Dr. Geraldine Zamora-Abrahan: Driven by healing
That Dr. Geraldine “Ging” T. Zamora-Abrahan is a strong woman who rolls with the punches is an observation that only presents itself when you get to know her. The rheumatologist and associate professor always seem to have everything under control, whether she’s meeting with patients, bonding with her family, or attending a product launch.
Since returning to the country in 2014 from her postdoctoral scientist training at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, Zamora-Abrahan has been a consultant at St. Luke’s. Two years later, in 2016, she was chosen as one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men by the Junior Chambers International Philippines for her work on lupus and other medical contributions.
In 2019, she was once more recognized by The Outstanding Women in the Nation’s Service Awards in the field of health and medicine.
How she’s able to manage her time as a consultant at St. Luke’s Department of Medicine, Philippine General Hospital (PGH), and Manila Doctors Hospital; and as associate professor at University of the Philippines (UP) Manila-College of Medicine while tending to her family composed of teen daughter Nala and cardiologist-husband Sonny Abrahan, is something she learned early on. It basically boiled down to recognizing priorities, and realizing that these priorities change as one matures.
“Priorities can and should shift quickly as necessary; we just have to know what’s more important to us at any given time,” she said.
Growing up, Zamora-Abrahan had no idea what she wanted to be. “When I got into the BS Physical Therapy course at the University of Santo Tomas, my cousin who was then a Med Tech student there, said, ‘Diyan ka na kasi mahirap makapasok sa PT.’”
Toward the end of college, her classmates cajoled her into taking the NMAT (National Medical Admission Test) and applying to med school. They all applied to UP Med, but she was the only one who got accepted. She graduated valedictorian of her medicine class.
No regrets
Zamora-Abrahan has no regrets, and now can’t imagine life without her exposure to PGH and the friends and family she has made within and through the UP community.
Rheumatology was not her first choice of specialization, either, and not even her second, said Zamora-Abrahan. “It was a very far third choice because I realized I preferred a less taxing subspecialization to train for so I could be more present in my daughter’s life and for my family.
“Rheumatology also doesn’t have many emergencies and admitted patients so I don’t sleep with the phone beside my head unlike my cardiologist-husband who can get called back to the hospital anytime.”
As a rheumatologist, Zamora-Abrahan says it’s very rewarding when she sees patients who were in pain get their lives back. There are over 100 causes of arthritis, including gout, osteoarthritis, infections, and autoimmune diseases such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and vasculitis.
“Diseases are exciting and can range from very rampant ones to rare orphan diseases. Many are hard to diagnose so there’s always this mental exercise. Many rheumatologic conditions are multisystemic (affecting many organs), and mimic other illnesses. For example, lupus, viral infections, and even cancer can present similarly. It’s crucial to arrive at the correct diagnosis so we can offer the best treatment available,” she said.
Hope for Lupus Foundation
To this end, she cofounded the Hope for Lupus (HFL) Foundation, which “envisions a world without lupus” as it aims to shed light on the disease. “As the vice president and cofounder of HFL, Doc Ging has been very active in the foundation’s projects and supportive of lupus warriors,” said founder Emmeline Aglipay-Villar.
Zamora-Abrahan went on to cowrite the comprehensive guidebook, “Living Better with Lupus,” aimed at Filipinos with lupus and their families.
When meeting with patients, she always takes the time to explain things to them. She also began recording and posting short clips for arthritis sufferers after realizing that many people go online when they want to know more about whatever ails them.
“I noticed how patients tend to ask similar things. And I realized that I can help more people understand if I record a short answer to their questions and post them online, especially on TikTok. They can replay the video so they can understand it better, and they can share it with their relatives when they’re asked about their disease. I also want to bust myths in medicine, since oftentimes believing these myths hurt the patients in the long run.”
Apart from her roles of a doctor, wife, and mother, Zamora-Abrahan is also a social media influencer. On her socials, she can be seen at product launches and social events where she cuts a stunning figure with her bright smile, enviable height, and slim frame.
She said she is very selective with brand partnerships, and dismisses offers to collaborate with medical-related products due to conflict of interest given her profession.
Meaningful work
“My public online presence only started in 2017 when Dr. Willie Ong created a Facebook page with my name on it, and said Filipinos need to learn more about rayuma. It took me several weeks to finally accept ownership of the site, but it eventually gave me immense fulfillment realizing many Filipinos here and abroad were learning from the posts.
“Unfortunately, many of my videos have been used by unscrupulous people without my permission, mostly to sell non-FDA approved products. I already filed a case with the National Bureau of Investigation on one, since people are wasting their hard-earned money on products that do not work.”
Despite this, Zamora-Abrahan truly has much to be grateful for: meaningful work, good health, a loving husband and daughter, and opportunities to step back and reenergize by going on trips with her family.
“I read somewhere that if there’s zero stress, it means you’re dead; it just puts things into perspective. Now I try to see minor stress as a motivator, as a sign that we care—that we do a good job, we finish our work, or we make sure the household is running smoothly.
“Hippocrates did say, ‘Cure sometimes, treat often, comfort always.’ I had this quote engraved and placed in the reception area of my clinic at St. Luke’s. It’s important for me that my patients have a good quality of life, and that my goals align based on their personal goals as well.”
