Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/JOAN BONDOC
MANILA, Philippines– Doctors from the Philippine National Police (PNP) General Hospital are supporting the recommendation of the Philippine General Hospital to transfer senator Juan Ponce Enrile to a tertiary hospital, saying that the senator is vulnerable to life-threatening conditions.
Speaking to reporters, Chief Inspector Stanley Sevillano, Enrile’s attending physician, said the senator must be transferred to a tertiary hospital with complete facilities.
Although Enrile’s health was stable, Sevillano said that he is vulnerable to “cardiac arrest and stroke.”
“Considering his age, his health status is unpredictable,” he said.
Police Superintendent Maribe Jocson said the senator has “normal blood pressure, (is) conscious, and coherent.”
Sevillano, however, said the PNP hospital does not have the necessary equipment in case an emergency happens to Enrile.
The PNP hospital does not have a CT scan and or a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment needed during emergency cases, he said.
He mentioned that the PGH recommended the National Kidney Transplant Institute or the Philippine Heart Center in Quezon City for the senator’s hospital arrest.
He, however, said that the PNP would adhere to the Sandiganbayan’s order on where the senator should be detained.
Amid criticisms on Enrile’s continued hospital arrest in Camp Crame, the anti-graft court has ordered the PGH to evaluate the condition of Enrile and submit a report after.
The PGH doctors on Friday appeared at the Sandiganbyan and recommended that the 90-year-old senator be transferred to a better hospital.
Enrile has been under hospital arrest since July after he surrendered to police authorities in Camp Crame after he was indicted for graft and plunder charges in connection with the multi-billion pork barrel scam.
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