The Working World

Dear future Housemen,

There are some things I think you should know before you start your new life in the hospital. All of it is actually just basic common sense, but my friends and I have seen one too many HOs who seem to lack in these areas.

First of all, you have to be aware of the fact that the profession you chose is not an easy one. You will be getting scoldings from you specialists, your MOs, sometimes you colleagues and even your patients. You will have to work 7 days a week, 7am to 5pm (at least) and you will have to do oncalls. If you think that you cannot handle these, then please just quit before you start.

You are just a housemen. You are nothing. Nothing you do is actually going to save a patients life - if a patient is really ill, it is usually the MO and specialist who will do the saving. You are just a pawn. You do what they tell you to do. You just HELP. All you are expected to do is to not kill a patient, to not make a patient's condition worse.

So, please, don't be arrogant. Don't think that just because you graduated you are to be looked up upon. The title 'Doctor' is nothing, unless you have your work to prove yourself.

Just think about it this way - if your parents are unwell, will you treat them yourself or take them to the specialist? The day you think you can treat your parents yourself without feeling inadequate, then be arrogant, be snobbish, be whatever you want. But as long as you think you would like the opinion of someone else for your parents, try to be a bit more humble.

The MOs and specialists may scold you sometimes - usually it is your fault, something you did wrong. When they do so, try to look remorseful, try to be sorry, DO NOT ANSWER BACK!! Most of the time, they are right. They have years and years of experience. If you think you are right, say so properly, politely, and they will listen. If you are wrong, just say sorry - is that so hard to do?

Your colleagues will be the ones teaching/guiding you during your early days. Be nice to them. If they are telling you something, LISTEN! DO NOT answer back to them, talk to them sarcastically, because trust me, they will just stop teaching you stuff, and you are the one who will regret it later. Even once you are senior housemen, you will need your colleagues, because you will not know everything, you cannot do everything. Work is about teamwork, and your team is your colleagues.

Please be proactive. If you want to learn to set a branula, then whenever there is a branula to set, volunteer to set it, to try. Don't keep quiet and wait for people to offer to teach you. The same goes for any other procedures - ask your friends to teach you. If you don't ask, then you will never know. Why would anyone want to answer a question before it is asked?

Please try not to take unplanned leaves. Yes, I know you used to bunk classes whenever you felt like it, I did it too - but absences in classes never affected anyone else. When you are working in a ward with other people, each person matters, the workload differs. You may think that one person is not going to make much of a difference, but imagine if 2 or 3 people in the ward think the same way? Who is then supposed to do the work? Nobody is denying you leave - just plan your leave earlier. Yes, you can fall sick, you can have an emergency - no one is stopping you then, but then if you take emergency leave 2-3 times a month, obviously no one will like it.

The thing is, once you give someone a bad impression, it stays that way for a LONG time. Because people talk. Housemen, MOs, specialists, it makes no difference - they will all talk behind your back. And once you spoil your name this way, people will be extra mean to you, extra unhelpful and they would rather you not be in you ward, because then that ward won't have a good team.

One more thing, I'm sure that you have heard of the phrase 'the customer is always right'. Patients are your customers. Be nice. Yes, they can be irritating, they can be rude, but try to be nicer to them - they are just worried. If you don't think you can be polite to them, then get your friend to talk to them. Don't say things that you will regret later, because patients have be known to complain about doctors too - and this will go into your record, which is unerasable, no matter how good you turn out to be later.

I am not saying that everyone is bad. Most of the housemen are OK, but there are a few that even we Housemen cannot 'tahan', I wonder how the MOs and specialists feel.

Please dear future doctors, don't make people hate you.

A Reason To Be Happy

In a way, today felt like Deepavali.

Finally, our ward received a new stock of syringes and gloves etc.

In the beginning, we lacked sterile gloves.

Then non-sterile gloves.

For the past few days, you would be lucky if you can find any gloves at all!!

It has been more than a month since we had 10cc syringe.

Let me tell you why you need 10cc syringe.

When a patient is admitted to the ward, here are a few basic investigations:

1. FBC - 2cc

2. RP/LFT - 1cc

3. RBS - 1 to 2 cc

4. PT/INR - 2cc

Which comes to 7 cc.

So, how do you use a 5cc syringe to take the blood?

