant of Sars-CoV-2, which causes the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), Malacañang said on Wednesday, December 8, 2021.

Resolution 152-A issued by the IATF on December 7 stated that travelers from France, or those who have been in the territory over the past 14 days prior to arrival in the Philippines will not be allowed entry in the country from December 13 until December 15.

Passengers who have been to France within 14 days immediately preceding arrival in the Philippines and who arrive on or after 12:01 a.m. of December 10, but before 12:01 a.m. of December 13 will still be allowed entry but they are required to undergo 14-day mandatory facility-based quarantine with a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test on the seventh day, with day one being the date of their arrival.

Travelers with negative RT-PCR results are still required to complete the 14-day facility-based quarantine.

Travelers who merely transited France and did not go out from the airport are not covered by the ban but are still required to undergo quarantine protocols.

Only Filipinos returning to the country from countries under red list via government-initiated or non-government-initiated repatriations and Bayanihan Flights may be allowed entry, subject to existing testing and quarantine protocols for red list countries/territories/jurisdictions.

France joined Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Eswatini and Mozambique among the countries under red-list or with travel restrictions in the Philippines due to the Omicron variant.

The highly mutated Omicron variant (B.1.1.529) was first detected in Botswana, then in South Africa.

For all international inbound travel, testing and quarantine protocols also cover minors, regardless of their vaccination status.

Advent time to develop deep yearning for Christ

By Fr. Roy Cimagala*

          “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of

heaven suffers violence, and the violent are taking it by force.” (Mt

11,12)

          With these words, Christ is actually telling us that we have

to be forceful and determined in following the will of God who wants

us to be his image and likeness, children of his, and sharers of his

divine life.

          And the season of Advent is a good time to develop this

burning desire to be with Christ. Actually, more than just being with

Christ, we are supposed to be like Christ, to be “another Christ”

himself. That’s what God wants us to be. That’s how we become God’s

image and likeness, children of his.

          We have to develop an abiding and burning desire to fulfill

the real purpose of our life which is precisely for us to be “another

Christ.” We should be clear about this ultimate purpose of ours so we

can have the proper sense of direction and focus in our life, and the

corresponding urge to fulfill it.

          Our problem is that we often take our life’s real and

ultimate purpose for granted, preferring to sway and dance according

to the music played simply by worldly conditions. We prefer to be

guided by our senses and emotions, or by our reasoning alone as

expressed in our man-made different ideologies, philosophies, sciences

and technologies, etc.

          We ignore the guiding light of our Christian faith that

gives us not only a global picture of things but also the means to

attain our true goal of eternal life with God in heaven. We have to

remember that our Christian faith shows us the ultimate dimensions and

purpose of our life that definitely includes the spiritual and

supernatural realities.

          We often fail to realize that our earthly life is a voyage

of faith in time that is heading towards the eternity of God. This

predicament has to be resolved, and the earlier the better—of course,

with due consideration to the readiness of each one of us to

appreciate the value of our Christian faith, something that has to be

worked on.

          In this regard, the first thing to do is to look at the

example of Christ who is “the way, the truth and the life” for us. In

several occasions, Christ would say that what he was doing was in

fulfillment of what the prophets of old, the advance proclaimers of

God’s will for Christ and for all of us, said. (cfr. Mt 26,54.56; Mk

14,49; Lk 18,31; etc.)

          For this, we need to exert some forcefulness. Not

destructive violence, not pervert obsession, but a certain

forcefulness that helps us to grow properly and love God and care for

one another. That´s what we need. This is clear in our human and

natural conditions, both in our personal and social aspects. And if we

have to consider our ultimate supernatural goal, then this

forcefulness becomes even more necessary.

          We have to follow the example of Christ. In fact, we have to

assume the same mind and mission of Christ. It’s clear that Christ

already had in his mind that he has to follow and fulfill a purpose

and a mission already spelled out for him beforehand. This should also

be the mentality we ought to have. We have a purpose and mission

already spelled out for us beforehand, and we should do our best, with

God’s grace, to fulfill it.

