Dr. Edgar H. Tan, a consistent honor student graduated Bachelor of Science major in Biology cum laude from Silliman University in 1982. A Faculty Silver Medal Awardee and graduated cum laude when he earned his Medical Degree from Cebu Doctors' College of Medicine in April of 1986.

He spent one year of post graduate internship at the prestigious Philippine General Hospital from May 1, 1986 to April 30, 1987 and subsequently passed his Philippine Medical Licensure Exam rank #15 in August of 1987. He pursued further training in Internal Medicine from 1989-1993 under the New York Medical College Program where he served as the Administrative Chief Medical Resident for one year. He subsequently did his Fellowship Training in Clinical/Invasive Cardiology under the consortium of Metropolitan & New York Medical College Program from 1993-1996. After his medical training in New York he practiced Internal Medicine/Invasive Cardiology in the State of South Carolina from 1996-1997 with privileges at Marlboro Park Hospital Bennettsville SC & McLeod Regional Medical Center in Florence SC. He holds an active medical license in the State of South Carolina from 1996 up to the present. He decided to come back to Cebu and practice his profession starting February 1998. His foresight at keeping his US medical license active inspite of practicing medicine outside the US has come handy for US expats currently in the Philippines wanting medical care recognized by US HMO's.

Dr. Tan is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine, American Board of Cardiovascular Disease and Philippine College of Physicians. He is also trained and certified in the field of Nuclear Cardiology. He is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians, American College of Cardiology and Philippine College of Physicians. His extensive background comes handy by making available the highest standard of US quality medical care right in the heart of Cebu City.

He is affiliated with Cebu Doctors' University Hospital, where he is currently the Section Head of Cardiology Department. He is also affiliated with UCMed and Perpetual Succour Hospital. His practice includes General Internal Medicine & Adult Clinical/Interventional Cardiology. He has admitting privileges at the University of Cebu Medical Center, Cebu Doctors' University Hospital & Perpetual Succour Hospital.

His office is located at Cebu Doctors' University Hospital Medical Arts Building 1, Suite 203-B, OsmeƱa Blvd. Cebu City Philippines. His office hours are 9am-12pm Mon-Sat. and 2pm to 5pm except Wed. and Sat. Tel: (032) 412-5136.

Email:EdgarTan62@yahoo.com or EdgarTanMD@gmail.com

Monday, November 12, 2012

Tips to Handle the Anxious Patient

As a cardiologist I get to see a lot of patients either referred or self referral complaining of palpitations & chest pains for which many will eventually turn out to be negative for heart disease. Many times I can sense and pick them up the moment they come and start talking with their typical facies, body language, and overall demeanor....call it "SIXTH SENSE" if you may! These are some of the common things most doctors must observe their patient.

1. Typically young & middle aged female and less often males and the older age group. They are unaware that it is their heightened anxiety that is triggering all the " weird " manifestations that some feel as if it is the end of the world.

2. They may or may not have been seen by other doctors who has done tons of work up  to them and all are negative. Since they have nothing else to give, they may prescribe medications like vitamin B complex or for some astute physicians may give them anxiolytic drugs.

3. I believe this has some genetic component because I still have to see an  anxious patient with no family history of anxiety disorder. It is either the father or mother or both with the same problem....believe me! Patients typically suffer unconsciously from " Don't Ask, Don't Tell " policy....so if you as the doctor won't ask for these information typically patients don't seem to find this history important.

4. These patients are the most skeptical of all, so in order to fix them you need to understand that reassurance won't cut it out unless you prove to them that you have concrete basis for doing so. In my practice, I would typically do some routine things like physical exam, an office ECG and to some extent I find it necessary to do noninvasive work up like Echocardiogram and Exercise treadmill stress test. These tests I find it necessary to convince them that there is nothing wrong with their heart otherwise your advise won't hold water at all. For the severest forms I find counseling and with the help of anxiolytics help a lot.

5. In order for you to be successful at treating them you must:  Talk, Sympathize, Understand and Intervene. A combination of all these are very effective in fixing the anxious patient. Their trust can only be heightened if you tell them how the anxious patient feel even before they start talking. More often than not they will start to realize that all the things you said are true and by this time your patient has gained your trust and are cured 80% of the time. 