2 choices - prick the patient twice, or you use a 5cc syringe and take the blood and then remove the syringe from the needle and in place put in another syringe (don't take the needle off from the patient). The first way, the patient will hate you, the 2nd way, you are at a risk of needle prick injury - so, which would you choose?

Branulas are hard to get too - someone made the wrong orders and certain wards have this horrible branula which is SO hard to use!

Tegaderm - another almost extinct thing - nowadays we just use plaster.

Thankfully, today we received our stock.

I really felt happy to see the PPK pushing the trolly full of stuff today.

Anyway, quote of the day, by Dr. LYF - "Only 2 things in life is certain - death and income tax".

The Wedding Test

A story from a forwarded mail :

I was a very happy person. My wonderful girlfriend and I had been dating for over a year, and so we decided to get married. There was only one little thing bothering me…...It was her beautiful younger sister.

My prospective sister-in-law was twenty-two, wore very tight miniskirts, and generally was bra-less. She would regularly bend down when she was near me, and I always got more than a nice view. It had to be deliberate, because she never did it when she was near anyone else.

One day her 'little' sister called and asked me to come over to check the wedding invitations. She was alone when I arrived, and she whispered to me that she had feelings and desires for me that she couldn't overcome. She told me that she wanted me just once before I got married and committed my life to her sister.

Well, I was in total shock, and couldn't say a word. She said, 'I'm going upstairs to my bedroom, and if you want one last wild fling,
just come up and get me.'

I was stunned and frozen in shock as I watched her go up the stairs. I stood there for a moment, then turned and made a beeline straight to the front door. I opened the door, and headed straight towards my car. Lo and behold, my entire future family was standing outside, all clapping!

With tears in his eyes, my future father-in-law hugged me and said, 'We are very happy that you have passed our little test. We couldn't ask for a better man for our daughter. Welcome to the family.'

And the moral of this story is:

Always keep your condoms in your car.

Age Is Just A Number

Perks of reaching 50 or being over 60 and heading towards 70!

01. Kidnappers are not very interested in you.

02. In a hostage situation you are likely to be released first.

03. No one expects you to run-- anywhere.

04. People call at 9 pm and ask, did I wake you?

05. People no longer view you as a hypochondriac.

06. There is nothing left to learn the hard way.

07. Things you buy now won't wear out.

08. You can eat supper at 4 pm.

09. You can live without sex but not your glasses.

10. You get into heated arguments about pension plans.

11. You no longer think of speed limits as a challenge.

12. You quit trying to hold your stomach in no matter who walks into the room.

13. You sing along with elevator music.

14. Your eyes won't get much worse.

15. Your investment in health insurance is finally beginning to pay off.

16. Your joints are more accurate meteorologists than the national weather service..

17. Your secrets are safe with your friends because they can't remember them either.

18. Your supply of brain cells is finally down to manageable size.

19. You can't remember who sent you this list.

AND TRY TO ALWAYS REMEMBER ...

Never, under any circumstances, take a sleeping pill and a laxative on the same night.

(I really like the advice given..:))

How 2009 Ended

2009 ended with me watching 2 good movies.

I was really, really impressed with Avatar.

I went there with high expectations (because KV couldn't stop talking about it after watching it) and the movie was actually better that I expected!

The animation was really good. It's like being transported to another world!

I just wish I had the chance to watch it in 3D.

The Princess and The Frog was also a good watch.

I watch cartoon movies for 1 reason only - to enjoy the jokes.

The movies that top my favourite cartoon-movie are Shrek (1 and 2, didn't watch 3 I think) and The Emperor's New Groove.

The Princess and The Frog couldn't match these movies, but it was definitely better than some of the other cartoon-movies that came out last year.

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I also read a few good books.

You really should try reading Jodi Picoult - somehow, I get SO hooked up with her books once I start reading them. The stories are really issues that will make you think, will make you wonder what you would do in that kind of situation, and will make you wish that you never have to make decisions as hard as that.

Am currently reading Between The Assassinations by Aravind Adiga - something different, something interesting. It centers around the lifes of really poor Indians in India.

Reread Life of Pi by Yann Martel - this time, I paid more attention to the story as I already know what the ending is (am not going to tell you about it); appreciate the book more this time around.

