stone in his urinary bladder and dark portion on his ureter, which must be
immediately operated on.
Petitioner further alleged that on 11 November 2004, he was admitted at the
Seamen’s Hospital by Dr. Pahutan,[7] his attending physician. He underwent a preoperative cardiac and pulmonary evaluation, and the final diagnosis was “Urinary
Bladder Stone.” On 12 November 2004, he was operated on his left ureter by
means of a urethrogram. On 1 December 2004, he again underwent surgery for the
exploration of his left distal ureter. On 25 January 2005, he was given a medical
certificate at the Seamen’s Hospital with the diagnosis impression
of Periureteritis (left) Distal Ureter and tuberculosis. Petitioner consulted an
independent doctor in the person of Dr. Rodrigo F. Guanlao (Dr. Guanlao), an
Internist-Cardiologist of the Philippine Heart Center. Dr. Guanlao diagnosed him
as afflicted with the following: Hypertension stage 2, TB of the
left Uretus (sic),Cystolithiasis, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome of both hands with
impediment disability Grade 1, permanent unfit for sea duty.[8]
Petitioner averred that he is entitled to medical reimbursement and sickness
allowance as his sickness was incurred during the validity of his contract of
employment and while performing his duty as Able Seaman of the vessel M/
V Pax Phoenix; he is entitled to permanent Disability Benefits under his existing
contract because his condition could have been brought about by the poor working
conditions on board the vessel, and by exposure to different chemicals and other
harmful substances in the vessel. He also claims that he is entitled to receive the
total amount of US $60,000.00 for permanent disability benefits.[9]
Specifically, petitioner prayed that the respondents be ordered to reimburse
his medical expenses and to pay him permanent disability benefits in the amount of
US $60,000.00; moral, compensatory and exemplary damages in the amount
of P500,000.00 for each of the damages claimed, as well as attorney’s fees
equivalent to ten percent (10%) of the total monetary claims.[10]
Expectedly, respondents negated petitioner’s claim. They point out that
sometime in early 2003, petitioner applied for a position in M/
V Pax Phoenix. On 13 March 2003, petitioner formalized his employment with
respondents by accomplishing the POEA Standard Employment Contract (POEASEC) which was to be effective upon petitioner’s passing the requisite
PEME. On4 July 2003, petitioner underwent a PEME and he was required to
disclose all existing or prior medical conditions. The disclosure requirement
specifically focused on 29 medical conditions including stomach pain or ulcer,