5/28/2020 E-Library - Information At Your Fingertips: Printer Friendly findings and instead upheld the one made by the company-designated physician, to wit: Considering the amount of time and effort the company-designated physician gave to monitor and treat the condition of the private respondent for several months, his medical findings and evaluation are more worthy of credence than that of the independent physician who merely treated and examined private respondent once. The familiarity gained by the companydesignated physician about the health condition of the private respondent, to us, made him able to arrive at a more accurate prognosis of the private respondent’s injury as compared to the private physician who merely treated the private respondent once after the lapse of two (2) years from the date of his injury. Moreover, the company-designated physician in this case is an orthopedic surgeon. Therefore, he has the proper training and qualification to treat and evaluate the fracture sustained by the private respondent as compared to Dr. Manuel C. Jacinto, the independent physician, who seems to be a general practitioner with no specific field of specialization.[16] The CA brushed aside Belmonte’s argument that his non-deployment by CFSCMI after he has been declared fit to work is an indication that he has not been really cured of his injury. Whether to renew the contract of a seafarer is exclusively within the prerogative of the employer. The seafarer cannot force the employer to re-employ him as a matter of right just because he has already been extended a contract before. The CA also observed that in filing the complaint, Belmonte has no medical documents to back up his claim since it was still after almost two months from January 26, 2011 or on March 14, 2011 when Belmonte thought of consulting a private doctor to corroborate his claim that he is permanently incapacitated to resume sea duties. But while Belmonte claims that he continues to suffer from the symptoms of his injury, the records are bereft of any documentary evidence that would prove that such was his condition before the filing of the complaint. Upset by the foregoing disquisition, Belmonte moved for reconsideration but it was denied; hence, the present petition for review on certiorari. The Issue The core issue for our resolution is whether or not the CA erred in reinstating the findings of the LA that Belmonte is not entitled to receive permanent total disability benefits. Ruling of the Court The petition is bereft of merit. The question of Belmonte’s entitlement to permanent total disability benefits, while basically a question of law apposite for a Rule 45 review, nevertheless hinges for its resolution on a factual issue, the question of whether the medical findings of the private doctor should be given more weight than the findings of the companydesignated physician. Moreover, the inconsistent rulings of the LA and the CA, on the elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/58640 3/9