Also read the first two books of the twilight series - didn't find it very addictive as I already know the story (almost the same as the movie), but it's a nice story to read and I am looking forward to reading the rest of the series (am going to make sure that I don't watch the movie first).

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Do you guys remember a few years back, there was a period of time where buses kept meeting in accidents and all night buses were cancelled? I wonder when the rules were changed and buses were allowed to operate at night.

And recently, after the bus accident nearby Ipoh, once again the issue was brought up - to not let buses travel at night.

But then, that issue didn't last long and bus rides are still going on as usual.

How about the seatbelt rule - is it still on?

I wonder what's the problem with Malaysia and rules.. we make them, we break them, then we remake them when there is trouble again.

What the &%@# are we trying to do?

Why do we have to wait for something to go wrong before we take action?

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Also, it seems like someone brought up the issue about housemen (again) in the newspaper.

I don't know who started it or why - but then there is one group telling we are overworked, getting scolded bla, bla, bla..while another group who thinks that we are too pampered.

The way I see it - the non-doctors, non-nurses think that it is impossible for a person to work for more that 24 hours and function. They think that everyone needs rest, the labour law should be followed, etc. Parents of housemen would also feel pity for their children - it's natural - all parents want their child to come back home and chill talk to them rather than immediately fall asleep, right?

On the other hand, MOs and specialists have gone through worse times - times where they had less than half the number the housemen that we have now, times where they have to handle more things and get less pay. Do you expect them to sympatise on you? They used to do 15 calls a month, and now you are complaining because you have 6 calls a month? Doesn't make sense if we complain, right?

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Anyway, 2010 is here and I am *gasp* 26!

Actually, it makes no difference to me.

20, 26 - age is just a number, right?

But I still can't take it when my nephews or nieces call me Aunty - just makes me feel ancient..I'm not that old, am I?

Somehow, the years have passed by so fast.

Sometimes, I feel like time just flew after I completed my SPM.

I don't make new year resolutions because I know that I would never be able to stick to them.

Somehow, when something becomes a necessity, it is harder to do it.

For instance - when I was younger, I used to beg my Mum to let me iron the clothes- it just looked like so much fun.

But then, once I was older and was expected to do the ironing - it just became a chore, something I didn't like to do.

Weird, huh..

Well, am oncall tomorrow - actually looking forward to it 'cos am oncall with a really, really nice MO. :)

My New 'Toy'

Recently, I have had a problem with my laptop.
I couldn't use it 'normally'. The screen has to be tilted to a certain position to be used.
If I am lucky, then it can be used at a 60 degree angle, but usually it can only be used in an angle of about 45 degree.
Trust me, that is a really uncomfortable and painful way of using a laptop.

So, finally, I decided to get a new laptop.
After all, I have been using the laptop for about 8 years now, the CD player has been non-functioning for like forever and I only have limited memory in the laptop.

So, after a couple of calls to my 'computer consultant' I settled on DELL Inspiron.
I ordered it online and it arrived yesterday!!
Unfortunately, I am just too lazy to upload a picture - it's just a black laptop after all..:P

However, I just feel like my laptop is too empty.
I think I have to save all my photos from all the CDs I have and my old laptop plus put in a few movies and songs - only then it will feel really mine.
For now I am too lazy to do any of the above - some other time lah!

Anyway, here is a video that was sent to me recently. Check it out - it's really quite worth a watch.

Reading Is Better Than Watching

Many people wonder why I like to read story books.
Some think that reading a story book is a waste of time - time that can be used going out somewhere or watching a movie.

But I don't see it that way.
A good book is anytime better that a good movie.

Both movies and books bring you to another place, another world, into another person's life.
But a story book keeps you there longer.
You feel what the characters are feeling.
You see things from the characters point of view, instead of the cameraman's point of view.
You get more insight on each character.

Sometimes, when I think of a scene, I just can't remember whether the scene was in a movie I watched on in a book I read. So, who is to say that watching a movie is better than reading a book?

When watching a movie, you have to imagine what the character is thinking.
When reading a book, you have to imagine what the scene is like.
For me, I would prefer to be in the characters head - it is more personal that way.

Granted, reading takes up time.
Finishing a decent book would take at least a few hours of non-stop reading.
But to me, it is worth it.
I finish each (good) book feeling contented.
You will too, if you find a book that you really like.