11th Apr, 11.30am
One big hurdle to cross to get to my dream.
On a side note, going to POP soon 
A month of change
Looking back, it seems hard to believe that 5 weeks have already passed since I enlisted for national service. When I enlisted back on the 31st, the 9 weeks of basic military training I had to go through seemed like forever. Now, I’m just another month away before I POP, and I can’t wait for that day to come.
The past 5 weeks has certainly not been smooth-sailing. The initial 3 weeks of confinement made me really miss my civilian life. Some of my friends said it’s almost like being in jail – you lose your freedom to decide when you can eat, sleep and go out. Compounded by the fact that all of us are new to each other, there was nothing making us treasure the acquaintances we have just met.
When we finally got to book out on the 3rd weekend, the feeling was surreal. Walking out in the smart No.4 to board the MRT felt like a privilege, and at no time did I feel like sleeping (although that could be partly due to the fact that we shouldn’t be sitting when there are commuters standing). It was a 7pm book out for us then, and reaching home at 9pm I quickly unpacked, used my com and got back to sleep.
When the second book in came, we knew that we were going in for another 2 weeks. This time round, we had our field camp starting on the saturday of the following week so none of us were booking out. Due to our special status as the only enhanced batch within the PTP coy, we had to tag along with the whole company for field camp despite being only 3 weeks old in army. It was a great experience outfield, being unable to shower and sleeping in sweaty, muddy clothings. Every tree was a potential latrine point. Day turned to night at the time when you might be enjoying your dinner still, with pitch darkness setting in and all that was left for us to do was to powder up and turn in for the night, hugging our dear wives to sleep (A 4kg bolster ain’t very comfortable to sleep with, but then again real wives are known to weigh on average 40 – 55kg). Luckily for us, it didn’t pour heavily while it was pitch dark, although the heavens did cry while we were digging our shellscrapes. Moods were dampen but we persevered, lifted up eventually by well wishes from our families when the mail run came. Our commanders also specially ordered in fresh rations for us to dig into instead of the usual outfield rations.
3 more days after that, we were finally done with field camp and SIT test. A mad rush to book out that night it was, as all of us were busy cleaning our rifles before we were allowed to return them to the armskote. I chose to forgo dinner that night in order to make a trip to the toilet. On the bright side though, I went for a Mcdonald meal right after I booked out as dinner-cum-supper to make up and met Bernard along the way! Thanks to him and his parents, I got a lift home that night. Only managed to dragged myself off the bed at 12pm the next day, although I told myself to wake up at 8am 
The past week was a mad rush to clear the high key events left: live-firing and live-grenade throw. Managed to score marksman for the live shoot (gosh I love my rifle’s calibration). On the other hand, I threw a blind on grenade throw -.- But on the bright side I got to experience a C4 going off!
Now with most of the high key events cleared, I have no idea what’s left in store for me back in Tekong other than physical training and rehearsals for POP! Hope what they say about the last few weeks of BMT being enjoyable is true. Furthermore, now that I get to book out every weekend (as long as I don’t get into trouble), military life doesn’t seem to tough anymore, both mentally and emotionally speaking. Still, I’ve learnt to treasure every weekend out I get, much more so than while I was in hostel, despite the fact that they both run on the same schedule (book out on friday nights and book in on sunday nights).
Eagerly awaiting for the time to move on after BMT….
"POP loh!" yet
To the island in the North that’s not Tekong
Took a trip with Chee Ying, Ash and Kiang Teng to Pulau Ubin today! Chee Ying first came up with the idea since we wanted to explore more of Singapore before we enlisted. Ubin’s a good choice since it’s a bicycle-accessible island and a nice getaway from mainland Singapore.
We met at Tampines MRT at 930… no wait make that 9.45am. I overslept When I woke up in the morning, I realised my alarm clock hasn’t went off yet. Even so, I decided to get up, only to find a bed tempting me in another room (my brother’s not at home for the next few days). In that sleepy state, I figured I was still early, thus I threw my body back on the bed. When I woke up later, it was thanks to my mother bringing my ringing phone to me, on which writes “SNOOZE ALARM”. Then I realised I’m half-an-hour late! At least I did gave myself some spare time in case I wanted to snooze, so I didn’t end up reaching too late. SORRY GUYS! ><
Met up with Kiang Teng at Jurong East before heading down. Then it was a bus ride to Changi Village Ferry Terminal for a short brunch (we weren’t sure if there’s going to be food on the island) before a $2.50 bumboat ride to Pulau Ubin!
