I am Marion Aurellado Kwek, consultant at Makati Med and Asian Hospital and Medical Center. I would like to share one of my strongest memories of Dra. Tupasi. When I was a first-year resident in 2008, I was the first to present for the grand rounds of our batch. For the non-medical people in the audience, grand rounds define how the department sees you—whether you are a competent resident or a slacker. My case for presentation was an infectious case: cerebral toxoplasmosis in an HIV-infected individual. This was when HIV rates were starting to rise in the Philippines but were not yet as frequent as they are today.
The ID consultant on board the case, who was supposed to moderate for me—pangalan po natin na Dr. Abad Santos—was out of the country on the date of my presentation. Enter Dra. Tupasi, who, upon hearing the case topic only the day before from one of the consultants, enthusiastically acted as moderator for this case without having been asked. While I did my part in preparing for this case, it was her presence during my presentation that gave me much of the needed confidence—Si Dra. Tupasi ang moderator ko, siguradong wala nang kokontra. Other consultants would not have been so generous to volunteer to moderate on such short notice.
Her passion for infectious diseases and this case, which was so interesting, was one of the triggers for me to choose ID as a specialty. And here I am, already a consultant. I am only one of the many lives Dra. Tupasi has touched and influenced. Thank you, Dra. Tupasi. Rest in peace. You will be missed.
