REGULATIONS GOVERNING THE APPOINTMENT, PROMOTION AND SEPARATION OF OFFICERS OF THE COMMISSIONED SERVICE OF THE BUREAU OF QUARANTINE

Pursuant to the provisions of Sections 3 and 4 of Republic Act No.
123 and the directive of the Office of the President in its letter dated
November 9, 1948, the regulations concerning the appointment, promotion
and separation of officers of the commissioned service of the Bureau of
Quarantine are hereby promulgated for the information and guidance of
all concerned:

A
Commissions

1.  Corps of Commissioned Officers — Quarantine officers
and nurses shall constitute a corps of commissioned officers of the
Bureau of Quarantine in accordance with Section 4 of Republic Act No.
123.

2.  Manner of Commissioning — Officers shall be
commissioned by the President of the Philippines upon the recommendation
of the Director of Quarantine in accordance with Section 4 of Republic
Act No. 123.

3.  Ranks of Commissioned Officers — The Director of
Quarantine shall have the rank of a colonel or higher and all officers
under him shall have the ranks of lieutenant colonels, majors, captains
and lieutenants in accordance with Section 4 of Republic Act No. 123.

4.  Initial Commissions — The initial commission of a
medical quarantine officer shall be a 1st lieutenant and that of a
quarantine nurse, a 2nd lieutenant.  The Efficiency Board created under
sub-paragraph 1 of paragraph B of this Administrative Order shall select
from civil service eligibles for quarantine officer or nurse who shall
be considered for initial commission.  The personal qualifications,
special experience and training of an applicant for quarantine medical
officer or nurse shall be the primary consideration in determining his
or her eligibility for an initial commission. Initial commissions shall
be considered probationary for six months.  At the termination of such
period any officer with probationary commission may either be retained,
promoted or separated from the Bureau depending upon the quality of
service rendered.  If at the end of the probationary period, no
recommendation is made for the separation of a commissioned officer from
the service, his or her probationary commission automatically becomes
permanent.

In cases where there are two or more temporary appointees who are
candidates for an existing vacancy or vacancies for initial commissions
of either quarantine officers or nurses, the Efficiency Board, as
described below shall consider and deliberate on the merits and demerits
of the candidates concerned.  Their efficiency and adaptability to the
service shall take precedence as factors in the consideration of the
choice for the initial commission and only when both or all candidates
for the initial commission have the same qualifications and efficiency
ratings, shall seniority be made the deciding factor.

Seniority shall mean the length of continuous service in the Bureau
of Quarantine and/or in any governmental entity prior to the
consideration of the commission in the Bureau of Quarantine.

5.  Number of Commissioned Officers — The number of
commissioned officers shall be that as prescribed in the annual
Appropriation Act unless otherwise provided for in a subsequent order of
the Office of the President or by legislation.

6.  Commissions of Part-time Officers — Officers assigned
at minor ports of entry of the Philippines occupying items of part-time
quarantine officers of the Bureau may be commissioned as 1st lieutenants
or higher grades part-time, and allowed to wear the corresponding
prescribed uniforms, ranks and service insignia, but shall not be
entitled to the actual pay of the corresponding ranks, subsistence and
quarter allowances authorized for officers with full time commission. 
Acting quarantine officers delegated to represent the Bureau in any port
in the Philippines or in certain ports of entry such as those located
in US Army and US Naval Bases may be designated as Acting Quarantine
officers with or without compensation on the recommendation of the
Director of Quarantine and approved by the Secretary of Health.  Both
part-time quarantine officers and acting quarantine officers in foreign
bases and regular ports in the Philippines may be appointed regardless
of their citizenship.

7.  Requirements —

a.      General requirements — Only citizens of the Philippines
of good moral standing are eligible for original commissions excepting
those serving in foreign bases and part-time quarantine officers in
minor ports of entry as provided in the preceding section.  Any
physician or nurse applying for such commissions must be a civil service
eligible and must not have reached his/her thirty-fifth birthday on the
date of application. Physicians must be not less than 5 feet 4 inches
in height and nurses not less than 5 feet 3 inches in bare feet.  The
height requirement may, however, be waived if there are other superior
qualifications to offset deficiencies in height but not less than 5 feet
3 inches for physicians and 5 feet 2 inches for nurses.  They must be
in good health and free from physical defects. Those selected for
commissions will be required to undergo a physical and medical
examination which shall be conducted by a Board of Medical Officers
convened for the purpose by the Director of Quarantine.  Excessive
overweight and underweight defective vision, color blindness diabetes
and other major physical defects shall be causes for rejection. 
Preference shall be given to medical officers and nurses of the
Philippine Armed Forces or to veterans of the Philippine Army.

b.      Education and experience —

1.    For physicians — Applicants for the position of
quarantine officers must be duly licensed to practice medicine in the
Philippines and must have had (a) at least two years of experience as
resident physician in general hospitals, or two years of experience in
public health work, or (b) two years of teaching or laboratory
experience in medical institutions or recognized standing plus two years
of active general practice, or (c) four years of continuous active
private practice in the Philippines, or (d) service in the medical corps
of the Philippine Armed Forces.

