Asuncion K. Raymundo, PhD
Professor Emeritus, University of the Philippines Los Baños
Academician, National Academy of Science and Technology
^{*Based on a speech delivered as Plenary Session Speaker during the PSM Visayas Chapter 2013 Annual Convention in Iloilo City}

A prominent author once wrote “knowing our own history, or the history of our culture, is important because it helps us to know who we are while molding the future. Being familiar with what went on before gives us the ability to not only learn from past mistakes, but from the successes as well”. Those words reverberate in our consciousness as we continue in our quest towards expanding the reaches of our society while molding the very fabric, its membership, that makes it so successful. I thought, therefore, that it would seemed appropriate to give you a glimpse, from my own perspective, of the past of PSM and PAM and their influence on Philippine microbiology and on us as microbiologists.

An excellent video presentation of an abridged history of PSM, now part of the PSM website, was made by former President Dr. Jessica Simbahan during the 40th anniversary celebration. I now wish to share my personal experiences and insights as a founder, an officer in various positions, President of PSM, Chair of the Council of Regents and Accreditation Committee of the Philippine Academy of Microbiology (PAM).

I was one of the 20 signatories who founded the Philippine Society for Microbiology in1971. I was very young then having just returned from the University of Hawaii where I received a Master ¬¬of Science degree with specialization in Phytobacteriology. I was invited by themore senior microbiologists of the then UP College of Agriculture to join them in forming an association of microbiologists. At that time, the Los Baños campus has yet to become the autonomous component university that we know today as UPLB. The colleges at Los Banos were referred to as UP College of Agriculture (UPCA) and UP College of Forestry (UPCF).

Who were the founders that molded the minds of many of present-day microbiologists? Where are they now?

I was embarking on my career at the time I became one of the founders of PSM. Dr. Santiago Tilo, a soil microbiologist who has passed away and also one of the founders, was my supervisor. The older batches of microbiologists will certainly remember Prof. William Fernandez, who also passed away a few years back, considered as the Father of Philippine Microbiology having influenced many of us, the older generation of microbiologists that included Dr. Ida Fandialan Dalmacio, also one of the founders. The three of us were the founding faculty members of the Microbiology Unit of the then Department of Life Sciences, now the Institute of Biological Sciences (IBS) at UPLB. Hundreds of microbiologists graduated from our unit. Most of them stayed in the country while a few found greener pastures abroad. Dr. Dalmacio, a former member of the UP Board of Regents, former DOST PCASTRD Director, and a food microbiologist, was the youngest of the founders and the only one who has not retired. Dr. Godofredo Calleja, a yeast expert, who was at UPLB at the time PSM was founded but subsequently transferred to UP Diliman, was the first president. He is now based in Canada.

The following founders have passed away: Prof. Romeo Alicbusan of the Microbiology Section of the then Department of Plant Pathology, who was an Industrial Microbiologist and a pioneer of the mushroom growing industry; Dr. Teofilo Dulay, a Dairy Microbiologist from the Dairy Training Research Institute of UPLB; and Dr. Julia Pantastico, a Phycologist.

The other founders who have retired but who in one way or another found other meaningful commitments are: Dr. Ruben Aspiras, a Soil Microbiologist who established the field of Microbial Ecology and a former UPLB Chancellor, has retired in the US; Dr. Ireneo Manguiat and Dr. Erlinda Paterno are the other soil microbiologist-founders who are also retired; Dr. Macrina T. Zafaralla, a Phycologist, I and Dr. Paterno are Professor Emeriti of UPLB who are still active in either teaching, research or graduate student advisorship; Dr. Avelina Quiaoit Paulsen, a Virologist who went back to Kansas State University with her American husband; Dr. Clara Davide and Iluminada Gomez, both Dairy Microbiologists; Dr. Lina Ilag, a Plant Pathologist; and Dr. Ireneo J. Dogma Jr., a Mycologist who is still teaching at the Graduate School of the University of Santo Tomas. Prof. Lourdes Resubal, a Dairy Microbiologist, Dr. Priscilla Sanchez, a Food Microbiologist, and I are still active in PSM activities. One founder whose whereabouts I am not certain is Zenaida Antonio, who was with the Department of Plant Pathology in 1971.

During the early years of its existence, the society was beset with meager resources. Though being an officer is indeed an honor, it was a case of having to pass the hat to pay for snacks and also a rather amusing, when one reminisces, situation of having to spend for your own bus fares to Manila meetings. Nonetheless, ever so faithful, I must grant the old ones, we attended annual conventions religiously, presented oral and poster papers, interacted with each other, convinced the young ones to join the society, but first and foremost pursued a career in Microbiology.

During those times, PSM conventions were held in university facilities or in auditoriums of companies with employees who are society members. Nostalgically, the venues frequented for annual meetings were the Plant Pathology Lecture Hall and the Forestry Auditorium at UPLB. The use of these venues has mostly been invariably for free.

