Being Proactive!

I just had my very first meeting with my academic advisor today. It was just a get-to-know session between us and her and she did ask about how's everything going on in our firm and wards.

As soon as she posed that question to us, I had expected that all of my groupmates will voice out their unsatisfactoriness towards the teaching from our consultant. Let me just name him as Dr. X to keep his identity anonymous for obvious reasons.

Basically, we had a limited amount of proper teaching from our consultant. He is always occupied with his work and we rarely had the time to meet him in the ward. Undoubtedly, being a cardiologist is a hectic work but he should bear in mind that he also has the responsibility on our teaching. Even if he really do not have the time to meet and teach us, he should assign any registrars, SHOs, or FYs under him to teach us. Plus, his clinic is conducted at the same time as our PBL session. Therefore, we never had the chance to be in the cardiology clinic even though we are about to swap firms!

I felt jealous when I heard some other groups bragging about the proper teaching that they had in their firms with their consultants. They would always compare with each other what kind of skills, examinations and procedure that they have done. For instance, a guy would say they have performed a venepuncture on a patient. Then, there would be a girl claiming that she had done an ABG. And the list continues on and on. It seems to me as if all of this is some kind of a huge competition!

Going back to the meeting that I had with my academic advisor, she told us to be more proactive in gaining our teaching. Well, that was what we actually did for the past 6 weeks! All of the teaching in the wards that we had was like a ad hoc session. We would turn up and grab any consultants or doctors in sight to teach us something related to our case for that week.

When we get ourselves to the wards, we would always meet the nurses first and ask them if there are any patients that we could talk to and practice our history-taking on them. In terms of skills teaching, we could say that we lack a bit on that part because all the doctors in our ward rarely had a huge time to go through all the examinations that we did on the patients. Luckily, we have a clinical debrief session once a week to compensate on that! And of course, there would be certain time which all the doctors are really busy and they do not even have time to teach us and turn down our request.

In all, we have been very proactive in getting our teaching since we started our placement in the cardiology ward. We would always try to get our hands on every single teaching opportunity that is available. If not, how would we have even survived the past few weeks!

Life In Clinical Years

I keep delaying and telling myself to write something in this blog some time later which ended up I didn't post any entry for the past few weeks. Right now, I am pulling all of my strength and energy around me to write an entry after I left this blog unattended for a while.

As most of you guys might have already know, I have just started my clinical years in Wythenshawe Hospital and I'm gonna spend my time here till I graduate. The hospital is actually located quite far from my house, near the Manchester Airport, which kinda force me to wake up very early in the morning to commute. Basically, my daily timetable has totally changed vastly now. Everyday, I wake up at 6 am, get ready, and leave my house at 7.30 am and reach my hospital at 8.30 am everyday. That's quite an early time for some people to get out of bed, huh?

And when it comes to clinical years, all of my schedule are really packed with all sorts of clinical teaching such as ward rounds, skills teaching, clinical debrief and ward works. Most of the days, I will always get home at about 6 pm and feels extremely exhausted. Don't know if it's the journey to and from the hospital that takes out most of my energy but when you have a hectic schedule, it is unlikely you will end up not feeling worn out.

I could still remember a senior told me to appreciate and cherish the free times that I had when I was in first and second years because clinical years gonna is not gonna treat you well. I guess there are right and now I am starting to feel the tense!

The main entrance for Wythenshawe Hospital

In all, I think that the very early start schedule everyday is to get me used to the real life as a doctor. Once, an FY2 doctor told me that his work starts at 8 am and finishes at 6 pm everyday. Guess my schedule was not that bad and it could be worst. Otherwise, I am grateful with my life and will always try to lead an active life of a medical student. Peace out!

My New Sacred Resting Place

To divert my mind from thinking any other issues, I have decided to write about my newly-renovated room.

I have arrived in Manchester for about 5 days ago and really don't have much anything to do. The main thing on my mind was that I need to settle down and had a long to-do-list to prepare myself for the new academic term. And the first thing on that list was renovating my room. For me, it's important to have a neat, tidy, clean and comfortable room as it is the place where you would study, do your work and get a good night rest. It is the best sanctuary in your home.