In Tioman, it was mainly stray cats everywhere. At Ubin, stray dogs roam the streets. At least they weren’t like the dogs at Punggol that have been chasing joggers; they learnt from the islanders there that they should MYOB.
Walking towards the main area of ubin, there were about 4 bicycle rental shops in tight competition with one another. The wise Chee Ying said to ignore them and walk deeper in, better rental prices. We eventually got our 21-gear bicycles at $7 each for a full day? Ain’t too bad considering the build quality of the bicycles we got and our gear selection
We first visited the OBS quarry where we built the raft back in year 3. Just a short ride out of the town area and the wildlife starts popping out. Birds, storks, egrets, not sure what other birds there are. I’m lazy to upload my photos on WordPress, all the photos are on my FB page (: There was also a monitor lizard basking in the sun on some logs that were placed right beside a cycling trail map. Along the way we passed by places like the area where we beached up to cross over to the next swamp during sea-ex and places where we did activities for land-ex. Memories of Munshi group
The path into the quarry is a really rocky dirt path that has uneven terrain and intermittent slopes. Definitely not a place for the amateur cyclist; the 4 of us had quite a bumpy ride in (Ouch). The path also gets smaller as we went further in, with the tall spiky grass just brushing against our bare skin. The unrelenting sun still shines brightly above our heads as we headed through the trail (and for the rest of the day). The quarry was locked up though (kinda expected), so we headed back after visiting one of the campsites during OBS (the one near the gates with barb fencing).
If it was uphill slopes while we were going in, then they become downhill slopes when we went out After passing through some of the uphill areas while we were heading out on foot (yea the offroad bumpy road took a toll on my legs), we came to the top of a very steep downhill slope. The other 3 went down ahead of me, so I didn’t know they were stopping at the foot of the hill for a break. The adrenaline junkie in me thus decided it was a good idea to head down that slope without brakes.
A feeling of exhilaration spread through my body as I headed down that slope, picking up speed and feeling the wind brush past the side of my face. I stooped down to conform to a more aerodynamic shape and upshifted to the max gear for the landing at the bottom. Clearing the shade, I emerged at the bottom of the slope, only to see a hut with a Chee Ying standing in it with his bicycle parked at the side. Up ahead, it was a curved route with Kiang Teng and Ash pausing at the side too. If I sped ahead, I wouldn’t know if I would crash into KT and Ash since it was a curved route. Then again, I need some space to brake.
With my mind off the road, I didn’t notice that I was drifting to the edge of the tarmac. By the time I noticed, it was too late to make any drastic corrections to my route. Well falling on loose granite should be better than falling on tarmac anyways. I skidded off onto the dirt path where brakes don’t work as effectively, especially an emergency brake. Placing my feet down to try to get off the bike before I crashed, I inadvertently created a pivot on which my forward momentum would push me off the bike and send me crashing into the ground, landing on my side and rolling onto my back before a stop. Fortunately, the bicycle didn’t land on me (: A dust cloud was stirred up, some eventually make its way into my mouth.
My first accident on a bicycle since I’ve learnt to ride it. But it wasn’t too serious, just some pain in the butt and a scratch to my wrist. My skin’s pretty thick ^^ Cleaned my wound (yes I brought a first aid kit cause I was expecting something to happen on such trips) before we headed off again. This time, we took another off road trail around the other side of the quarry, into the tall grasslands. It just doesn’t feel like Singapore anymore seeing the vast expanse of pristine land, yet still having a proper clearing for bicycles to access makes it easy to get close to nature. A bee zipped past under my chin while we were cycling through the grassland.
Realising it would still be a long way to go (and probably much harder trails) to circle the quarry, we headed back to main town for a short break and drinks. Since it was only 1.30pm then, we decided to go check out the otherside of the island – Chek Jawa.