In 1973, the BS Biology major in Microbiology program was instituted at the then newly- established autonomous component university that is now of UPLB. Previously, those majoring in Microbiology received the BS in Agriculture (BSA) degree, major in Plant Pathology (Microbiology). Mine was BSA, major in Soils (Soil Microbiology).

I missed the activities of PSM between 1974 and 1979 as I was at the University of Illinois, USA pursuing my PhD and at the same time raising a family. During those years, the BS Biology major in Microbiology program attracted an increasing number of students many of whom became members of PSM after graduation. That they joined the microbiology workforce and took on the responsibility of guiding the careers of aspiring microbiologists would no doubt be a certainty. From the original 20 founders, the membership grew to about 7000 at the present time. More importantly, during those years the society attracted membership from the industry, research institutions and the medical profession, which proved to be a ground-breaking development that has brought benefits to the membership. Most PSM members during the early years were from academic institutions.

The first annual convention of PSM was held on March 4, 1972 at UPLB. Thereafter, the venue location alternated between Manila and Los Baños until 1989 when the society selected Baguio during the term of Prof. Lourdes Resubal. In ensuing years, other places outside of Manila and Los Baños were chosen; Iloilo in the Visayas in 1994 during my term and in Cagayan de Oro in Northern Mindanao in 1996 under the presidency of Dr. Ireneo Manguiat. The selection of a venue outside of Manila, however, was done every other year the prime objective of which was to make it possible for other microbiologists in other regions of the country to attend the convention. Consequently, certainly not unexpected, was the establishment of the following regional chapters: Visayas Chapter in February 1994, Mindanao Chapter in May 17, 1995, Luzon Chapter in March 17, 2000, and Bicol Chapter in September 29, 2007.

Other activities worth mentioning as they are milestones or significant events that defined the gradual evolution of relevance of PSM were: hosting of the first Asia-Pacific Biotechnology Congress in conjunction with the annual convention in 1986 under the presidency of Dr. Ireneo Dogma Jr.; Biotech quiz contest started by the then President, Dr. Cynthia Hedreyda; research and education caravans; constructions of hand washing stations; and donations of microscopes to deserving high schools. As the financial status of the Society improved, it became possible for the society to support the attendance of all PSM officers to the annual conventions and other seminars. The society also gave supplementary support to some officers of the Regional Chapters.

To encourage and recognize outstanding performance in Microbiology, various awards were bestowed. From 1973-1982, the Gerardo O. Ocfemia Memorial Lecture Award was conferred to nine distinguished scientists in the field of Experimental Biology and its subspecialties. The award is in honor of Dr. Gerado O. Ocfemia, considered the Father of Plant Pathology and one of the pioneers in Biological Science at UPLB. Plant Pathology already existed as a field of specialization before Microbiology was recognized as a separate discipline in the Philippines.
In 1985, the first Distinguished Microbiologist Award was given to Prof. William L. Fernandez and Macario Palo. Two years later, it was renamed as the Outstanding Microbiologist Award. Correspondingly, awards for best oral and poster papers were created. Subsequently, Outstanding Service Awards were established to recognize the assistance of individual members or institutions to various activities of PSM.

To pay tribute to the role of Prof. William L. Fernandez in the development of microbiology in the Philippines, the William L. Fernandez Award for Excellence in Teaching Microbiology was initiated, with Dr. Esperanza Cabrera as the first awardee. A Young Microbiologist Award, given to young individual from the regional chapters, requires that the winner presents a paper. During my term as Liaison Officer with the American Society, a Best Student Poster Paper Award was also given.

As the society was on an expansion mode, revisions in our constitution became necessary to accommodate new concerns. Over the years, the constitution was revised allowing for the creation of new divisions representing additional disciplines. As a result, from the original six divisions, nine areas emerged. New officers added were Recording Secretary, Liaison Officer who is appointed by the President, and Immediate Past President, considered as an Ex-Officio member of the PSM Board. The emergence of additional divisions induced each one to organize its own workshop or seminar creating inconsistencies and competition among different fields. To resolve this predicament, two cluster groups were created with each one authorized to conduct an independent workshop-seminar.

Linkage with the industry freed PSM from its financial anxieties. It was during my presidency in 1983 when the first linkage with the industry took place. During that year, Colgate Palmolive Philippines approached me and proposed the idea of PSM endorsing an antimicrobial soap called Protex that the company was developing at that time and was thought to be the answer to Proctor and Gamble’s Safeguard. PSM then already had the competency and prominence to endorse a product.

