Sam's

Burberry 2010 shimmer line

•October 2, 2010 • Leave a Comment

Medium shimmer check degrade hobo bag, £395

Small shimmer check bowling bag, £475

Small shimmer check degrade crossbody bag, £350

Small shimmer check degrade sling bag, £275

This was not my first set of nights since I started work, neither was it my first time working in the medical assessment unit (MAU). But it was my first set of nights on MAU and knowing that I would be the only house officer on duty for that four consecutive nights did dread me. So many “what-ifs” went through my mind, and the level of fear escalated exponentially with each what-if.

The first pleasant surprise which I came across right away on my first night was finding out that 3 out of 5 doctors (including myself) on duty for that four nights are from Malaysia. If someone were to use this sample size and research on the proportion of Malaysians in Blackburn, it would have shown a result of 60%, obviously inaccurate due to selection bias

Anyway, the thought of being the only house officer there still stressed me out. Besides taking orders from senior colleagues, completing jobs which no one wanted to do, being a “clerking machine” trying not to appear too far behind with my speed, I also had to face the unpredictable nature of medicine. I absolutely didn’t mind clerking and managing patients who fell under the list of “popular conditions”, but not so much of those which I had never heard of or had absolutely no idea of what I should do. 9 out of 10 patients would come in with the few most popular symptoms, i.e. chest pain, breathlessness, vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, collapse, etc.. But occasionally, I would be hit with conditions or patients that would make me look like I just had 3 seconds of absence seizure; Morphine overdose, sickle cell crisis, Hemoglobin of 3.7?! and still smiling, patient who “F…” at everyone including myself etc..Alright, most of them are manageable but it just felt like there was too much to take at times especially at 3-4 am in the morning.

I also managed to practice my Ayliffe technique of handwashing 10 times after unexpectedly being kissed on my right hand by a morphine overdose patient in his 40s who overly appreciated my care for him. Moreover, it was not like a soft half a second peck, it was more like a 2 seconds wet-ish MUACKSS with my hand held in his, followed by an affectionate “thank you”. Later that whole night or rather morning, I kept hearing “Doctorrrrrr…..” echoing behind me everywhere I went which I managed to ignore by saying I was too busy.

In short, these 4 nights had indeed been a good experience. Seniors had been extremely helpful and encouraging. It definitely wasn’t as bad as how I thought it would be. Moreover, there isn’t anything more perfect to end a set of nights than a PAYCHECK.

Posted in Medicine and career

Why GP (General Practice) is suitable for me

•September 19, 2010 • Leave a Comment

1. It is MOSTLY a 9-5 job, with no weekends or night shifts.

Yes, I hate going in to work in the weekends when I am supposed to be relaxing at home, spending time with my family or doing my shopping in town. Night shifts are worse. Not only there will be less doctors on duty which means I will have increased work load i.e. more stress, my sleep pattern will be all screwed up as well. Being a person who loves sleeping, night shift is a no-no.

2. I can wear my only favourite category of shoes i.e. high heels to work.

Most people may not understand how certain girls could wear 3-4 inches high of high heels from day to night, but I do, as I WAS like this myself before I officially became a DOCTOR. Back in college and uni days, I used to wear high heels to almost everywhere I go and never got tired of them, or felt tired in them. Unfortunately, I had decided to temporarily put them into storage since I started work given the on-calls and the distance I had to run across the hospital in limited time.

3. It is the closest I can find to my “ideal” job environment

I do not like hospital environments, including the vast area, the smell, the stairs I have to climb everyday, the wards, the sight of patients in their hospital gowns, the ward rounds etc.. My “ideal” job environment is like what you see in one of those Hong Kong TVB series where ladies dress up in designer dresses, walking tall in 4 inches stiletto heels, working in an office on the 38th storey overlooking skyscrapers. I know the GP environment is still too far from my “impossible dream”, but at least it is slightly closer than working in the hospital.

4. There is less standing up and more sitting down

I know I sound lazy but being on my feet for long hours everyday is really tiring. It also means with more time sitting down as a GP, I can utilise time between patients to facebook, blog, check my emails and even do some online shopping. Isn’t that perfect?

So, are the arguments above sufficient to support my choice to do GP in the future? I just wish they could build GP centres on the higher floors of taller buildings, that way my job satisfaction will be enhanced as well.

Posted in Medicine and career