3/25/2021 E-Library - Information At Your Fingertips: Printer Friendly accreditation requirement, and even if there is, this would be absurd and contrary to public policy as its effect will deny and deprive the ailing seaman of his basic right to seek immediate medical attention from any competent physician. The lack of POEA accreditation of a physician who actually treated the ailing seaman does not render the findings of such physician (declaring the seaman permanently disabled) less authoritative or credible. To our mind, it is the competence of the attending physician, not the POEA accreditation, that determines the true health status of the patient-seaman, which in this instant case, is [sic] the attending physicians from the Manila Doctors Hospital. As to the award of the balance of wages, this Court is inclined not to disturb the factual findings of the NLRC. The failure of the petitioners to present a strong and credible evidence supporting the fact of alleged payment of the balance of sickness justifies the award of such claim. The long standing doctrine in labor cases that "in case of doubt, the doubt is resolved in favor of labor" applies. For there are indications that the evidence presented by petitioners appears to be of dubious origin as private respondent challenged the petitioners to present the original copy of the quitclaim and the vouchers in a motion demanding from petitioners to produce the original copy of those documents purporting to show that he had received the alleged sum of P39,803.30, which allegedly shows the payment of the balance of his sickness wages. This motion was vehemently opposed by petitioners. To our mind, such opposition only created more doubts and eroded the veracity and credence of petitioners' documentary evidence. As to the award of attorney's fees, the same is justified by the fact that private respondent actually hired the services of a lawyer to vindicate his right to claim for his disability benefit which is being arbitrarily denied to him by petitioners. Had it not been for the arbitrary denial of petitioners, private respondent could not have been compelled to hire the services of a lawyer to pursue his claims in court, for which he is presumed to have incurred costs. With respect to private respondent's claim for damages, this Court finds that the NLRC overlooked the attendance of negligence on the part of petitioners in their failure to provide immediate medical attention to private respondent. It further appears that negligence not only exists but was deliberately perpetrated by petitioners by its arbitrary refusal to commit the ailing private respondent to a hospital in New Zealand or at any nearest port deprived of his right to immediate medical attention by petitioners, which resulted to the serious deterioration of his health that caused his permanent partial disability. Such deprivation of immediate medical attention appears deliberate by the clear manifestation from petitioners' own words which states that, "the proposition of the complainant that respondents should have taken the complainant to the nearest port of New Zealand is easier said than done. It is worthy to note that deviation from the route of the vessel will definitely result to loss of a fortune in dollars not only to the respondents but likewise to the owners of the cargoes being shipped by the https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/50003 6/16