Several meetings were held and subsequently, under the supervision of PSM, the antimicrobial efficacy of the product was confirmed. As a consequence of this partnership and the financial windfall ensuing, the Society dared to hold the convention outside of Luzon with Iloilo as the chosen place. The theme of the convention, ‘Linking Microbiology with the Industry for National Development’ was apt and timely. The partnership between PSM and Colgate Palmolive was formalized with a contract in succeeding years with a stipulated amount of support for the activities of the society. Unfortunately, Protex was unable to compete with the more established antimicrobial soap Safeguard, which at the time was endorsed not only by the officers of PAMET but also by the then Secretary of the Department of Health, Dr. Juan Flavier.

An attempted tie-up with Colgate Palmolive for a Food Rinse product did not prosper. However, some years later in 2004, PSM forged a partnership with Proctor and Gamble in the endorsement of Joy Antibac Dishwashing Liquid which lasted up the present. These links led to an enhanced financial status of the Society. To reconcile the comparison between the balance of P200,000 in the financial report during my term and the current balance of about P6 million is quite unreal but we can only exclaimed ‘How we have progressed financially!!!’
Allow me to shift to the Philippine Academy of Microbiology. In 1988, the PSM Board, with Dr. Enrique T. Carlos as President, proposed the establishment of a system of accreditation and certification for microbiologists initially for the purpose of conferring the title of Diplomate and Fellow. Subsequently, a committee, headed by Dr. Enrique T. Carlos, was formed by then President Lourdes E. Resubal in 1989 to establish the ground rules. In May 15, 1990, the committee proposed a National Registry of Microbiologists, with two categories: Registered Microbiologists and Specialist Microbiologists, to be administered by a body to be called the Philippine Academy of Microbiology (PAM). This concept of PAM, which will serve as the accreditation arm of PSM, was patterned after the American Academy of Microbiology (AAM) of the American Society for Microbiology, whose aim is to provide certification for outstanding credentials for microbiologists seeking to enhance their professional flexibility and recognition.

On the 22nd of May 1991, the Philippine Academy of Microbiology was formally created through Executive Order No. 1 Series of 1991 as approved by the PSM Board and signed by then President, Dr. Leodegario E. Padua. However, it was not until three years later, on May 20,1994, that the constitution of the PSM was amended as to include a provision establishing PAM.

PAM has the mandate of developing and maintaining high standards of practice in the field of Microbiology and of accrediting, certifying, and classifying life members of the Society based on defined standards and on qualification requirements which may include written and/or oral examinations. It is run by a Council of Regents consisting of a Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Auditor, and Press Officer with Dr. Enrique Carlos serving as the first Chair. A 5-member accreditation board was created to evaluate the credentials of the applicants. A Board of Examiners appointed by the PAM Chair, with members serving for 1, 2 or 3 years, elect from among themselves a Chair and Vice-Chair, each to serve for 1 year. Details about PAM affairs are contained in Article 10 of the PSM constitution and in the Manual of Operations of PAM which already has undergone several revisions.

One might wonder why accreditation is so important aside from the obvious fact that it serves to bolster the status of the microbiologist-practitioner. One obvious reason is that an equivalent Philippine Regulatory Commission board examination does not exist at the moment. The PAM Board of Examiners fills the role of developing the examination questions.

Twenty-four units of microbiology courses are required for accreditation as a Microbiologist. At the outset, questions were asked especially those pertaining to chemists or chemical engineers working in companies where they have already been trained, for instance, in testing for coliforms and E.coli in their products and in water supplies. The answer to this particular question is that these practitioners know water microbiology but to be an accredited Microbiologist requires knowledge of general microbiology, physiology, ecology, and virology. These are the areas of specialization on which the accreditation examination generally is based on. An elective field that an examinee can choose from is food or medical microbiology. The accreditation examination is usually held every first Saturday and Sunday of December.
As an accredited Microbiologist, one is qualified to be a Specialist Microbiologist (SM) after finishing 24 units of graduate work and with seven years of work experience or alternatively an MS or a PhD degree in Microbiology with four years of experience.

A Diplomate status subsequently can be aspired for followed by the lofty rank of Fellow of the Society, the requirements of which are specified in the website of PAM/PSM. Conferment of these ranks is done in a solemn ceremony more often during the PSM convention.
Concomitant to the above is the burning issue of recognition by the Philippine Regulatory Agency (PRC) which has been under consideration for the past ten years. Attempts have been made towards this goal including of a congress bill for the professionalization of the Microbiologist. Unfortunately, other professional societies posed a lot of objections when the bill was presented during hearings. Moreover, as there are not enough accredited Microbiologists to serve the needs of the industry, companies continue to hire non-accredited microbiologists. Nonetheless, it is comforting to note that those who are accredited are generally in the lead when it comes to promotions or are better recognized than non-accredited colleagues. In addition, some companies now require that results of microbiological testing bear the signature of accredited personnel. The project about PRC recognition is currently on hold.

With all these developments it is certain that PSM and PAM played a major and defining role in the current status that Microbiology enjoys in the Philippines today,