Saturday, August 04, 2007 Photo journalist hurt in ‘freak’ accident By Gil Alfredo B. Severino
PHOTOJOURNALIST Jiovanni Espartero of the Visayan Daily Headlines was found full of blood coming from left portion of his head and lying unconscious within the vicinity of Cosmos Bottling Co.
Espartero was allegedly riding a motorcycle when the accident happened but results of the CT Scan puzzled doctors.
Espartero was then rushed to Corazon L. Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH) where doctors said he was comatose resulting from a "freakish" internal hemorrhage.
Attending physician Dr. Vinelyn Sayapan clarified that Espartero's skull suffered no contusion at all but inside, the left side of his brain was hemorrhaging.
Sayapan explained therefore "That the mechanism of the accident impact is very difficult to picture out. No injury in the head but the brain moved to the right which indicated extreme impact."
Bacolod City Medico-Legal Eli Cong after looking at the CT Scan result and the picture of Espartero presumed that the patient's left portion of the head almost in the left eye, hit a solid sharp object.
"This could be the reason why despite the wearing of a helmet, his head could have hit a sharp object. We cannot conclude that he was side swiped by an incoming vehicle," Cong said.
Cong ruled out the involvement of foul play unless credible witnesses issue sworn statements.
Meanwhile, Espartero's wife, Rose, lamented that her husband badly needed an intensive care unit (ICU) accommodation which only a private hospital can offer.
Rose however said because of financial difficulty, they have to contend with what CLMMRH can offer.
Rose estimated that they must initially shell out P15,000 to be accommodated in a private hospital ICU, saying, "The poor die faster in this system of ours."
Rose recalled Espartero's advocacy as an active member of a citizens' group against corruption, the Hospital Watch, adding, "If only this CLMMRH is not corruption ridden, the situation inside could not have been this awry where I can see, my husband could only survive by a miracle."
