The Research Institute for Tropical Medicine (RITM) honored two new Infectious Disease (ID) physicians in its sixth fellowship graduation ceremony held on June 22, 2018 at the Acacia Hotel, Alabang.

Medical Department Head Dr. Mari Rose de los Reyes and Training Officer Dr. Arthur Dessi Roman lauded Dr. Inofel Chin and Dr. Ailah Jalotjot for successfully completing their two-year fellowship program on adult infectious diseases and fulfilling the requirements set by the Philippine Society for Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (PSMID).

After receiving their certificates, the graduates gave short speeches about their experiences as fellows. Dr. Jalotjot shared how the fellowship was an answered prayer for her. “I’m a mother of two and RITM is near Los Baños where I come from, so [I got to live] the best of both worlds,” she said.

Dr. Chin thanked their consultants, advisers, and co-fellows for their patience and guidance throughout the training program. “RITM is the best institution for [my training],” she said. “If given the chance to train again for fellowship, I would still choose RITM.”

RITM Assistant Director Dr. Celia Carlos encouraged the graduates to pursue future careers in clinical practice, research, health administration, teaching, or public health. “Even if there are many ID physicians in Metro Manila or some other places, there is still room for another good ID physician,” she assured the graduates. She also challenged them to immerse themselves in a field where expertise is lacking, such as virology, microbiology, molecular biology, and so on.

RITM Director Dr. Socorro Lupisan congratulated the graduates and reminded them that they could always come back to RITM. “We will be here, we will see you, and we hope that you succeed in all your activities hereafter,” she told them.

During the ceremony, RITM presented a video tribute for the late Dr. Manolito C. Chua, who was one of the mentors of Dr. Chin and Dr. Jalotjot. Dr Chua was the former overall training officer of the Institute’s medical department.

New fellows on ID, namely Dr. Mitzi Rose Inting, Dr. Kriz-Ann Hernandez, and Dr. Mae Sebial, were also introduced to the guests.

Dr. de los Reyes mentioned that in accordance with PSMID, there would be many changes in the fellowship program by next year, one of which is the outcome-based training wherein the fellows’ chosen track and PSMID exam performance would be evaluated.

Since 2011, RITM has been conducting its fellowship program in order to produce physicians that are well equipped in handling infectious diseases. In total, 11 fellows have graduated from the program.

by Samantha Nicole Peña, Communication and Engagement Office Intern