Friday, May 19, 2006
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
This week...
-Haemato-Onco conference.
-a surprise call from a 'kindred spirit' (you know who you are and i was serious about Cambodia!)
-Shaikh's wedding.....green/maroon/purple saree?
-Moonlighting ($$ka ching!)
-Prep for PALS Course(Pediatric Advanced Life Support) with Sett.
-finish reading the journals!!
-Yummy weekend ahead....can't wait!
-Medicines for Shazan and Shammy before their trip to India(MUST remember!Call me and remind me,Tina)
-Help Nurul pack and move.....am gonna miss you sweetie and you're one heckuva gynae...they don't know what they're losing!
-"You're trying to have a kid????What happened to the December plans, you cow?Raj, I swear.... that Canadaian trip doesn't look too promising does it?I think we have every right to know when we are gonna become aunts/godmothers etc!!Teena hasn't even had a chance to have you all by herself yet (which increasingly looks to me like it's never gonna happen at this rate!)"
-Happy Birthday Hooi Ling....I don't know about summer in England....
-At least 200 sit-ups everyday...don't want no 'Delhi-belly'....ugh!
Strive and pray for your dreams to come true and the rest leave it to HIM....(amen!)
-a surprise call from a 'kindred spirit' (you know who you are and i was serious about Cambodia!)
-Shaikh's wedding.....green/maroon/purple saree?
-Moonlighting ($$ka ching!)
-Prep for PALS Course(Pediatric Advanced Life Support) with Sett.
-finish reading the journals!!
-Yummy weekend ahead....can't wait!
-Medicines for Shazan and Shammy before their trip to India(MUST remember!Call me and remind me,Tina)
-Help Nurul pack and move.....am gonna miss you sweetie and you're one heckuva gynae...they don't know what they're losing!
-"You're trying to have a kid????What happened to the December plans, you cow?Raj, I swear.... that Canadaian trip doesn't look too promising does it?I think we have every right to know when we are gonna become aunts/godmothers etc!!Teena hasn't even had a chance to have you all by herself yet (which increasingly looks to me like it's never gonna happen at this rate!)"
-Happy Birthday Hooi Ling....I don't know about summer in England....
-At least 200 sit-ups everyday...don't want no 'Delhi-belly'....ugh!
Strive and pray for your dreams to come true and the rest leave it to HIM....(amen!)
Friday, May 12, 2006
Thursday, May 11, 2006
And we wonder about the brain drain....
I find the recent survey conducted by the UK Executive Council for Malaysian Students unnecessary, “Poor pay keeping best brains away” (Sunday Star, April 30).
Any Tom, Dick or Harry can tell you why Malaysian doctors and professionals working abroad are not willing to come back to serve the country. Tell us something new, other than what we already know but choose to deny. The fact is, and it has always been this: Low salary and long working hours.
The results of the survey clearly reflect the sad state of affairs, particularly of the medical profession in the country.
It was not too long ago that I worked as a houseman at the busiest hospital in the country. I worked for 36 hours when I was on call, and more often than not, I was on call every other day, which translates to a total of more than 108 hours a week, including weekends!
To rub salt into the wound, housemen at that time were paid a miserable sum of RM25 per call. Talk about cheap labour.
Working condition was just appalling. I can recall those nights that if we did get to sleep at all, even for an hour, it was on the floor.
If we were lucky, we would get to sleep on a bed, the very same one where the patient had died earlier in the day.
Some of my colleagues were so exhausted from work that they dozed off right in front of the patient while taking his history.
Our monthly income was nothing to shout about either. When I met some old friends, they often popped the dreaded question: How much do you earn a month? I never answered them.
Having slogged my way through Form Six for two years, then another five years at a local university, my income now is no more than what my non-doctor friends are earning, and some do not even have a university degree.
The Government spends close to a million for each student to pursue a career in medicine. Thus, it is only right that these sponsored students return and serve the country.
However, the same should not apply to students who were not government-sponsored, as it is not only unreasonable, but also unfair.
If in the first place,the Government refused these deserving students scholarships, what right does it have now to demand and to compel them to come back and serve the country, all in the name of patriotism?
How long would it take to earn back the money spent on studying abroad with the poor pay that doctors in Malaysia are getting?
