I was watching it online today and they made a comment that was a bit disturbing to me. It was a scene when Terri Hatcher was being told by her GYN that she might be hitting menopause, and her reply was something like "Wait a minute, I need to check your credentials.. I have to make sure that you didn't get your degree from the Philippines."
This upsets me because there are a lot of medical professionals that have graduated from the Philippines. I don't think that a direct pun was necessary in this particular situation.
Feedback????
2007-10-01 00:57:51 · 30 answers · asked by crzy 2 in Travel ➔ Asia Pacific ➔ Philippines
here's the actual quote:
"can I just check those diplomas because I just want to make sure that they are not from some med school in the Philippines"
2007-10-01 05:43:55 · update #1
Please email ABC to voice out our opinions!
abc7@abc.com
2007-10-01 07:12:13 · update #2
That maybe TV but it sounds rude and offending. The producers should have thought about that.
But I know that there are people in the US and here in Canada that really discredits medical and dental graduates from the Philippines. It may have been because of several issues in the past that tarnished the credibility of the medical profession in the Philippines. Like the board exams anomaly some years ago.
Or maybe because of the competition between the US trained and Philippine trained medical professionals.
My wife and I visited a dental clinic here in Calgary once. And the Canadian dentist, while attending to my wife, was so straight in saying that Philippine trained dentist are not good. Little did he know that my wife is herself a dentist in the Philippines, upgrading her credetials towards a Canadian practice. My wife was so upset... she said she almost wanted to bite the dentist! LOL!!!
2007-10-01 02:52:22 · answer #1 · answered by otter2 4 · 4⤊ 0⤋
It's too bad it was a line from a popular TV show. I felt bad about it either. As you know, people can come up with generalizations so easily and the more discriminationg it is, the more enjoyment it would give to people of rude manners. It would seem that this line from a TV show would start a stereotype about the people getting degrees in the Philippines. It musn't be that way. Well, writers sometimes have to make some researches about what they may include in their punch lines. It's not funny at all anymore. They should have known that America is the top country to hire Filipino graduates to do their work like call center work, transcriptions, nursing, etc. Finding out will make them think we are not nothing or a so-so.
2007-10-01 04:29:04 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 0⤋
You guys have a petition?! LOL. Quit whinning and complaining. Suck it up and get over yourselves. Do you want the media to portray Filipinos as a perfect race. I know for a fact that you can buy fake diplomas and degrees in the Philippines. In fact I've had to let go of two Filipino techs for submitting fake BA degrees. What's up with that? Who you gonna create a petition for next? Family Guy? That show is loaded with inappropriate material. And that's what makes it a great show. Don't get me wrong Filipinos are great people. I just think this petition is ridiculous. If you don't like the show stop watching it. Or just watch old reruns of Leave it to Beaver or any old 40s to 50s TV show where everything is perfect. Don't ruin it for everyone else.
2016-04-06 22:16:30 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
To johnseymour, the smartest are not always necessarily the best doctors. So what if a doctor was rejected several times in US med schools and got his degree instead from another country? What matters is he passed the licensure examinations in the US to practice. And what matters more is that he is compassionate and dedicated to his craft. Filipinos are known for compassion and dedication that is why Filipino healthcare professionals are in demand not just in the US but in a lot of other countries as well.
To those who just dismissed it as just a tv show, remember that television is a very potent mass media tool. Its ok if we can assume that all who watch television are smart and intelligent enough to know what is wrong or right, what is true or false, but we can't assume that. Television executives, producers, script writers, actors should be responsible enough and not just hide behind the idea of freedom of expression because along with whatever freedom we have are social responsibilities that go along with it.
Talking about actors, I was wondering if could Teri Hatcher herself as her own person with her own social responsibility, when she read the script, couldn't she say that "no, this is wrong"? Or actors have no power whatsoever to have the script revised if they find it offensive? Or she just did not care?
2007-10-03 01:58:46 · answer #4 · answered by kit 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋
Upset? Upset is an understatement.
I am married to an American, and I am an ENGLISH teacher. I have been to the US...lived there for a time being even!...and for all I know and I dare anyone to contradict me...Filipinos are not quack doctors from quack medical schools. The ABC people would be surprised.
The US government offered openings for Filipino teachers to teach in the US with packages like tax exemptions. If ABC thinks referring to medical schools in the US, then I am afraid they have not heard of Ateneo, La Salle and Sto. Tomas.
Now who's getting diplomas where?
Really! There is no accounting for sense of humor. No wonder they are desperate!
2007-10-03 02:52:35 · answer #5 · answered by Maria Victoria L 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It maybe just a tv show but that is very offending. I don't know what the cast and directors were thinking. That is not funny and it is very demeaning. It is racist. Somebody needs to be sued so they don't do this again and learn their lesson.
I sent an email to ABC.com telling them that I didn't appreciate what they did and that they should know better. I would encourage Filipinos to do so.
You cannot joke about blacks or any other race here and say it is just a joke and the blacks and those other races would think it is funny. You are still going to be sued. Who are they gonna target next? The Indians? There are a lot of Indian doctors here too.
2007-10-01 04:31:54 · answer #6 · answered by ohioan_femme 5 · 5⤊ 0⤋
I may not be nationalistic and a fan of the filipino culture but that was FOUL and very uncalled for. USMLEs which filipino doctors take before they get to train/practice in US are supposed to assure them they have the good doctors. Coming from a country like the Philippines is no basis to discredit filipino physicians. That's totally a racist remark... something an intellectual person would never do.
2007-10-03 23:45:11 · answer #7 · answered by rogue 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Very irresponsible & they should’ve known better. For a 3rd world, developing country to produce proficient doctors who are in demand & given high regard in the medical field is something that should be recognized by these people. This is an insult not only to Filipinos but to everyone who’ve been striving hard to prove that a person can excel in his/her chosen field despite social & financial complexities.
If they think us Filipinos are that low then how come these guys think of the dumbest, uncouth, & uncivilized things to say?
“Pagmamahal at pagmamalaki sa mga Pilipino at sa Pilipinas”
2007-10-03 05:29:23 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
It was definitely uncalled for! All physicians here in the US must pass first the US boards exams to practice medicine, which means licensed Filipino MDs in the US are as competent as any other doctor from other countries, including the US. That line from the Teri Hatcher was not funny, and was really inaccurate and discriminating against Filipinos. I hope more people respond to this sort of negative insinuations and black propaganda, even if they excuse it as just a joke. I already wrote to abc to protest!
2007-10-01 07:02:48 · answer #9 · answered by Filipino MD 1 · 7⤊ 0⤋
cud not believe such a big show can be full of idiot script writer, not doing well his job. Have u done some little research for that, or just a creation of a racist. It sucks to hear white people saying such thing when in fact most of our talented and skill medical people rendering them service. I totally disagree with this, Filipinos are more talented than those red blood Americans. Know what ur talking first
2007-10-03 04:50:40 · answer #10 · answered by trey_marj 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