Some of the offroad uphill slopes leading into the area were really hard to surmount on bike, we had to go by foot often. It was painstakingly slow to get up on bike anyways (only Kiang Teng manages to get up all of them without getting off the bike at all. I realised I have been on the wrong gear going up hill after an internet check). Then somewhere at the top of a slope, Chee Ying’s drive-chain came loose, so I stayed behind with him since Ash and KT already headed down the slope and it will be tiring for them to come back up anyways. During the time while we were fixing the bicycle, this group of 4 Chinese ladies overtook us with their bicycles on foot. They totally didn’t seem dressed for cycling, being in short summer dresses and skirts with make up on.. wow. As the path was pretty small, we couldn’t overtake them at all. They were travelling 2 abreast on the dirt path, and not willing to give way when we kept having to pull up behind them.. pfft. KT and Ash meanwhile were waiting at a hut near the entrance to Chek Jawa, where KT supposedly unlocked achievements on some game on his phone.
When we were nearing Chek Jawa, both my thighs had to cramp -.- so I couldn’t continue biking until it disappated. Then it was a walk into Chek Jawa, where we visited the No.1 House, the broadwalk and the mangroves. The park ranger seemed pretty lonely there, having to sit there alone for the whole day manning the information booth. It was a high tide that day, so much of the coastal broadwalk was covered. Towards the mangrove though, we started seeing more mudkips (mudskippers) in the shallow areas. The inland mangrove had small crabs and a huge marshtomp. Along the mangrove walk was a watchtower to see the canopy layer of the mangrove and inland forest, as well as a good view of the sea with the seabirds catching rising thermals to soar through the air. A breathtaking sight considering that I didn’t take a plane to see all that.
After the walk, we met some boars as we mounted our bikes. Keeping our distance until they cleared the track, we cycled back towards town, along the way passing through this quarry that looked really beautiful with the lush greenery, some bare orange cliff faces and the deep blue colouration of a deep sea filling the centre (since the quarry is just deep hole in the ground). It was a speedy ride back as the grey clouds started coming in, and by the time we reached the town area it started to pour. We hurriedly returned the bikes and headed for the ferry terminal, running along sides dogs seeking shelter too. A short wait later and we were on the ferry heading back to mainland Singapore.
Ubin cycling expedition – Checked!
The Terminal
May you rest in peace, Auntie L.
It was quite a shocker to me when I first heard about the news. Even though I have been volunteering at the hospice for a year now, this is the first time hearing news of demise of a patient whom I fondly remember of. Due to my inability to speak fluent dialect, she was one of the patients where I could easily communicate with. She’s not the oldest, nor was she very frail when I last saw her, so I was totally unprepared for it.
In fact, it was quite a conincidence how the news got to us. It just so happened that a nurse met her daughter along the road, thus stopping the car to talk to her. Before this, the staff were only aware that she has been hospitalized for breathlessness. What we know is that she passed on peacefully though; she has already been preparing for this day to come since I last spoke to her. She always speaks about her filial children, making sure that she is still well taken care of despite of their working commitments, so I’m glad that she has moved on from this world with such loving care from her family in her final days.
That aside, I’m really impressed by the dedication the nurses have shown to their work. While we often consider patient-healthcare worker relationships, we must not neglect how important the family is, especially in the field of palliative care. Here is a nurse that took the effort to know her family, I guess to the extent that she even recognises the family members while driving on the road (of course I don’t recommend drivers to take their eyes off the road for too long). One could have simply drove ahead, but the nurse stopped shortly to find out about the patient’s condition from her daughter. That is genuine dedication to the line of work that many people shun due to the stigma associated with the patients in a hospice. After having volunteered there for so long though, I guess reality isn’t that bitter all the time.
For those who have been reading the newspapers lately (yes I started this habit after graduating from school), you might have noticed a very big emphasis on palliative care with regards to health news. Facing the grey tsunami and ever greater rates of lifestyle diseases as compared to the past, the government is seeking to expand upon current health infrastructure to cope with greater demand for such services in the future. Palliative care is considered a subspecialty which doctors can choose to embark on, while hospices are trying to expand their facilities and equip their staff with skills to cope with the needs of such patients. Society is starting to shift in acceptance of palliative care, where it no longer means “giving up hope” but rather to let a patient live a fufilling life in whatever days are left.