I want to stress that these students who choose not to return do not, in any way, lack a sense of nationalism and patriotism.
To tackle the problem of long working hours, why not introduce the shift system like in the UK? Let us also learn from our neighbour Singapore where civil servants are paid almost as high as those in the private sector to prevent brain drain and corruption.
It is indeed heartening to see the Government is concerned about the problem of brain drain in the country, and is trying to tackle this at the root of the problem by targeting students studying abroad.
We should applaud the efforts taken by the Government such as legalising locum and promotion of specialists stuck in houseman or medical officer's post. Nevertheless, more can be done and unless the Government is really committed to addressing this issue, conducting the survey is just as good as paying lip service to this chronic problem.
DISGRUNTLED DOCTOR
Petaling Jaya, Selangor
courtesy The Star
Well said disgruntled doc.....you speak for all of us.
Any Tom, Dick or Harry can tell you why Malaysian doctors and professionals working abroad are not willing to come back to serve the country. Tell us something new, other than what we already know but choose to deny. The fact is, and it has always been this: Low salary and long working hours.
The results of the survey clearly reflect the sad state of affairs, particularly of the medical profession in the country.
It was not too long ago that I worked as a houseman at the busiest hospital in the country. I worked for 36 hours when I was on call, and more often than not, I was on call every other day, which translates to a total of more than 108 hours a week, including weekends!
To rub salt into the wound, housemen at that time were paid a miserable sum of RM25 per call. Talk about cheap labour.
Working condition was just appalling. I can recall those nights that if we did get to sleep at all, even for an hour, it was on the floor.
If we were lucky, we would get to sleep on a bed, the very same one where the patient had died earlier in the day.
Some of my colleagues were so exhausted from work that they dozed off right in front of the patient while taking his history.
Our monthly income was nothing to shout about either. When I met some old friends, they often popped the dreaded question: How much do you earn a month? I never answered them.
Having slogged my way through Form Six for two years, then another five years at a local university, my income now is no more than what my non-doctor friends are earning, and some do not even have a university degree.
The Government spends close to a million for each student to pursue a career in medicine. Thus, it is only right that these sponsored students return and serve the country.
However, the same should not apply to students who were not government-sponsored, as it is not only unreasonable, but also unfair.
If in the first place,the Government refused these deserving students scholarships, what right does it have now to demand and to compel them to come back and serve the country, all in the name of patriotism?
How long would it take to earn back the money spent on studying abroad with the poor pay that doctors in Malaysia are getting?
I want to stress that these students who choose not to return do not, in any way, lack a sense of nationalism and patriotism.
To tackle the problem of long working hours, why not introduce the shift system like in the UK? Let us also learn from our neighbour Singapore where civil servants are paid almost as high as those in the private sector to prevent brain drain and corruption.
It is indeed heartening to see the Government is concerned about the problem of brain drain in the country, and is trying to tackle this at the root of the problem by targeting students studying abroad.
We should applaud the efforts taken by the Government such as legalising locum and promotion of specialists stuck in houseman or medical officer's post. Nevertheless, more can be done and unless the Government is really committed to addressing this issue, conducting the survey is just as good as paying lip service to this chronic problem.
DISGRUNTLED DOCTOR
Petaling Jaya, Selangor
courtesy The Star
Well said disgruntled doc.....you speak for all of us.
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Strangers in the night.....
You know how sometimes you listen to a tune or a song and you just can't get it out of your system for a while.....well, the song of the moment for me is Frankie's Strangers in the night.Wow....nobody does it like ole Blue Eyes.I keep humming it all day and night...Sigh!
Strangers in the night exchanging glances
Wond’ring in the night
What were the chances we’d be sharing love
Before the night was through.
Something in your eyes was so inviting,
Something in you smile was so exciting,
Something in my heart,
Told me I must have you.
Strangers in the night, two lonely people
We were strangers in the night
Up to the moment
When we said our first hello.
Little did we know
Love was just a glance away,
A warm embracing dance away and -
Ever since that night we’ve been together.
Lovers at first sight, in love forever.
It turned out so right,
For strangers in the night.
Tuesday, May 02, 2006
Jootis!!!
