Our graduation speaker’s journey of excellence began early. A daughter of Cebu City, she consistently set the standard for academic brilliance—graduating with an elementary education as Salutatorian from Cebu Normal College (now Cebu Normal University), Valedictorian from Colegio de la Inmaculada Concepcion High School, and Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Pre-Med from Southwestern University. When she earned her Doctor of Medicine degree, she did so With Honors, later transitioning into clinical practice as the Outstanding Post-Graduate Intern at the Vicente Sotto Memorial Medical Center. As she advanced into her specialty, she proved to be an extraordinary force in the medical community. She achieved the rare and elite distinction of holding dual fellowships in two highly demanding fields: she is a Fellow of the Philippine Obstetrical and Gynecological Society and a Fellow of the Philippine College of Surgeons. Her most profound legacy is deeply intertwined with the very fabric of Xavier University. She was the Training Officer of the Dr Jose P Rizal College of Medicine (now Dr Jose P Rizal School of Medicine) for the first batch of clinical clerks in 1987, and held the same position up to 2006. For fifteen momentous years—from 2006 to 2021—she served as the vision, the heart, and the Dean of the Xavier University Dr Jose P Rizal School of Medicine. Many of the professors in the Xavier University Medical School, its basic medical education curricula, and the institutional standards of excellence were shaped under her transformative leadership. Her influence extended seamlessly into clinical training as the Program Director for Medical Training and Research at the Maria Reyna-Xavier University Hospital. Even after her historic tenure at Xavier, her mission to shape the future of medicine did not stop. Today, she continues her vital work as the pioneering Dean of the Bukidnon State University College of Medicine. Beyond the walls of academia, she is a fierce advocate for public health. She has served as the President of the Philippine Obstetrical and Gynecological Society Northern Mindanao (1999), President of the Misamis Oriental Medical Society (2005), Chairman of the Provincial Health Board of Misamis Oriental (2005- 2008), President of the Misamis Oriental Physicians’ and Nurses’ Foundation Inc (2007 and 2009), President of the Philippine College of Surgeons Northern Mindanao (2009), a Member of the Cagayan de Oro City Local Health Board (2013-2022) and the Program Director of the Cervical Cancer Prevention Network (CECAP) for Northern Mindanao (2008-2016), where she was rightfully honored as a regional CECAP Champion. Her accolades are vast, including the Outstanding Medical Alumnus award (Southwestern University, 2007), Outstanding Leadership Award (Philippine College of Surgeons Northern Mindanao, 2009), and the Most Outstanding Physician in OB-GYN (Misamis Oriental Medical Society, 2011). However, her crowning professional glory came in 2018, when she received the prestigious Philippine Medical Association-UNILAB Dr Jose Rizal Award for Academe— a national recognition reserved for the absolute pinnacle of medical educators in the Philippines. Yet, for all her towering professional achievements, perhaps her most beautiful testament to the medical profession is personal. Alongside her husband, Francisco, she has raised two daughters, Nathalie Faith and Katherine Ruth, who have both chosen to follow in her footsteps as Doctors of Medicine. She does not just teach medicine; she inspires a generational legacy of healing.
* * * * * * * In In recognition of her remarkable commitment to excellence in leadership in the field of Medicine, her unrelenting |
School of Med Commencement Speaker
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