CEBU CITY, Philippines - The Cebu City Prosecutor’s Office dismissed the case for negligence resulting to homicide filed by a husband against seven doctors at Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center (VSMMC).Cebu City Prosecutor Nicholas Sellon dismissed the case against doctors Clarita Alcantara, Elaine Monton, Jasmine Capunan, Helen Amorin, Marlowe Parreno and PGIs Jomar Delena and Jeanylove Garcia after concluding that there was no negligence on their part in the death of Clarissa Esguerra on March 2, 2007. Joselesis Esguerra, Clarissa’s husband, sued the seven doctors on Aug. 24 saying his wife died due to complications after she was subjected to a Caesarian Section at the VSMMC. Esguerra has filed a motion for reconsideration on the dismissal. Esguerra filed the case on Aug. 26, 2007, six months after his wife’s death. He claimed that after his wife’s Caesarian delivery of their second child on Feb. 24, 2007, she suffered abdominal distention. For a couple of days, his wife complained of severe pain in the stomach and vomiting. Clarissa had another operation on Feb. 27. After the operation, the husband noted that his wife was feverish and continued to vomit. After her death on March 2, 2007, the doctors of VSMMC who operated on her declared the cause of death as “septic shock” or infection of the blood. The result of the autopsy report taken by the PNP Crime Laboratory showed that Clarissa died of “septic shock secondary to perforated viscus”. There was perforation—a rupture in a body part caused especially by accident or disease—observed, with stitching on two different areas of the large intestine. Esguerra stated that the attending physicians for the two operations of his wife did not divulge that there was a tear in the large intestine. He said that due to the perforated viscus, his wife suffered “septic shock” which caused fecal contamination leading to the death of his wife. The prosecutor said it cannot be claimed that the doctors neglected their duties toward Esguerra’s wife when records show she was attended to by four major departments of the VSMMC. He added that Dr. Monton also made a personal request for free antibiotics from a foundation for the patient because Esguerra often failed to buy the prescribed antibiotics. The doctors suspected that the lung infection of the patient was not controlled because of irregular dosages of antibiotics. | 