But to what extent should we let a patient enjoy his remaining days? This was a question I was confronted with while I was talking to a nurse today. She has spent more than a decade in this line of the work with the same hospice throughout. She has seen patients come and go, struggling at times to provide for patient’s last wishes. One of them was a man who wanted to eat rice dumplings (bazhang) but couldn’t eat solid food. Blending it wasn’t a good idea with the sticky glutinous rice. What the man really wanted was the taste, so the dumpling got cut into tiny little bits for the patient to suck on. At that point of time, I guess the nurses were relieved that he got what he wanted after all the hassle they had to go through. That evening though, the patient passed on. At this moment, after the thoughts of the sudden turnaround in events, you might be screaming in your head “which healthcare professional will let a patient eat glutinous rice when they have difficulty swallowing and given its nutritional content it’s not a healthy choice?” This is just one of the milder cases of what I have heard, but speaking about the other cases will certainly result in a huge public (or readers) backlash over what has been done in the past.
So, when a patient is in palliative care, is the motive to live long or live happy? I would certainly pick “to live happy”, but with restrictions placed upon them in their final days (usually on their diet), would they really be happy? In some cases, we do so to prevent an acute death. But at times, we err on the side of caution. It’s just such a fine line!
I think the best phrase to sum up my day today is “That’s life” (:
Very much overdue
I initially planned for writing all my experiences on this blog from that meaningful week I mentioned in my previous posts. But I realised that I’m very much overdue now and since I have written the details somewhere else, I can just give a quick summary and move on ^^
By the 3rd day, my schedule at NUH has became kind of routine.. morning ward rounds, shadow HO to the afternoon job, evening ward rounds. Today was a little special since there were learning ward rounds, so I had to report at 7. A consultant then brings all the HOs and MOs around to examine patients and go through cases with them. I almost got called to answer a question! Must have dressed too well XD
My schedule that day wasn’t too bad; luckily for me, my HO was heading for clinic that day, so I saw another round of clinic. This time round I was sitting with the registrar for clinic as my HO is sitting in with the consultant. It was quite relaxed in there cause there weren’t much patient that day, so we had little small chats about being a doctor again. The evening ward rounds then proceeded as planned, just that this time round there was a patient in diagnostic imaging getting scanned, so I went to another spot in the hospital. The only place I haven’t visited is the ICU in the past 3 days, but I think I would rather not if the patients are doing fine ^^
By right my job shadowing experience was supposed to end on Wed, but by left I went back on Thurs XD But it was just for a short while to attend their department meeting that I have sadly not been able to witness in the past 3 days. Thanks to the past 3 days though, I didn’t show up as a blurpoke in the meeting with the very little understanding I have garnered. This prevented me from dozing off as I sat in for 2 meetings – a journalclub meeting where junior doctors will present about a paper each and a morbidity and mortality meeting where the doctors and consultants will all be present to discuss their past cases and see where they can do better.
I left after the morning ward rounds on thurs for HCA hospice. It wasn’t nice to overstay for too long and impose upon the doctors X) It’s the place I volunteer frequently at (for those who don’t know), but I can’t exactly remember what happened while I was there that day. All I can rmb was that I went starbucks that day for free drinks! But I’m not so Singaporean lah, got make donation okay! And I met up with Bernard, Ernest and Mariel for “Already Famous” at cineleisure after that. Not a movie to my taste, found it really draggy and the target audience seemed to be more for those fans of mediacorp. Dozed off a couple of times in the cinema.
On Sat and Sun I went for HCA Homecheer event with Nat, Tricia, Yanling and Bryce! (: It’s a event that happens twice every year to bring some festive cheers to the patients of HCA, especially when they are not as mobile and are often at home. Really meaningful weekend spent with the patients as we brought them a goodie bag filled with food and a hongbao from the hospice, together with some songs and cheers for the Xmas season. Nat drove us around as we visited the patients one by one. The families were really receptive and welcoming of us, with one of them on Sunday even cooking up a meal for us! That family was filled with warmth and love as we stepped in, seeing 3 generations living in one single household harmoniously.When we first arrived, the patient wasn’t at home though! We were told that he went “swimming”, to which one of the granddaughters replied “HUH, ahgong so old how to swim?” We later realised that swimming refered to Mahjong with friends XD how apt, I should use this next time to tell my mum.