* Chaplain Center for Industrial Technology and Enterprise (CITE), Talamban, Cebu City

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com

Teleconsultation: How to deal with health problems without going to the doctor’s clinic

 

by Faith Argosino, Manila Bulletin

•       Learn more about teleconsultation or telemedicine before you actually need it

•       Many people now ‘see’ doctors and health professionals through teleconsulation to get answers on feelings of being unwell

•       Teleconsultation starts with a message sent via viber or messenger, or an email, or a query in the hospital website

•       On the appointed day, the patient will get a message to start the video call for the teleconsultation

It’s definitely the age of online relationships and transactions — commercial, personal, and medical, all because of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

For medical needs, teleconsultation or telemedicine is what has kept people in touch with medical professionals in the last 21 months of the pandemic for all health problems including those not related to COVID-19.  It peaked and became quite standard procedure after the surge in COVID-19 cases came in August 2021 and hospital facilities were overwhelmed.

By today, more than half of the population must have experienced teleconsultation.  It starts with a mobile number or a web address where the patient books an appointment.  The patient pays through an online cash facility either through bank transfer or Gcash. On the appointed date and time, the patient gets a message or a call (depending on the medical professional’s procedures), and the teleconsultation begins.

It’s nothing new to the younger generation, talking to someone through a video conference app.  But it would feel quite awkward at first to older citizens who are not as technically-aware of how mobile gadgets operate.  The first time someone I knew did that, she confessed that it felt quite odd relating one’s health feelings to a doctor through a video teleconference app. The conversation is not always spontaneous because of signal transmission, so one has to allow the other to stop talking before saying more.

But those are minor lapses that people have hurdled to get solutions to health issues. Today, it is important that every person — young and old — get informed about how telemedicine works and where to get it.  It’s especially important when one begins to feel unwell with symptoms related to COVID-19 when one should immediately isolate to prevent the spread of the virus.

Here’s what you need to know about telemedicine:

Teleconsultation, telemedicine, teleconsult

Teleconsultation or telemedicine (or teleconsult as other medical organizations call it) refers to a consultation conducted via the internet. It is the delivery of health care services performed by medical professionals using information and communication technologies to exchange valid information for the diagnosis, treatment, or prevention of disease.

Smart gadget and internet connection

The primary things to have in order to consult a medical professional through teleconsultation are:  a smartphone that will allow video conferencing (like zoom, messenger or viber); and a good internet connection If your house has internet connection, that’s perfect.  But if not, make sure you have data to allow internet connection.

Teleconsultation

Where to get this service

The Department of Health (DOH), almost all hospitals, and many health/medical organizations offer teleconsultation.  Among them are St. Luke’s Medical Center, Makati Medical Center, and the Bayanihan E-Konsulta project of the Office of the Vice President.  It is available to COVID and non-COVID patients within Metro Manila and nearby provinces.

Department of Health

The DOH COVID-19 Hotlines 1555 and (02) 894-COVID (26843) are available nationwide for all COVID-19-related concerns since last year, including consultations with volunteer doctors from the Philippine College of Physicians and the University of the East-Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Medical Center (UERMMC).

Contact the DOH hotline numbers if you’re a COVID patient. The service is free.

In April this year, Vice President Leni Robredo’s office launched the Bayanihan E-Konsulta—a free teleconsultation service on Facebook—with the help of volunteer doctors and health professionals.

According to Bayanihan E-Kontulta’s social media page, the initiative was implemented to support medical frontliners and hospitals to combat the surge of COVID-19 cases. The program also aims to serve those who are unable to get medical care due to overcrowded hospitals.

 

COVID and non-COVID outpatients in Metro Manila and nearby provinces in the NCR Plus bubble are eligible for free medical service under the program. All you need to do is message the Bayanihan E-Kontulta page and click get started. They will set you an appointment with a physician who will advise your next steps.

The initiative has been handling mostly COVID-19 cases. From April 7 to 12, Robredo reported that they attended to 10,830 medical queries. By August, the initiative was serving 400 queries a day.

Aside from its free consultation services, the page also posts contact information and locations of different organizations and hospitals that offer the same service (some have fees, most are free). Until now the Bayanihan E-Konsulta page is still active and accepts any type of medical queries. For emergency purposes, patients are advised to call the program’s contact numbers at 0919 977 3333, 0915 777 7777, or (02) 8865-0500.

St. Luke’s Medical Center

St. Luke’s Medical Center (SLMC) offers teleconsultation services for COVID and non-COVID patients. They provide step-by-step guidelines on their website on how to get that service, including the modes of payment.

According to the guideline, a patient should call either the Global City or Quezon City hotline of St. Luke’s. An officer will take the call and help one book an appointment with a doctor. The caller will be required to provide personal details such as full name, date of birth, contact number, email address, preferred doctor, preferred date and time of appointment, and reason for teleconsultation.