Before this, I admit that my room looks kinda boring and dull. I don't have much stuff for decoration and the lighting in the room was not that good. The only source of bright light in my room was my desk lamp and it shines much brighter than the ceiling lamp. Thus, I brought my own light bulb from home to solve this issue. It's a Philip, an electronic brand that you can trust, and use 18 Watts to shine. Trust me, my room now looks more clearer and I could see any dust or clutter on the floor with this kind of light.

Then, it's the duvet cover and pillowcases. Since my bed is a double-sized bed, it is undoubtedly the main attraction in my room. People would surely have a look at my bed first before scrutinizing everything else. Before this, I have used a bright red silk duvet cover and pillowcases which didn't work out very well. Now, I decided to change all of that and replace it with a more 'metro' kind of style. Look at the pictures below!

The furniture arrangements in my room also needs a change to instill a new environment in this room. The new arrangements made my room looks a little bit smaller than before. But, I think the new available space would suffice for me to pray or do some indoor exercises. That's good enough for me. Let's just hope that there won't be additional furniture in my room later on.

Have a look at the pictures below and you can imagine how comfortable and neat my new rooms is! :)

View from entrance

My stuff

Look at how bright my room is now!

p/s: There is more to come. Some finishing touches still need to be done. :)

The Sense Of Dinar And Dirhams

I felt intrigued after reading a news article a few days ago about the Kelantan State Government introduced a new currency only for its state called Dinar and Dirham. Each dinar is worth RM180 and one dirham is RM4.

Whichever way you look at it, the fact remains that the opposition party of the Malaysian government has introduced a new system of currency. This new currency is really interesting as the last time an Islamic country used this syariah currency was the Ottoman Caliphate, dated back about more than 100 years ago.

The dinar and dirham are said can be used in more than 1000 shops in Kelantan and are accepted to be used to pay zakat and dowry.

As expected, Bank Negara Malaysia issued a statement, claiming only Ringgit Malaysia is the legal tender in this country.

Then, the Kelantan state governement said that their administrative staff will be paid in this new currency. Problem would certainly rise later on because if the staff were to spend outside the state, they need to change their money first which I would think most (possibly all) money changers would not accept as it is not an official currency of a country.

Some might see this act has something to do with politics and I do not doubt that. Maybe PAS also wants to create a sense of belonging to the Kelantanese and to show the world that they are serious in upholding the Islamic most prestigious currency.

The Kelantan Dirham

In terms of practical reasons, how much of the currency of one state can be minted and circulated widely? Lets just wait and see what happens next!

I'm Not A Superstar

My brother just showed me a video clip of a song, made by an Indonesian group called Project Pop. I'm not sure whether this group is famous or not in Indonesia as this is the first time I've heard of their name, but by the looks of number of views for this video, it is really promising. I know I'm maybe a little bit behind in publicising this video because my brother told me that this video has been popularly known since few months back. What the heck!

What attracted me the most about this video is the way they imitates top superstars of Indonesia in a much candid and funny way. Watching them copying the style and habits of Ariel Peterpan (currently known as Peterporn due to his involvement in a sex video), Glenn Fredly and Mulan Jamilah in this video is simply hilarious! You guys really have to watch it! Enjoy!

What's Wrong With What I Ride?

When we have reached a certain age in adulthood, our mode of transportation is one of the most important matter in our life. Your choice of transportation is essential as people would perceive your financial status based on that (at least that's how Malaysian thinks). If you are still riding a motorbike in your twenties or thirties, people would think that you are broke and they would look down on you! I had my own episodes in this matter which I think suitably to be comprised of 3 parts as follows.

Lets start at the beginning, shall we?I could still vividly remember that when I was 10 years old, I wanted a bicycle! A bicycle with changeable gears! Not just the normal, cheap ones. But my father objected my wish because he said that I do not need a bicycle as my school was only a mere 5 minutes walk from my home. Hey, I was a kid back then and didn't really understand about the things that I want and the things that I need. I made a deal with my dad, that if I were first in class again in the exams, he would buy it for me. In the end, I won the deal and my father had to buy it for me. I felt really satisfied and happy and continue wandering of throughout my 'kampung' with pride on the first day I got that bike. Really, I admit that I was a big ass show off back then!

