QuestionsQuestions (Act No. 2493)
Act No. 2493 created the Board for the Examination of Physicians, and the Board consists of three physicians appointed by the Secretary of the Interior.
Members must be duly authorized to practice medicine in the Philippines, be graduates of a legally chartered and reputable medical college or school, and hold the degree of doctor or licentiate of medicine.
No. The law provides that no member of the faculty of any school/college/university where medicine is taught shall be eligible for appointment.
Members hold office for three consecutive years. The first appointees were assigned staggered terms of one, two, and three years respectively, as specified in their appointment certificates.
They must swear to faithfully perform their duties, account for monies, bear true faith and allegiance, and perform without mental reservation. The oath is recorded and filed in the central office of the Bureau of Health.
The Board meets in Manila on the second Tuesdays of January, April, July, and October each year, after giving at least thirty days’ written or printed notice to candidates.
The examination fee is fifty pesos per candidate for each examination. Registration requires payment of ten pesos to the proper provincial treasury.
Their repeal is effective December 31, 1919.
A person must first obtain the proper certificate of registration issued by the Board and have it registered in the office of the register of deeds of the city of Manila or the province where the person desires to practice, with payment of the required fee.
Treating, operating upon, prescribing, or advising for any human ailment or disease for compensation (direct or indirect), and representing oneself via signs/cards/advertisements as a physician/surgeon/specialist, are considered practicing medicine under the Act.
Exemptions include legitimate dentistry and massage, opticians limited to fitting/selling glasses, religious consolation/assistance, emergency medical services, US Army/US Navy/US Public Health Service medical officers, foreign physicians in consultation, and medical students practicing under the direct supervision of a duly registered medical man.
On and after January 1, 1915, it becomes unlawful to practice as a nurse in any branch without obtaining the proper certificate of registration.
Applicants must be at least 20 years old, submit evidence of good physical health and good moral character, and be graduates of a recognized school of nursing with entrance requirements equal to intermediate grades of the public school, offering a two and a half year hospital instruction program with specified clinical/departmental exposure.
No second-class or unregistered nurse (or other person not a registered first-class nurse) may wear the nurse’s uniform.
Upon conviction, the violator is punished by a fine of not more than 300 pesos or imprisonment for not more than 90 days, or both, at the discretion of the court.
A person may not advertise as a doctor/physician/surgeon/specialist or prefix/append “Dr.,” “M.D.,” or “M.B.” unless he has been conferred the right by a legally empowered institution; nor may anyone assume such titles with intent to falsely claim a medical degree.