“I can control my destiny, but not my fate. Destiny means there are opportunities to turn right or left, but fate is a one-way street. I believe we all have the choice as to whether we fulfill our destiny, but our fate is sealed.”—
Paolo Coelho
AS far as her philosophy in life is concerned, Dr. Zenaida Javier-Uy, the chief medical officer of the Cardinal Santos Medical Center, has been, perhaps, expressed best by Brazilian writer Paolo Coelho. Initially, she did not plan to become a doctor, but planned to join her sister in Germany, who was working as a nurse.
But fate had other plans for her. She pursued her medical degree at the University of the East Ramon Magsaysay Medical Center and, as they say, the rest is history.
“I’ve never planned my life. Now that I have grown older and wiser, I firmly believe in that God helped me,” Uy said in an interview with the BusinessMirror in her office at the Cardinal Santos Medical Center.
“I never resist when the Lord leads the way and I just follow,” Uy said.
Thus, going with the flow, so to speak, in a Coelhoesque manner, she enrolled in the MBA Health program at the Ateneo Professional Schools to give her newer things to learn for her professional growth. Interestingly, enrolling in the graduate school program also proved to be a good outlet to relieve her of the problems in her personal life.
Uy admitted that studying in the program was not a walk in the park. The readings required in the classes were very heavy and more challenging since she did not have a business background.
Nevertheless, Uy adjusted to the rigorous study routine in the Health MBA program and managed to finish it. The program gave Uy a new perspective in the management of a health organization.
“That was fun for me because I learned a lot of new things in the Health MBA program. I always tell people that knowledge is a treasure,” Uy said.
Later, she was not aware that Cardinal Santos was interested to hire her as a medical director, and she accepted the job.
“It was one of the happiest days of my life,” Uy beams.
Uy said the new post was an excellent journey for her and she looked forward to working with Cardinal Santos. One more reason she accepted the offer was that all her children were grown up.
As a mentor, Uy always told medical students that being a doctor was a blessing from God. She always reminded them that doctors should develop a strong spiritual foundation to be able to serve their patients.
“I always emphasize that our profession is not aimed to develop wealth. I tell them that, if they want to be wealthy, they should join the corporate world,” she said.
“Sometimes, you veer away from the mission of your profession – saving lives – because you are blinded by materialism,” she said.
As far as her children are concerned, the caring and doting mother always advise them not to live under her shadow.
“I always ask them to pursue whatever they want to accomplish in life,” Uy said.