Due to popular demand and raves about my collection of jootis (ie. shoes), I shall post more pictures of them in future.But i've also gotto clarify that i'm not an abnormal shoes fetishist.Okay since that question is out of the way, lemme present to you, me and my niece furby,who also shares her aunt's passion for shoes and is starting off young!Her poor parents!
Friday, April 28, 2006
The Little Prince
Bought a few new books today....I had to get a brand new 'The Little Prince' for my niece!All time favourite....i seriously even considered taking up french so that i could read the original version once upon a time.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery was a french author, journalist and pilot who wrote The Little Prince in 1943, one year before his death.
The Little Prince appears to be a simple childrens tale.But some would say that it is actually a profound and deeply moving tale, written in riddles and laced with philosopy and poetic metaphor.
So I lived my life alone, without anyone that I could really talk to, until I had an accident with my plane in the Desert of Sahara, six years ago. Something was broken in my engine. And as I had with me neither a mechanic nor any passengers, I set myself to attempt the difficult repairs all alone. It was a question of life or death for me: I had scarcely enough drinking water to last a week.
The first night, then, I went to sleep on the sand, a thousand miles from any human habitation. I was more isolated than a shipwrecked sailor on a raft in the middle of the ocean. Thus you can imagine my amazement, at sunrise, when I was awakened by an odd little voice.
It said: "If you please, draw me a sheep!"
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!
I made Ivan ambulate today.
After almost 4 months of being bedbound!
Made his mom bring his wheelchair from home and sat him up on it and took him for a spin.
I could seriously tell that he was mighty pleased!
I'm sure if he could express himself he would have gone, "Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" and squeeled in delight!
Sunday, April 23, 2006
I smell nice thanks to....
....."Promesse"!(my last birthday gift from my sis Nihad)
The nicest compliment I'd ever gotten in a long time was from a 6 year old patient of mine who greeted me yesterday with a,"you're the nicest smelling doc with the nicest smile ever!"Boy.....did it make my day!
Anyways, what has prompted me to write about my perfume???
As mentioned earlier went for a wedding yesterday.
Since I don't consume alcohol I was the designated driver so imagine a car loaded with 4 women(including me!) all decked and perfumed to kill!I mean literally!
I almost gagged and passed out by the time we got ourselves to the ballroom.....and needed to take a few deep breaths before I seated myself at my table for the sumptous meal.Even then it took me a while to start enjoying my meal!
Why do people do it???
Drench themselves with perfume??
Silly question....all I have to do is probably just ask my sisters/mom/dad all of whom have given me perfumes as gifts one after another (hey....was it a subtle way of telling me something??) and who are big fans of huge bottles over overpowering scents made to make faiza's tummy churn and who cannot fathom how someone (insert "Me") could use a whole bottle of perfume for more than a year and still have more than half the bottle leftover!
Hmmmm.....still.....I smell good and I know at least I do not make other's stomach churn!
Thank God for an ultrasensitive olfactory bulb!
Vertigo!
http://www.worldsbestbars.com/city/bangkok/vertigo-bangkok.htm
Unos, dos, tres, catorce
Lights go down
It's dark
The jungle is your head
Can't rule your heart
I'm feeling so much stronger
Than I thought
Your eyes are wide
And though your soul
it can't be bought
your mind can wander
Hello, Hello
Hola!
I'm at a place called vertigo (¿Dónde está?)
It's everything I wish I didn't know
Except you give me something I can feel
Feel
The night is full of holes
Those bullets rip the sky
Of ink with gold
They twinkle as the boys play rock and roll
They know that they can't dance
At least they know
I can sell the beat
I'm askin' for the cheque
Girl with crimson nails
Has Jesus 'round the neck
Swinging to the music
Swinging to the music
Woooao
Hello, Hello
Hola!
I'm at a place called Vertigo (¿Dónde está?)
It's everything I wish I didn't know
But you give me something I can feel
Feel
Check mated
Oh yeah
Hours of fun...
All of this, all of this can be yours
All of this, all of this can be yours
All of this, all of this can be yours
Just give me what I want and no-one gets hurt
Hello, Hello
Hola!
I'm at a place called Vertigo
Lights go down and all I know
Is that you give me something I can feel
You're teaching me ...aaahhh
Your love is teaching me how
How to kneel
Kneel
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah...
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!
Lyrics:Bono & The Edge
The most romantic wedding ever....
