PhiliPPine Journal of otolaryngology-head and neck Surgery                                                        Vol. 33 no. 2  July – december 2018

PhiliPPine Journal of otolaryngology-head and neck Surgery  6564  PhiliPPine Journal of otolaryngology-head and neck Surgery PhiliPPine Journal of otolaryngology-head and neck Surgery  6564  PhiliPPine Journal of otolaryngology-head and neck Surgery

PASSAGES

Armando T. Chiong, Sr., MD  
(1930 - 2018)

A Tribute from a Mentee to a Mentor
Joselito C. Jamir, MD

Dr. Armando T. Chiong, Sr. was fondly 
called Arman by his contemporaries. A mild-
mannered man, he could be interpreted as 
a very docile and complacent individual-- 
but for those who truly knew him, this was 
far from the truth. He may have been a very 
accommodating person, willing to listen and 
extend help to anybody, but he was never 
complacent. Too caring may be a better term 
to describe him. I still can vividly remember 
the controversy regarding the six students. 
Though his term as chair of the department 
was already over, he stood his ground and 
supported the stand of the faculty in general 
but more specifically, he was even willing to 
resign from the college if any faculty member 
of the department was removed from the 
roster because of their stand. Such was the fortitude of the man, that 
he was even willing to risk not only his security of tenure but whatever 
retirement benefits may also have accrued to him. 

Another incident that I can recall was his stand to protect the 
chairman’s prerogative regarding admission to the residency program. 
He decided to uphold and give premium to academic performance 
irrespective of the gender of the applicant. Where before females were 
only given at most two slots, he decided that as chair he had the final 
say on admission matters and gave another slot to an applicant with a 
better academic grade who incidentally was female. Thus was abolished 
the quota system for females and academic performance upheld.

He was also a man with a mission. He preferred approaching 
matters in a very organized manner. He required all services/sections 
to formulate and submit a research agenda for the section with the 
intention of having a guided/directed research effort/activity by the 
department. Thus, was born the research handbook of the department. 
This transpired when his daughter Charlotte was chief resident of the 
department. However, implementation and pursuit of the objective has 
been spotty and sporadic except for a few services.

A good family man, it can be said that he was until now the only 
one who could claim that two of his children became faculty members 

of our department. A third child is presently 
connected with another department of UPCM. 
It may be recalled that the early and untimely 
demise of another child so devastated him. 
That is the hallmark of his being a good family 
man.

He was never a flamboyant person. 
You could always expect him to attend 
departmental activities in his usual attire of 
colored pants, never denims, topped by his 
trademark long-sleeved polo shirt without a 
necktie. This getup was his invariable uniform. 
He never liked to rock the boat except to drive 
home certain principles or rules that must 
stand the test of time. Whenever such things 
did occur was when you could see him at his 
decisive best.

He was also a very approachable person. A research-oriented 
person, when requested by some residents for advice on certain 
research matters, he would gladly listen to their query and try to help 
resolve any quandary that may arise from the query. You could be sure 
that the next time he was in the department, he would be bringing 
pertinent articles and researches that could assist the resident. And 
chances were, included in the reprints were articles he had performed 
on the topic/subject when he was still with the University of Virginia 
under Prof. Fitz-Hugh, the same institution where  Dr. Victor S. Ejercito 
(the younger) had his training. Such was indicative of the high regard 
that university had for him that a simple letter of recommendation 
from him was enough to guarantee admission. How many of us can 
make the same claim? But he never mentioned or boasted about this 
matter. I hope we too can make possible to younger residents such 
easy acceptance and availability of further training abroad.

This in a nutshell was Dr. Armando Chiong, Sr. -- a quiet man who 
rarely spoke unless called for, organized and with a mission, a researcher, 
a father but most of all, a mentor worthy of emulation who always stood 
by the principles he believed in. Sir, goodbye and may your ideals be 
better appreciated and practiced by your successors.