Dr. Leticia S. Galvez

Dr. Leticia S. Galvez, a former physician, passed away on Friday, June 19, 2020 in the University of Maryland Medical Center of Baltimore, MD.

She had been a resident of Harford County since 1972 and had practiced Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology since then. She retired after 40 years of service in September 2012.

Dr. Galvez was born in Manila, Philippines on November 11, 1939 to the late Mariano Galvez and Marta Silverio Galvez of Manila and Bulacan, Philippines. She was the youngest of 8 children.

Dr. Galvez graduated from the Pontifical University of Santo Tomas, Manila, Philippines, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery in 1963 at age 23. In 1964 after passing the medical boards and ECFMG she came to the USA for her postgraduate training. She was accepted in all 3 hospitals she applied to but chose to go to St. Vincent’s Medical Center in Bridgeport, CT, where she finished her internship and residency in Internal Medicine, her senior year as chief resident. After her residency she decided to pursue further training in gastroenterology as a subspecialty. She was accepted to the Gastroenterology Fellowship Program at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence, RI, under the auspices of Brown University. She had the distinction of being the first woman accepted to their GI program and was recognized at their 25th fellowship reunion in Newport, RI. The Chief of Gastroenterology, Dr. Walter Thayer, was so impressed with her performance that he accepted female fellows since then.

After her fellowship she went back to the Philippines and opened a private practice in Manila. She taught Physical Diagnosis, Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology at Manila Central University, College of Medicine and Surgery. She was also an attending physician at St. Luke’s Hospital in Quezon City and at the GSIS Hospital.

Because of political unrest in the Philippines she decided to come back to America and accepted a 2nd year fellowship in Gastroenterology at St. Vincent’s Medical Center and Yale New Haven Hospital in New Haven, CT, under the tutelage of world-renowned professor and author of Gastroenterology, Dr. Howard Spiro.

After her 2nd year fellowship, while reviewing for her boards, she worked as a house physician at Harford Memorial Hospital in Havre de Grace. After passing the boards she started her private practice in Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology practice in Havre de Grace. She was the first fellowship trained gastroenterologist to practice in Harford County and the 1st to introduce endoscopy at Harford Memorial Hospital. She was an active attending staff at Harford Memorial Hospital and later also at Fallston General Hospital (which later became Upper Chesapeake Medical Center in Bel Air) since 1973. She served as the first division chairperson of gastroenterology at Harford Memorial Hospital. She also served on various committees either as chairperson or member, such as Peer Review Committee, Medical Records, Infectious Disease, Pharmacy and Therapeutics to name a few.

Dr. Galvez also served as an attending physician at Citizen’s Care Center in Havre de Grace and Lorien Nursing Home and Rehabilitation at Riverside, for many years. She also served as a member of the board of directors at Harford Center, Inc., in Havre de Grace for a short time.

She has been a member of the American Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy since after her training. She has been a member of the Harford County Medical Society since the beginning of her practice.

Dr. Galvez was a founding member and past president of the Filipino-American Association of Upper Chesapeake, a social, cultural and charitable organization of Filipino-Americans in Harford and Cecil Counties.

In her spare time, she loved to do crafts, scrapbooking and especially collecting Lladro Porcelain figurines. She was a charter member of the Lladro Collectors Society. She also enjoyed arranging fresh flowers to decorate her home once a week. She especially enjoyed shopping, hosting dinners and barbecues and traveling with her family and friends.

Dr. Galvez was so dedicated to her profession and patients that she remained single all her life, but was blessed with several nephews and nieces, especially her nephew, Ronaldo Lopez of Churchville, whom she later adopted. Other survivors include her sister, Dr. Connie Quiambao and her husband, Rodolfo, several great nieces and great nephews in the Philippines and here in the U.S., numerous godchildren and friends from Connecticut, Ohio, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Maryland and the Philippines.

She was predeceased by her parents and siblings, Lucia Jose, Alfredo and Leonardo Galvez, Lourdes Lopez, Estela Galvez and Amelia Samson.

Visitations are scheduled for Thursday, June 25, 2020, 2 PM until 4 PM, and 7 PM until 9 PM, at the Lee A. Patterson & Son Funeral Home, P.A., of Perryville, MD. A Mass of Resurrection will be celebrated Friday, June 26, 2020, 11 AM, at the St. Ignatius Catholic Church of Hickory, MD.

Her remains will have a final resting place at the John Paul the Great Columbarium at the St. Ignatius Catholic Cemetery in Hickory, MD.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Ignatius Church-Hickory, 533 East Jarrettsville Rd., Forest Hill, MD 21050.