5/19/2021 E-Library - Information At Your Fingertips: Printer Friendly Court disregarded the belated medical assessment containing the partial disability grading, and declared that the seafarer suffered permanent and total disability. Undoubtedly, he was found unfit to work by the companydesignated physician and the seafarer's doctor of choice. In the case at bench, the company-designated physicians issued two medical reports, both dated March 27, 2012. The disability report, on one hand, stated that Olidana only suffered loss of grasping power for small objects between the fold of the finger of one hand, which was a Grade 10 disability or a partial disability rating. The company-designated physicians' final medical report, on the other hand, recommended that Olidana was unfit for duty. Glaringly, these two medical reports contradicted each other. As observed in Maunlad Trans, Inc. v. Camoral, it cannot be conclusively stated that a seafarer merely suffered a partial permanent disability when, at the same time, he was declared unfit for duty. A partial disability, which signifies a continuing capacity to perform his customary tasks, is starkly incompatible with the finding that a seafarer is unfit for duty. Evidently, the partial disability rating provided by the company-designated physician's disability report could not be given weight as its credibility has been tarnished by a contrary report issued by the same doctors on the same date. Jebsens did not even bother to validly explain the reports' obvious discrepancies. Interestingly, the final medical report, which stated that Olidana was unfit for duty, concurred with Dr. Runas' medical evaluation report. The latter report stated that Olidana was physically unfit to continue with his job as a seaman or cook, or in whatever capacity, due to his permanent disability. Between the Grade 10 disability rating, arising from the contradicted disability report, and the declaration of unfitness for duty, as noted in the substantiated final medical report, the Court is more inclined to uphold that Olidana suffered from a permanent total disability as he is not fit for duty. xxxx In addition, it must be reiterated that the company-designated physicians' disability report should be set aside for being contradictory. Necessarily, it cannot be said that the companydesignated physicians issued a valid and final medical assessment within the 120-day or 240-day period. The Court in Kestrel Shipping Co., Inc. v. Munar held that the declaration by the company-designated physician is an obligation, the abdication of which transforms the temporary total disability to permanent total disability, regardless of the disability grade x x x.[42] (Emphasis and underscoring supplied; citations omitted) https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/66276 7/11