Then, when I reached the age of 16, the craze for motorbike started. Well, this fanatic for motorbike didn't really hit me, most probably because I entered a boarding school. Being stranded in exile, away from this 'pointless influence'. Thus, I can see it in my brother and some of my friends who study in daily schools. The obsession of wanting a Yamaha or Honda motorbike was a priority, other than academic achievements of course. If you had a Modenas or Egos motorbike, you just barely make it to the par because your country-made motorbike is regarded as 'second class'. The more expensive it is, the more look-of-awe that you'll get! Whats even worst is that if you were still riding a bicycle to school, you could be mocked or teased by those idiot people. And having a 'first class' motorbike is also considered a 'tool' to catch some high school 'chicks', (Takkan nak ajak awek jalan2 naik motor kapcai aje kot? Tak hingin i! :p)

The final part of this ridiculous transition is when you have reached your early twenties. Then, the desire to have a car mounted up within you. You will then tell your parents that you feel as if you are getting tired of riding a motorbike. You will use excuses such as the weather is always rainy and your college or university is too far to be reached by a motorbike. With a puppy-lost look face, begging and hoping that your parents will agree on buying a car for you. But the irony thing about this part of transition is that the first choice of car would be the one made in Malaysia such as Kancil or MyVi, with the latter being the one most sought for. Not the Japan-made or Germany-made vehicles as before. Obviously because of the price of course. Then, the funniest thing about this part is that you will be filled with pride with your 'own' car and upload pictures in your Facebook the trips that you have done with 'your' car and posed with various styles to show the world that you now have owned a car. Even though the real fact is that the car that you are driving is under your father's name, haven't finished paying the installments and you still asking money from your mom to fill up the petrol. That is the reality and I do think some of you out there might dislike me for stating the real context here. Bummer, huh? Oh! and another thing, no doubt having a car will act as a 'magnet' to attract all those college and university chicks because now you look macho in a car to attend an event, rather than riding a motorbike soaked in rain.

In all, I would agree that having a vehicle is important to commute from your home to your workplace or university. But, it must come and be used with modesty and do not ever ostentatiously drive your car in front of your friends filled with pride and obnoxiousness because it is not you who pays up the installment of that car which does not make it your car. Yes, that is the fact! If you really wanna do that kind of act, just wait till you get your own job and source of income. Then we'll see the real car that you really capable of using. Adios!

No Operation For Me

As some of you guys might have already know, I was about to undergo an operation on my right knee. I had injured and tore my anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in a rugby match during my years back in KMB. It is painless for most of the time but succumb to the fact that I can't play any rough sports due to this injury is something that is difficult for me to take. And for me to regain full recovery and strength, I need to have that surgery.

But, guess what? Yeah, you're right if your guess is based on the title of this entry. It got cancelled!

Why you ask?

The answer lies on the specialists. There are only four orthopedics specialist in the hospital and believe it or not, they are all fully booked till August. I was surely in a dismay state at that time and tried to plea if I could ft in any slot for the surgery. But my effort came to no avail. There was even this one specialist, he even opened up his diary in front of me to prove that he has at least 2 surgeries to be done each day till August. If I really wanna have the surgery, I need to stay back till August and extend my summer holiday till September. That is something I can't afford to do.

Another thing is that the doctors explained to me that my injury is not an emergency case. Which means that they will hold me back to give priority for the most needy ones. Get in the queue lad!!

I would have the surgery if I were to stay here till September, but that's not gonna happen because I will be leaving Malaysia quite early this year as my clinical classes will commence on the 1st of September.

I have thought of getting the surgery in a private hospital, but the doctor said that it would cost about RM6000 in total. My parents would surely stand against that idea as we are really tight in our expenditure for that kind of amount.

Then, the final resort would be having the surgery back in Manchester. UK has a really good welfare system for students because I don't have to pay a single penny if I have my surgery there. All of it will be taken care by the National Health Service. Sounds great, huh? Only the problem is, I'm not sure where I could fit in the time for surgery and recovery as my timetable would be really packed for next term. Bear in mind, starting from next term, I will be having my clinical studies in South Manchester Hospital from 9 to 5 for most of the day. Even commuting from my home to the hospital would take about 40 minutes one way. Will I have the time for the surgery then?

I am in a complete state of nothingness right now. I guess it's another year of 'sport-less' for me then. No intense running. No tackling. No kicking. Well, i could do for a jog, but that just wouldn't cut it. My closest friends sure knows how much I like to have my adrenaline and blood rushing through sports. Let's just hope that next year will fly past really fast and all goes well, shall we?