2.    For nurses — Applicants for the position of quarantine
nurse must be duly licensed to practice nursing in the Philippines and
must have had at least one year experience in nursing in a general
hospital or in any public health agency or in any airline or shipping
company in the capacity of a nurse or stewardess or in the nursing corps
of the Philippine Armed Forces.

B
Promotions

1.  Creation of an Efficiency Board — There is hereby
created in the Bureau of Quarantine, an Efficiency Board to be composed
of the Director of Quarantine or the Executive Officer of the Bureau, as
chairman, one representative of the Department of Health and two
officers in the Bureau with grades not below captains as members.

2.  Duties of the Board — The Efficiency Board shall have the following functions:

a.    It shall look into the merits of all applicants for the commissioned service of the Bureau.

b.    It shall determine when required by the Director of
Quarantine, the eligibility for promotion of officers and prepare a
promotion eligibility list hereinafter described.

c.    It shall inquire into and report upon the record and
efficiency of particular officers who are charged with misconduct,
dereliction of duty and immoral habits. It shall make recommendations on
penalties on officers found guilty by the Board.

3.  Seniority and Efficiency List — This list shall be
prepared for the approval of the Secretary of Health, by the Board of
Efficiency mentioned in the preceding paragraph.  It shall state the
names of all officers excluding the Director of Quarantine in accordance
with the ranks and seniority they presently carry, dates of commission
of their present ranks and their efficiency ratings every six months.

4.  Promotion of Officers — Whenever a vacancy occurs in a
grade between that of 1st lieutenant and lieutenant colonel inclusive,
it shall be filled by promotion of the senior officer in the next
preceding grade, provided that such officer has had an average
efficiency rating for the last preceding year of not less than 85%.  In
case his rating is less than 85%, the next senior officer in the same
grade shall be eligible for promotion instead.  In determining the
seniority of officers in the grades they occupy, only the dates of their
actual commissions in such grades shall be reckoned with.  In case all
the candidates entered the service at the same time their length of
service in the government will be the deciding factor to determine who
is senior among the candidates.

Notwithstanding the foregoing rules, however, the commissions of
lieutenant colonel and colonel may be filled by qualified officers
selected from among the captains and majors.

Candidates for promotion must pass a satisfactory physical
examination to be performed by a Board of Officers expressly appointed
for the purpose.

C
Separations and Demotions

1.  Causes for Separation — Officers in the commissioned
service of the Bureau of Quarantine may be separated or demoted from the
service if found guilty of the charges enumerated below.  Demotions may
consist of reversion to the next lower rank or seniority in the rank
the officer holds.

a.    Wilful failure to perform his/her Duty — This charge shall
embrace habitual tardiness, inability to follow instructions from
superior officers, inability to instruct subordinates and supervise
their work, incapacity to make decisions and inaccuracy of judgments,
inability to meet time limits’ deadline of assignments given to him by
superior officers; ineffectiveness to promote high working morale among
his co-workers; and inability to get along with persons in and outside
the Bureau.

b.    Habitual tardiness — Habitual tardiness shall mean
tardiness in office attendance, in attending official meetings,
tardiness in boarding vessels and aircraft and other tardiness in
connection with official duties.

c.    Vicious or immoral habits — This may include the following:
(1) lack of tact and courtesy in dealing with others, (2) disregard of
superior officers, (3) overbearing attitude to subordinates, (4)
habitual laziness, (5) inability to cooperate with members of the staff,
(6) dishonesty in all forms, (7) vicious or immoral habits, (8) lack of
initiative and resourcefulness, (9) conviction in any court of
competent jurisdiction for misdemeanor, (10) conduct unbecoming an
officer, and (11) gambling in any form not legalized by the government.

d.    Intemperate use of drugs or alcoholic beverages — This
shall mean not only addiction to the use of prohibited drugs but also
the injudicious administration of such drugs to patients under his or
her care and the indiscriminate use of alcoholics which should not be
misconstrued with the temperate drinking of such alcoholics on social
occasions.

2.  Investigation of Officers — The investigation of any
officer charged with any of the charges stated in the preceding
paragraph shall be undertaken by the Board of Efficiency.  The Board is
empowered to summon witnesses who may substantiate any charge against
any particular officer and any officer thus charged has the right to
employ the services of counsel in his defense.  The findings of the
Board and its recommendations shall be submitted to the Director for
transmission to the Secretary of Health with recommendation for action.

Adopted: 1 Dec. 1949

(SGD.) REGINO G. PADUA
Acting Secretary of Health

Effective: 1 December 1949