Sunday, May 04, 2008 Cabaero: Legislating on cosmetic surgery By Nini B. Cabaero Beyond 30
THERE is this harebrained proposal by a member of the House of Representatives for the body to conduct an inquiry into the botched penile enlargement surgery on a Filipino-American.
The proposal, according to a Friday late night television news report, was for the House to look into the standards in the conduct of cosmetic surgery procedures such as a phalloplasty.
Interest in such surgery came after a naturalized American citizen filed a case against a popular medical center in the Philippines because he was not satisfied with the penile enlargement procedure he had received. Phalloplasty is a medical surgery that seeks to modify the male sexual organ.
Louem Martinez, 34, a naturalized American citizen who is currently engaged to a Filipina, has filed a P26-million damage suit and criminal cases for reckless imprudence resulting in serious physical injury and obstruction of justice against cosmetic surgeons Manny and Pie Calayan over a phalloplasty surgery. The couple owns and operates the Calayan Surgicenter in Legaspi Village, Makati.
Martinez said in his complaint filed before the Makati City Prosecutor’s Office that he is now “physically incapacitated” and “mentally devastated” because of constant pain in his deformed sexual organ and scrotum.
The Calayans, in their reply, said Martinez could have violated the doctor's order for him to abstain from having sex within a month after his penile operation.
An investigation is within the domain of the House of Representatives if it wishes to find areas needing legislation. In this case, however, the proposed investigation is not one that could be called as urgent or for the benefit of the general public.
According to the news report, the proposal wants to study the cosmetic surgery field in order to cover it with whatever necessary legislation. It noted that people have started availing themselves of the services of these medical centers.
The number of those seeking alterations or enhancements of their God-given attributes cannot be described as constituting many. The costs of undergoing such procedures can be limiting for the majority.
And, in terms of priorities, such a House investigation does not qualify as urgent especially in these times of pressing issues such as putting food on the table and seeking an increase in wages.
With the way past investigations have turned out, there is nothing to assure constituents that the use of the legislators' time and resources in this case would result in something beneficial.
With concerns nagging society nowadays, an investigation such as the one proposed for the House over the Calayan case should be last on the list.
