While preparing for the birth of my second baby, my OB asked me if I knew a pediatrician in St…read more Luke's. I didn't so I asked her to recommend a breastfeeding advocate pediatrician for my baby. She gave me Dr. Cristina Bernardo, the head of St. Luke's Lactation Unit. Dr. Bernardo can be a dead-ringer for one of those Korean superstars. She's so pretty, I can't help but mention it in this post. But obviously, her looks is just a bonus because she's a brilliant pediatrician and a breastfeeding advocate. She's the head of the Breastfeeding Committee of the Philippine Pediatrics Society. Her clinic in St. Luke's Global is a haven for breastfeeding moms. She has her own breastfeeding room complete with comfy couches, nursing pillows, foot stools and books about breastfeeding. That's where she assisted me in my breastfeeding concerns with my newborn.

Dr. Saulog is my baby's pediatrician. She isn't the first pedia who saw him in the hospital when I…read moredelivered, though. Actually, we had another pedia before discovering her. There wasn't anything wrong with him, but I wanted a doctor strongly recommended by someone we know. So I started asking all my friends who was the pediatrician of their kids. I've found out that Dr. Saulog is the pedia of 9 out of 10 expat friends. There must be a reason, so I needed to check! What I like the most about her is that she is very patient and doesn't make you feel like she's in a hurry. That's something really important to me. I don't want a doctor to check my baby with an eye on him and the other one on the clock. To the contrary, she really cares about your concerns and listens carefully all your questions. Another thing I appreciate is that Dr. Saulog REALLY checks my baby front and back. She does all the measurements, check the ears, eyes and also auscultates the chest. It may sound obvious, but there are lots of pediatricians who barely look at the children. Money is what matters. And time is money. That's definitely not Dr. Saulog's vibe. My son gets really calm and comfortable with her. I also love the fact she's not that kind of pediatricians who love prescribing medicines. She only does it if necessary. HIGHLIGHT: Besides being very warm and extremely skilled, Dr. Saulog is text friendly! That means she always reply to SMS. If you are worried because your baby has a cold or something and need an advice, just text her and she'll answer you. TIP: Set an appointment in advance, because her clinic is always full - both filipinos and expats! She has a clinic also in Makati Med, but I usually go to St. Luke's.

If there is another place that I could call home, like a tertiary dwelling place, it would be…read morePhilippine Children's Medical Center. Not that I was a very sickly child, but I basically grew up in this hospital. My doctor is a resident in PCMC, and she's one of the most dedicated doctors I had ever met, having been very helpful, sincerely concerned, and did not raise up my fees for more than ten years. Her fees are reasonable and you can see that she's more concerned for your well-being than getting paid. True enough, there are a lot of doctors like her in PCMC, since I also consulted with some other doctors, and my sister did as well. Even if they're not the best in facilities due to some cut-off budget of the government, they try their best to make up for it through their specialties. Also, this hospital endured being demolished through a strong sense of dedication in serving children's needs. They are also off to some renovations for some additional and improved facilities.

From the owner: If your child has a digestive system, liver, or nutritional problem, a pediatric gastroenterologist…read morehas the expertise to treat your child. Digestive, liver, and nutritional problems in children often are quite different from those seen in adults. Specialized training and experience in pediatric gastroenterology are important. Pediatric gastroenterologists treat children from the newborn period through the teen years. They choose to make pediatric care the core of their medical practice, which provides extensive experience specifically in the care of infants, children, and teens.

From the moment our baby girl Garnet was born, Dr. Clemente has been by our side, guiding us…read morethrough the journey of parenthood with his expertise. As first-time parents, we had countless questions but Dr. Clemente's calm and reassuring demeanor always put us at ease. What truly sets him apart is his dedication. He introduced himself and immediately shared his contact details, letting us know that he was just a message away. Its a comfort for new parents like us. I'll never forget the time he visited my hospital room for his daily rounds but found my husband and me fast asleep. Rather than waking us, he quietly left and returned later, showing such thoughtfulness and care. We couldn't have asked for a better pediatrician for our little princess. His staff is equally amazing. always reminding us of our baby's vaccine schedule a few days in advance. Thanks to their care and support, our baby is now 13 months old, growing healthy and happy.

Dr. Clemente was my baby's first pediatrician, the one who saw him in the hospital after the…read moredelivery. My ob-gyne had recommended him because he speaks fluent Spanish - which is close to Portuguese sometimes - and also because he's very "text friendly". That means you can text him with some concern and he immediately replies giving you some advice or even prescribing something (of course, only if it's something very basic, like simethicone for infant colic). Considering our modern way of life, I believe having a doctor who replies your phone calls and text messages is something really important. I ended up seeing another pedia only because I've found out that all my Brazilian friends here take their kids to the same doctor (Dr. Vienne Saulog). However, I highly recommend Dr. Clemente. He was very reliable and clarified all my doubts and concerns about my newborn.

Great! We had challenge using our CC payments. Elise one of the PSN staff patiently waited for our…read moretransaction. Overall experience is ok.

Weird experience. St. Lukes is hit-or-miss, flip a coin. It seems only the doctors have enough…read moreEnglish skill to communicate effectively. The problem is that they trust their secretaries/nurses (same person) to communicate in texts and in person. The miscommunications are comedic but frustrating. Today, I was happy to get a walk-in consult that my other doctor required before surgery. This cardio clearance" lasted about 5 minutes and was a quick "Do you....? do you.....? do you....?" check 5 boxes and then rush me out the of the oddly small office. I lol actually thought that Dr. Greggy A. Panga was comping me for the consult (as some doctors do at St. Lukes for such short "consults"), so I was preparing to give the nurse/secretary a sizable tip, but then she said, "5,000 pesos." Suddenly her English is sharp lol I had asked her TWICE before I went in about the cost but she somehow couldn't understand and then suddenly waved me into the doctor's tiny office with hundreds of "Stich" (of cartoon "Lilo and Stich") toys covering the one basic bookshelf that took up the whole wall. After getting my free coffee and snack downstairs, I decided to ask the desk staff about the cost. They were kind but couldn't understand me, nor I them (!), as it took about 25 minutes to finally grasp her meaning after I asked her to write the costs on paper. Anyway, the nurse had told the desk staff that they had discounted it for me from 100$ to 75$. Well, they certainly made no mention of that to me in the office nor on my billing sheet. So it was apparently even more ridiculous of a price. Again, there were no prices listed anywhere (or none shown to me despite my asking several times). St. Luke's allows its doctors to charge ANY AMOUNT THEY CHOOSE! So then you're shocked after you've had one reasonable procedure/cost with one doctor only to get charged 4 times more with another doctor. Buyer beware. Check the cost first. Also, this doctor today was rather strange as he avoided looking me in the eye and then rushed through the info and rushed me out despite having no other patients waiting and it was 3:30pm (so I don't think he was late for some golf tee-time). Maybe he was planning on price-gouging me and felt guilty. Hmmm....anyway, sigh, not a good feeling, feeling ripped-off, especially at the premier medical establishment in the Philippines.