A heart-to-heart talk with Alice Eduardo
‘As you grow your brain power as a doctor, it’s also important to expand your heart. You become the best at your profession when you care about others more.’
Woman of Steel” Alice G. Eduardo always speaks from the heart, even if in the softest of tones.
So it wasn’t a “shock” when the graduating class of the Adult Cardiology Fellowship of the St. Luke’s Medical Center asked her to be the guest speaker in their commencement ceremony, held recently at the Novotel in Quezon City.
Life begins and ends with a heartbeat, according to a surgeon in one of my favorite medical dramas, The Resident. It is an amazing organ. It is a powerhouse.
According to online medical sources, the heart “continuously pumps oxygen and nutrient-rich blood throughout your body to sustain life. This fist-sized powerhouse beats (expands and contracts) 100,000 times per day, pumping five or six quarts of blood each minute, or about 2,000 gallons per day.”
During her commencement speech, Alice paid tribute to the graduates, first and foremost.
“May it never be lost on you that what you do matters…that YOU matter,” she said.
“The Dr. Homobono Calleja Heart and Cardio-Vascular Institute of the St. Luke’s Medical center demands a high level of academic performance and cardio-vascular medical training, which can be overwhelming to the weak of heart,” she pointed out. “Balancing course-work, hospital duties, assignments, exams, and extra-curricular activities — while maintaining a healthy work-life balance is no easy task.”
She also said that greater knowledge should be accompanied by compassion.
“As you grow your brain power as a doctor, it’s also important to expand your heart. You become the best at your profession when you care about others more. It’s about truly caring about your patients and their families and being there for them when they are at their most vulnerable,” said Alice, who saw firsthand both the importance of a doctor’s skill and heart when her father Andres was confined in hospital, where he sadly passed away in January.
The “A” of construction shared her five “Bs:” Build yourself; Build your courage; Build your relationships; Build your faith; and Build for others.
Build yourself means “pushing and crossing boundaries, hurdling obstacles, and learning from failures. Waking up every day, with a determination to be better than you were yesterday.”
She said building one’s courage “gives you the strength and the resilience to keep going, even when things get rough and tough.”
Building relationships is as valuable as building edifices, she pointed out.
“To succeed in life, it is important to build good relationships in your professional and personal life. Being open, positive, honest and sincere — help establish trust and rapport with your patients and their families. Always stay humble and grateful.”
A woman of faith, Alice said it is important for doctors to be guided by faith, whatever religion they belong to. “Universal virtues, like honesty, integrity, compassion, perseverance and humility are valuable in achieving your goal.”
And finally, what is perhaps the cornerstone of Alice’s success, “Build for others.”
“Success is meaningful when it is shared with the community. Find causes that will contribute to the well-being of others. Always help generously when you can. In the words of Winston Churchill: ‘We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give’.”
***
It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Alice is all heart.
She builds malls, power plants and bridges to generate employment, and homes and hospital wards for the less fortunate. She gave a generous donation to the PGH Medical Foundation Inc. for the renovation of PGH Bahay Silungan and the PGH’s Department of Pediatrics. She also donated the Hematology-Oncology Isolation Ward, a 320-sq.-m. pediatric ward.
She donated 100 homes for Typhoon Yolanda Victims and is an active supporter of Habitat for Humanity, which builds homes for the underprivileged. She also supports the Philippine Red Cross, Caritas Manila and the Tuloy Foundation.
Alice doesn’t only give of her talent and treasure, she gives of her time by mentoring young entrepreneurs and helping them network their budding business.
That is perhaps why a builder like her can have heart-to-heart talk with heart specialists — with both of them speaking the same heartfelt language.
Among the specialists present at the graduation ceremony were officers of St. Luke’s Medical Center, led by president and CEO, Dr. Dennis Serrano, and senior vice president and medical director, Dr. Deborah Ona; officers of the Dr. Homobono Calleja Heart and Vascular Institute, led by Dr. Edward Bengie Magsombol, and Dr. Araceli A. Panelo, chairman of the Institute for Studies on Diabetes Foundation, Inc.
You may e-mail me at [email protected]. Follow me on Instagram @joanneraeramirez
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