Went for Adrian's wedding yesterday.It was a nice simple wedding but out in the outdoors with greenery and birds chirping with a select group of the couple's family and friends.So it was all the more a personal experience for all of us and I swear i had goose bumps as did everybody else when they both took their vows.And there couldn't have been anyone who also did not shed tears of joy when Eilynn started crying during her vows...and when the couple sealed their vows with a kiss!
It was just soooooooooo romantic!
Ooooh...let's not forget the reception afterwards with an 8 course meal which was simply scrumptous~I normally don't like weddings or going for one....it's so overrated!Especially Indian weddings!The clothes, jewellery, the music and all those hundreds of people at the wedding some of whom the bride and groom have probably never ever met before in their lives.It's all for the benefit of the 'press' (aka people who gossip about the wedding afterwards!) which is really sad because who gives a rat's ass anyways about these gossipmongers and why oh why should we even invite such people to the most important event of your life?
So i hope somebody out there is taking notes on all this...... :)
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
SOS!!
I NEED A VACATION!Seriously!
This sudden urge for a break was triggered by various factors strongest one being the recent short stint in Bangkok last weekend.
Was fortunate enough to experience firsthand the Songkhran festival in Thailand.
Quite fun getting drenched and powdered but it wasn't so fun for a bit when i couldn't stop shivering thanks to people 'shooting' with ice water loaded waterguns....
Sometimes i wake up bright and shiny eyed and just long to get to the hospital.
But there are some days when all i wanna do is stay in and call in sick.....no kidding!Read the newspapers today about the survey and i seriously do not know what my feelings are....are doctors really that trustworthy??I'd like to think that we are but certain parents i've come across whilst at work certainly didn't give me that impression!Especially with the threat of a lawsuit if anything should go wrong these days and all the negative media review in the local newspapers about medical professionals......
Well,....all i want now is a vacation!!!Don't care much about whether people think i'm trustworthy or not~
Humans are soooooooo fickle minded anyways.
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
Saturday, April 08, 2006
sick birds, dead chicks and breeding mosquitoes...
Ugh!
Avian flu.
And now Chikungunya......
10 points for anyone who can say 'ckikungunyachikungunyachikungunyachikungunya....'10 times really fast!
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
Monday, April 03, 2006
Penang rediscovered....
It's funny how one has to see one's own hometown in the eyes of a stranger or in my case, a foreigner, to really get to know the place.
I was born and brought up in Penang.Yet i never really 'knew' Penang as I thought I had until last weekend.Thanks to a Swiss friend of mine who was down for a visit, I had to play a 'pathetic tourguide'.
A pathetic tourguide I was because I realized how little I actually knew about my own hometown!A guided trip (by a professional tour guide of course) down the Heritage Trail really did open my eyes and senses in a way and boy have I fallen in love with the little shophouses here which I have always been oblivious to!
It was also a trip down memorylane for me as I walked through the tiny lanes and rode on trishaws or better known as "beca" over here.Now I look twice when I pass a shophouse and know what 'elements' (water/fire/earth/metal/wood) the owners wanted, and which era they were built in, and how wealthy/or not the owners were, etc.
The Cheong Fatt Tze mansion of course takes the cake but then again some other places with exceptional restoration done would include the Swiss restaurant, 'Edelweiss',the few art galleries along Armenian street and Little India.
All in all it was a wonderful experience and I'd do it again!
I am now even more proud to be a Penangite.
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Wednesday, March 22, 2006
Hui Yi
Meet Hui Yi.
The most adorable girl i've ever come across!
She's 3 years old and suffers from nephrotic syndrome.....this would be her 8th relapse and she's on steroids....probably will be for a very long time.
She's been warded for 2 weeks now and she's still not responding that well to medications.
The reason i adore her so much is because no matter how long she has been at the hospital and no matter how much she hates blood taking or getting pricked,she's always ready to greet anyone with her smile and her toys.She's well behaved and despite her condition (some kids take advantage of their parents when they are sick), she's not a drama queen and is very considerate with her mom who tries to be with her as much as she can(she's expecting another child in a month's time) cause she can't wait to have a baby brother with whom she can play.
In times of personal adversity.....think of Hui Yi....
(Darn blogger!i can't put up hui yi's picture...i promise i shall put it up...taken with the permission of her mom.)
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