The Philippine Board of Orthopaedics Inc. Trustees

From the Board’s inception, five trustees ran its day-to-day affairs. With less than ten training programs all over the country, this seemed to be an ideal setup. The PBO must have done its job well because orthopaedic education flourished, with more training programs arising in the country’s many regions. With the increase in demands, starting from the late eighties to its current state, twelve trustees compose the Board of Trustees. There is an urgency to increase this number of Trustees further. As of this golden year, with twenty-two programs and with six more up for visits and provisional accreditation, the Trustees find themselves multi-tasking and getting overwhelmed with the tasks at hand. There is, indeed, a much-needed review of the current by-laws of the organization.

Five or twenty Trustees, the Board, is mandated as the official accrediting and examining arm of the Philippine Orthopaedic Association, Inc. (POA). This is stated in the current constitution and by-laws as approved in 2019. Administrative functions of the Board are handled by the issuance of resolutions and rules of procedures so long as they do not contradict the constitution and by-laws. With the participation of several Past Chairpersons of the Board, the Board of Trustees has come up with the “Manual of Policies and Procedures for Orthopaedic Residency Education,” more informally referred to as the Greenbook. Currently, we are using the 4th edition (2017) of this Greenbook, with a 5th edition in the edit and revisions stage.

The Board of Trustees refers to other Specialty and Sub-specialty Boards as standards of reference in terms of good practice and governance. We also work with the Surgical Specialty Boards for standardization and updating. Adaptive changes, particularly during the pandemic years, were necessary to survive the training standards and the continuance of training programs despite the pandemic’s severe limitations. The Philippine Professional Regulatory Commission, the Department of Health, and the Philippine College of Surgeons are important agencies with which the Board of Trustees works. During this pandemic, the Philippine Medical Association and the Interagency Task Force (IATF) on Covid19 also influence many of the decision-making of the Board. Because of this, the Board’s decisions are very grounded on acceptable norms of engagement.

Future work lies on the mandate of being the examining and accrediting arm of the POA. Soon, the future Board may be augmented by Trustees that are experts in pedagogy and orthopaedic education. We also see a separation of these two mandates. A separate Examination and Accreditation arms are not such a far-fetched idea. Whatever the task of the Board of Trustees is always and shall always be for the betterment of orthopaedic education.

BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2025

Chairman

DR. ADRIAN B. CATBAGAN

Dr. Adrian B. Catbagan is an orthopaedic spine surgeon and the elected Chairman of the Philippine Board of Orthopaedics (PBO) for 2025. He joined the Board in 2022 as Trustee-at-Large, served as a member of the Examinations Committee in the same year, and later became its Head from 2023 to 2024. In the academe, he is an Associate Professor VII at the University of the Philippines College of Medicine. He also serves as Medical Specialist III, part-time, at the Philippine General Hospital (PGH), where he is concurrently the Chief of the Spine Section.

Vice-Chairman

DR. RICHARD V. CONDOR

Dr. Richard V. Condor is a board certified, fellowship-trained orthopedic spine surgeon with a special interest in endoscopic spine surgery, minimally invasive spine surgery, and scoliosis surgery. Currently serving as Spine Section Head at the University of Cebu Medical Center, practicing in multiple hospitals across Cebu. Active in academic and organizational leadership as the Vice President of the Philippine Spine Society and Vice-Chair and Head of Accreditation Committee for the Philippine Board of Orthopaedics.

Secretary

DR. LENDELL JOHN Z. GATCHALIAN

Dr. Lendell John Z. Gatchalian is a Board-certified orthopedic surgeon with special interest in advanced wound care. He is presently the Vice President of the Philippine Orthopedic Wound Care and Diabetic Limb Society. He is also the Chapter President of the POA – South Luzon Chapter. He holds three committees for 2025. He is the Head of the Website, Greenbook 5th Edition Ad Hoc Committees and a member of the Examination Committee. He is also a faculty of the Adventist University of the Philippines, College of Medicine since 2018.

