blessed.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."
[ Jeremiah 29:11 ]

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Saturday, June 10, 2006

12:06 am

thursday

We sat in with Dr again. He said that when advising patients on treatment, they usually consider the patient as a whole. Their social conditions etc. (eg. No point giving an old lady suffering from arthritis cutting-edge knee surgery, especially when her daily activities do not require great mobility. It’s a different story for a patient who is a businessman.) That’s why at the primary healthcare (polyclinic) level, they focus a lot on a holistic team-based approach. Again, he stressed that new cutting-edge technology is not what medicine really needs. Knowledge can be picked up but not values. That’s why most medical schools have interviews, to ensure that whoever they are grooming have a proper set of values and principles and will not murder/torture patients for “fun” etc. Although such technological advancement has greatly reduced the hassle and paperwork, he lamented that it has dehumanized the profession, sometimes treating patients as “cases” or “illnesses”, instead of a human beings (common in large hospitals).

Later, we observed the Developmental Assessment and Immunisation room. I saw babies getting their injections! They looked so tiny, yet so strong.. Too bad it was raining and there were very few patients. There was a “Hall Of History” between the DA and Immunisation rooms. Since we had nothing better to do, we went in to take a look. It was a brown room that was not very well-lit, displaying mannequins dressed in nurses’ uniforms from the 1940s to the present and certain tools/equipment used in medical procedures in the past. I was looking at some of the tools in the corner when I heard the sound of a siren, screams, airplanes and a conversation. I didn’t take note of its content because I was quite startled. N and I gave each other the “what is that? / huh?” look. Then we sort of stoned for a while before we started laughing and walked out of the room. So stupid! haha. yea. Then we wandered around the polyclinic before reporting back to Dr.

Dr said that in whatever you do, it is very important that you internalise the motivation. Your motivation must not come from something external. What if this external motivation changes? Will you be able to hang on and persevere to the end? It is very common to see drop-out cases in medical school because of this reason. Also, when you choose medicine, you will definitely be behind your peers who did not attend medical school, in terms of career advancement. For guys, you will be at least 28 when you can start building your career. :o tremendous sacrifice must be made.

Afterthoughts:

This attachment really changed my attitude towards primary healthcare physicians/ general practitioners. Initially, I had the mentality that GPs were a bunch of lazy people who were simply after easy money, who “wasted” their potential. After so many years of medical school, all you want to do is treat patients with the common cold, fever, etc.? This is definitely not the case, especially for doctors working in polyclinics. Their job is tough, needing to deal with difficult, often uneducated patients that belonged to the lower strata of society. They need to tackle a social problem often underplayed and neglected by the media. They are often unheard, unseen by the general, more affluent population, compared to those in the larger hospitals.

I thought life as a family physician was monotonous, boring and dull. Yet, through this programme, I realised how wrong I was. In fact, it could be even more challenging and exciting than that of a specialist. Here, you will not know what might be coming through the door next. It could range from the usual cough-cold-flu patient, to someone who has a cotton bud stuck in his ear, to someone suffering from depression. Whereas in a cardiologist’s clinic, you know for sure that the next patient coming in will suffer from some heart ailment. There is an element of suspense and the unknown.

It also helped me appreciate the entire healthcare system as a whole, a large concerted effort towards the same goal. I have greater respect and admiration for healthcare workers, especially those in the primary healthcare industry. This experience shattered my rose-tinted glasses towards medicine in general. It is a far cry from the hyped-up, overly glamorous (or degrading) image portrayed by the mass media in popular shows such as “ER” and “Grey’s Anatomy”. Medicine truly is a noble profession.

Now, I am seriously reconsidering my future career choice. I really wonder if I would be able to step up to the call, face he challenge, make the sacrifices, handle the pressure? Biomed slightly dissuaded me because it is so difficult and I could barely catch up, let alone even understand what they are teaching. However, this attachment helped me see that after the initial difficulties, medicine is an extremely rewarding career. Even as an observer, I felt satisfied when I saw patients leaving the room with a smile on his/her face. I guess it all boils down to the individual’s attitude. Despite the challenges and difficulties that I observed, somehow, I felt even more strongly that medicine is what I wanted to pursue. This ‘unglamorous’ side attracted, rather than repelled me from this aspiration that I so dearly held on to since Primary 5.

Yes. I have come to the end of my description of the NHG JSP. I sincerely hope those who are reading it have benefited. I felt that it is the least I could do for those who were not as privileged as me, though I feel that these entries cannot do justice to the experience itself. Until now, I still do not know why I was granted this rare opportunity. I was the only J1 there. The school could have easily chosen a J2 instead... I really thank God for His providence and grace. I feel so undeserving of the blessings I’ve been given...

Now that this is done, I have to get back to reality. I seriously need to start work. Believe it or not, I have not touched my books since the holidays started. Don’t expect anymore entries anytime soon. As usual, feel free to post any comments or questions on the tagboard. I will do my best to answer them =)

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