5/19/2021
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worker permanently unable to perform any work Gr. 1
7. Moderate mental disorder or moderate brain functional disturbance which limits
worker to the activities of daily living with some directed care or attendance
Gr.
6
8. Slight mental disorder or disturbance that requires little attendance or aid and
which interferes to a slight degree with the working capacity of the claimant
Gr.
10
9. Incurable imbecility Gr. 1
The use of the phrase "traumatic head injury" and a reading of the entire portion of
Sec. 32 referring to head injuries imply that the seafarer suffered from an adverse
event that caused physical harm to the skull or other parts of the head. It also implies
that only medical findings, not including psychological trauma, are cognizable as workrelated.
Petitioner did not suffer any traumatic head injury, but his alleged illness, posttraumatic stress disorder, is a kind of mental disorder. For other illnesses not listed
under Section 32, Section 32-A applies.
Section 32-A provides:
Section 32 - A. OCCUPATIONAL DISEASES
For an occupational disease and the resulting disability or death to be compensable, all
of the following conditions must be satisfied:
1. The seafarer's work must involve the risks described herein;
2. The disease was contracted as a result of the seafarer's exposure to the described
risks;
3. The disease was contracted within a period of exposure and under such other
factors necessary to contract it; and
4. There was no notorious negligence on the part of the seafarer.
There is no doubt that sexual harassment occurred on board the M/V Mineral Water,
and that petitioner was a victim of it. The question now is whether petitioner was able
to prove that his PTSD, as diagnosed by his physicians of choice, is work-related or
work-aggravated.
II
Mental disorders are generally defined as:
[A] syndrome characterized by clinically significant disturbance in an
individual's cognition, emotion regulation, or behavior that reflects a
dysfunction in the psychological, biological, or developmental processes
underlying mental functioning. Mental disorders are usually associated with
significant distress or disability in social, occupational, or other important
activities. An expectable or culturally approved response to a common
stressor or loss, such as the death of a loved one, is not a mental disorder.
Socially deviant behavior (e.g., political, religious, or sexual) and conflicts
https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/66544
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