There were some households that we stopped by just to sing, or the patient was sleeping so we didn’t go in. But even if it’s just carolling or having a long stay at the house chit-chatting, seeing the patients smile made us feel really appreciated and welcomed. Some of them even sang along or taught us how to sing, especially the classic oldies like “Country Road” that none of us were familiar with other than the chorus. There was one family where we visited for an hour or so. It was a father and his daughter together with a dog called Puma (: That dog is so cute! Apparently it’s a big source of distraction even when the HCA staff comes visit the patient. Here’s a picture
There was another family that we visited. It was a 2-room flat that saw about 10+ members of the family living together. Despite the cramped conditions though, the family still manages well and seemed to be a very tight-knitted family too. The patient there had to rely on an oxygen concentrator, but that didn’t stop him from trying to speak and sing along with us, although it was barely audible as he was often trying to catch his breath. He thanked us with a weak smile, but definitely one that says a lot about his gratitude and appreciation of us coming to share the festive joys with him.
Our team appeared on the latest HCA newsletter issue too! http://www.hca.org.sg/wp-content/uploads/Dec2011_issue5.pdf
It has been nearly a year since I’ve started volunteering at the hospice (I started in Feb). Everyone has different reasons for volunteering, and for me, I noticed that my holidays this year would be really empty without council commitments anymore. I wanted to spend my time doing something fruitful, something that will give me experiences and insight, especially about the medical field where I wish to eventually be part of. I turned down to help at St. Lukes because I couldn’t give a steady commitment while I was still schooling, but it was tough to find places that would be willing to accept ad-hoc volunteers. Speaking to Nat, he then advised that I could take a look at hospices, and that was how I started my time at HCA hospice as a volunteer (: Even until now, I still don’t regret taking up this volunteer commitment despite having to travel to Novena so often (yea travelling’ always such a bore isn’t it). The patients and nurses I have interacted with taught me the importance of treasuring life and people around you, to appreciate what you have. Just being able to step out of a house to go out with friends is a blessing already, and for patients at the day hospice, that’s what they look forward to every session.
Since then, I’ve came to know of many more volunteers just like me, and saw even more people from NUS High coming to help out at the hospice too. Just a tally of people I know from NUS high: Jiaying, Nat, Bryce, Tricia, Yanling, Nicky-Shahid and Co, Tiffany (hope I didn’t miss out anyone ><). There are also friends from other schools and volunteers from different work professions that I’ve met through my time. Most importantly there are also the dedicated nurses and the patients who make me thoroughly enjoy everyday I spend at the hospice. (:
Here’s wishing everyone an unforgettable Christmas filled with fun and laughter as we savour the joy of spending time with our friends and families
Tuesday
The 2nd day of my attachment started off with me arriving at about 8am. I would consider myself quite slack already since the HOs have to arrive even earlier at around 6am to check up on the patients before the reg and consultants arrive for the morning ward rounds at 8am. My instructions were to meet them at ward 76, but nobody showed up as I waited until 9pm. It was rather awkward too for me to loiter around in the ward, so I decided not to stay any longer and gave my HO a call. Was hesistant about that at first, knowing how busy they can get and how phone calls always interrupt their talks with patients, but 1 hour was too long a wait.
Apparently, that was the day when the attached HOs finish their 1-month cycle at the department, and thus there’s a new batch of HOs under colorectal whom I had to contact on my own. My previous HO text me the new number to contact, but my phone refused to cooperate with me to make that call -.- (yes the screen is still screwed up). So I was now loitering in a random corridor in NUH fiddling with my phone, looking very much like a game addict (I use 8pen keyboard on my phone, and the way typing is like on that keyboard looks as if you’re playing).
“Isn’t that our student?” Turning around, I saw the reg and the MO whom I met yesterday as well as a new HO (so glad the reg recognised me, if not I wouldn’t have noticed them pass by). By some awesome coincidence, they passed by where I was standing, en route to ward 76. By then, they have finished seeing all the patients through the morning ward rounds and had one last one left in ward 76.