I can safely say that if doctors have the right skill and approach......only a few will end up requiring the help and intervention of a psychiatrist. Successful treatment needs the combination of physician understanding, counseling with lots of reassurance and sometimes with the help of anxiolytic  medications.

Monday, June 18, 2012

Simple Tips on How to find the right doctor!

Inspite of the internet making life easier for the tech savvy to research their doctor before the visit, there is no way to replace the good old face to face interaction to see if you found the right one for you. Here are some of the tips on how to make the experience a little easier in this day and age!

1. RESEARCH: In this day where information is readily available on the internet, it would be best if you can research your own doctor as much as possible including the ailment that you think you have. This way you are armed with the information about your condition and shoot all the questions you have when you go to see your doctor. Evaluate your doctor by the way he/she answers your questions. Try to test and shoot questions that you already know what the answer is and let him/her explain. His explanation will be your best tool to evaluate your doctor. Remember that doctors are humans, we are educated to treat but just like anything else in life, we are not created equal, so do your homework.

2. KNOW YOUR RIGHTS: It is the patients' right to ask and be enlightened. Some doctors get defensive when questions are asked of them. Professionals and properly trained docs should not feel insecure and should properly answer all questions asked of them....it is the patient's right to ask and be educated.

3. SECOND OPINION MATTERS: A second opinion from another health care professional couldn't hurt especially in major health decisions. Some doctors feel bad when their patients seek another doctor for a second opinion to the point of reprimanding the patient and this to me is not only wrong but absolutely unacceptable.  Doctors are humans and therefore can sometimes make mistakes so he/she must not feel bad if their patients seek other opinions. It is not  the doctors' decision to make but yours and yours alone. You as the patient should demand the place that is rightfully yours.......that's the drivers' seat.

4. ASK AROUND: There are places where doctor's information maybe quite scarce. Try to be resourceful and ask around,  colleagues, close friends, a neighbor, or maybe from the hospital personnel where the doctor works and get their overall evaluation as to who would be the best for your condition. The information you get may not necessarily be right but, at least you can have a start off point to do further research!

5. YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR:  Personally just like anything else in life, if I need to purchase an item and I have no clue what is the best? The price is generally a good guide, the more expensive the better it must be and  while this is true to most it is not a 100% guarantee that you will like what you get.  In medicine, this dictum  has it's own validity as well, " You get what you pay for". Remember that "Health is wealth", don't settle for anything less. I remember one patient telling me this same quote and I just burst into laughter nodding in agreement.

At the end of the day, after your visit you as a patient you and you alone can judge whether your doctor is the one that will be best for you.

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Top 5 important information about Hypertension

I frequently meet patients being treated for Hypertension but inadequately informed or shall I say inadequately educated about their disease condition. This lack of important information can lead to a chain of problems like noncompliance to medications and therefore poor control of blood pressure. These are the top FIVE issues that are often overlooked by many physicians taking care of their hypertensive patients.

1. Hypertension must be understood as equal or above 140/90mmHg taken at rest. Elevated blood pressures taken during stressful situations i.e. emotional, mental or physical stress should not be qualified as these are stressors associated with a normal (physiologic) increase in BP. Normally BP returns to normal when the stress condition has been resolved.

2. Hypertension has a genetic predisposition in more than 90% of the time. In short, this is a genetic problem that we inherit from our parents and blood related relatives.

3. Since hypertension is an inherited disease, doctors can only prescribe medications to control and NOT CURE. It is in this light that your medicine therefore, needs to be taken for life in most cases. BP control is very important as it has been shown to reduce the risk of Congestive Heart Failure, Stroke and Heart Attack.

5. You must ask your doctor the most common side effect that is unique to the drug you are taking. Doctors often miss out on this information which I consider as vital. I have seen so many patients coming to see me for a simple side effect that would have prevented undue stress to them had they been forewarned. Example: Leg swelling is common for Calcium Channel Blockers, or electrolyte imbalance with diuretics and headache for ARB's (Angiotensive Receptor Blockers) not to mention cough that may affect roughly about 10% of patients taking ACE-Inhibitors.

If you have more questions about your condition feel free to ask your physician on your next visit to your doctors office.