Treasurer

DR. EDWARD A. SARROSA

Dr. Edward A. Sarrosa currently serves as the Treasurer of the Philippine Board of Orthopaedics (PBO). He heads the PBO e-Logbook Committee and is an active member of the Accreditation Committee. He holds the position of Medical Specialist IV at the Philippine Orthopedic Center (POC) and serves as a consultant at Makati Medical Center (MMC), St. Luke’s Medical Center (SLMC), and Asian Hospital & Medical Center.

Dr. Sarrosa was the President of the Philippine Orthopaedic Association (POA) in 2007. His subspecialties include Shoulder, Sports Medicine, and Trauma. He completed fellowship training in arthroscopy and sports medicine in Japan and Canada.

Trustee

DR. JAMES C. PAGGAO

Dr. James C. Paggao is a senior member of the Philippine Board of Orthopaedics (PBO). He joined the Board in 2000 and served as PBO Chair in 2007. Under his leadership, the PBO Mission and Vision were crafted, providing lasting direction for the organization. He was instrumental in the successful PBO Golden Anniversary Celebration in 2022 and has served as Chair of the Awards Committee from 2015 to the present. Dr. Paggao is a retired and visiting consultant at the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center (BGHMC) and is also affiliated with St. Louis University Hospital. His field of specialization is Pediatric Orthopaedics.

Trustee

DR. JUSTINIANO S. BAI

Dr. Justiniano S. Bai is a board certified, fellowship trained Hand and Microsurgery Orthopedic Surgeon. He presently heads the Philippine Board of Orthopedics’ Examination committee and is also a member of the PBO Website Committee. He is an active consultant in the Department of Orthopedics of Baguio General Hospital.

Trustee

DR. HENRY P. TUPAS

Dr. Henry P. Tupas was the Chapter President of POA West Visayas in 2011. He is affiliated with the College of Medicine, West Visayas State University Medical Center, Qualimed Hospital in Iloilo, St Paul’s Hospital, and Iloilo Mission Hospital. He is a member of the Philippine Orthopaedic Trauma Society.  He presently heads the NORAP Committee of the PBO.

Trustee

DR. ROSALYN P. FLORES

Dr. Rosalyn P. Flores is a board-certified, fellowship trained Pediatric Orthopaedic and Ilizarov and Limb Deformity Surgeon.  She teaches Anatomy, Surgery, and Orthopaedics at the UST-Faculty of Medicine and Surgery.  She is affiliated with University of Sto Tomas Hospital, UP-Philippine General Hospital, Rizal Medical Center, and St. Luke’s Medical Center – Global City.  She is the current President of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of the Philippines President since November 2023.

Trustee for Luzon

DR. ARNALDO S. FAVILA JR.

Dr. Arnaldo S. Favila is a board-certified and fellowship trained Orthopedic Spine Surgeon who is also the President of the Palawan Medical Society. He is the present PBO Luzon Representative.  He is affiliated with Adventist Hospital Palawan, PMMGMP- Cooperative Hospital and ACE Medical Center, Palawan.

Trustee for Visayas

DR. HAREM P. DEIPARINE

Dr. Harem P. Deiparine is the present PBO Visayas Representative. He is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon and is an active consultant of Vicente Sotto Medical Center in Cebu.

Trustee for Mindanao

DR. LEONARD T. KHU

Dr. Leonard T. Khu is a board-certified and fellowship-trained Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon.  He was the past Chapter President of the POA-North Mindanao Chapter in 2009.  He is an active consultant of the Northern Mindanao Medical Center in Cagayan de Oro.  He is the present PBO Mindanao Representative.

Ex-officio

DR. MARIA ADELWISA G. BELEN

Dr. Maria Adelwisa G. Belen was the past-chairperson of the 2024 PBO Board of Trustees. She joined the PBO in 2019 and served as the Treasurer for 2020 and 2021. She was the secretary and Head of the Accreditation Committee from 2022 to 2023. She is the present Country Council Chair of AOTrauma Philippines (2024-2027). She is an active consultant of St. Luke’s Medical Center (SLMC) QC and BGC and a visiting consultant at Jose R. Reyes Memorial Medical Center (JRRMMC). She specializes in Trauma (Pelvis/ Acetabulum).