28/08/2025
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1A722BJQT8/?mibextid=wwXIfr
𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗: In a time when medical treatment is often associated with high costs, there is one doctor who continues to bring light to patients who cannot afford to pay. He is Dr. Robert Sy, recognized as a “humanitarian doctor,” who since 1973 has never charged a professional fee for his services. For more than five decades, he has remained true to a promise inspired by his father.
In his younger years, he once dreamed of becoming a lawyer. But there came a moment when his father changed the course of his life. Through his father’s counsel, he realized that a life dedicated to healing carried greater meaning than one spent in litigation. From that moment on, his mission became clear - to be a doctor and to serve without asking for anything in return.
And since 1973, he has kept that promise. To this day, not a single patient has been charged a professional fee.
Dr. Sy has been a steadfast partner of the Chinese General Hospital and Medical Center (CGHMC), one of the oldest hospitals in the Philippines, sustained by charitable donations. For more than half a century, the institution shaped him as a physician, while he in turn became an integral part of its history.
He served as a resident surgeon in 1977 and was later appointed chief resident in surgery in 1980. From 2005 to 2018, he became the hospital’s associate medical director, and in 2016, he was designated senior vice president for hospital infrastructure management and construction.
Alongside his medical duties, Dr. Sy also took on leadership roles within the hospital - proof of his dedication not only to patients but also to the institution and his fellow medical professionals.
Yet his mission does not end within hospital walls. Dr. Sy actively participates in medical missions, performing minor surgeries such as cyst removal for patients who cannot afford treatment. For him, there is no small or big operation, every patient deserves the same care and attention.
Through the years, he has operated on, treated, and helped thousands of people. Some were laborers, others were simple parents, and many were underprivileged individuals who, if not for him, might never have had access to medical care.
Beyond CGHMC, Dr. Sy is also active in several charitable organizations, including the Lions Club International Foundation District 301-A1, Tzu Chi Buddhist Foundation Philippines, Philippine Red Cross – Manila Chapter, University of Santo Tomas Alumni Association, Inc., Chiang Kai Shek College Alumni Association, Manila Chinese Action Team, and the Aloha Medical Mission based in Honolulu, Hawaii, where he serves as the designated Philippine chief coordinator.
With the countless patients he has operated on and helped, Dr. Sy has become more than just a doctor, he is a living symbol of hope. At a time when healthcare is often seen as a “money-making business,” he has proven that genuine compassion still exists, and that true service can thrive without expecting anything in return.
Even today, Dr. Sy stands as a model of professionalism and genuine compassion. His more than half a century of free service is living proof that the true wealth of a doctor is not measured by earnings, but by the number of lives he has saved and uplifted.
In every operation performed, in every patient helped, and in every mission of hope carried out, Dr. Sy shows that the real success of a physician lies in the smiles and comfort of those he heals, repayable only by the simplest expression of gratitude and paying forward.
Dr. Sy has not only eased the burden of costly medical care, but has also offered a wealth far greater than money - hope, life, and inspiration.
*The Tagalog version can be read in the comment section.