After the moring ward rounds were complete, it was a short break for morning tea with the whole team before everyone gets down to their own business. I got accquainted with the new HO in the meantime and was told to follow her for the usual stuff –> morning orders. Haha life as a doctor seems rather routine now, just like most other jobs out there. In fact, they say the job of a HO is something like a “glorified clerk”. Seeing that there’s nothing else that I can do while I watch her make orders, my HO told me to head to ward 43 and wait as she will need to perform a central line removal later.
While I was waiting, I got to know another new HO in the dept (there were 3 in total). He seemed terribly stressed out over last minute calls and changes while he was making his orders, though he still kept his composure and was really nice to still let me talk to him X) My HO came awhile later, and I followed her to watch her remove a central line from a patient as part of post-op procedures. It’s supposed to be a very simple procedure that has to be done with sterile gloves, but at NUH the rule is that only doctors can do it, so the burden of the work lies on the most junior of all doctors. The patient had to be placed in a Trendelenburg position to prevent air embolism (air from entering the blood vessels and impeding flow). In layman terms, Trendelenburg position means to put the body at ~ 15 degree angle with the head at the lower end. Now it seems quite easy to leave my name in history books too ^^
When that was done, my HO got back to sending orders out and told me to grab my lunch before contacting her MO to see if I can follow him. Unfortunately, he was busy too and told me to contact the last HO to ask if I could follow her around. My phone defied all odds and cooperated well with me, so within 5 minutes I was up in ward 76 to meet up with her.
As she was the HO in charge of the wards that afternoon, she had to take care of all the patients and attend to calls. One of the more frequent causes for calls is a sudden onset of fever. This is usually due to the patient lying in bed for too long, so part of the lung collapses and.. UH okay I just read online that it’s a common misconception that fever arises out of that :S But most patients don’t develop serious complications from that fever so I guess it’s alright. Maybe it’s just patients staying under the blanket for too long. There were also discharge papers to settle and medication to be “oralised” in preparation for discharge. Quite a lot of admin work to do which are definitely a bore to watch, but she was really nice and understanding. I guess a big part of that afternoon was just absorbing medical knowledge from her cause that’s the next best thing to offer a job shadow and prevent him from dozing off. Oh and asking her about her journey in medicine too.
The day ended like the usual, with the evening ward rounds, just that I’m now with a whole new different team. Went back home at around 6pm, again while the HOs have to attend to the remaining orders before they leave. Heard from her later that she actually stayed back till about 9pm cause of some bleeding complications with one of her patients, even though that could have been handled by the doctor on night shift. Responsibility and commitment are much desired traits in this line of work, and I’m so glad that the HOs I’ve been attached to seem to all display these traits
I was told to report at 7am the following day to attend a learning session with the doctors. T.T
One very meaningful week
Gonna attempt to talk about one whole week’s worth of experience in one single post (EDIT: Change of plans, 1 day 1 post, if not too long for me too ><)! Bear with the words, I haven’t got loads of pictures haha. But the past week (5th – 11th) has been too eventful for me that I have to leave down some words somewhere that I can always find again. So here goes!
5th – 7th Dec was my job shadowing programme at NUH. It’s the first time I’m going for such a programme. Honestly, I didn’t expect to learn much knowledge out of it, but more to observe how doctors run the show at hospitals. Many of you should know that I have a strong interest in medicine, so having this job shadowing opportunity was for me to understand what I might possibly be getting myself into.
I arrived at 8am on the first day of attachment, just like any excited kid that wants to leave a good first impression would (Better be early than late)! I was attached to the dept of colorectal surgery for the next 3 days. Met the department secretary outside her office to collect my tags and a instruction sheet before I was dispatched to meet my doctor. Ronald did tell me before that the doctor that accepted him wasn’t around when he did the attachment under the same dept. True enough, the same doctor accepted my application but wasn’t around in town either -.- But I rather take the opportunity to job shadow with anyone else. Besides, I later found out that he’s a consultant, and I’m quite sure consultants don’t really have a lot of time to entertain JC students (:
So began the frantic calls for a doctor willing to let me shadow him/her (Along the way the secretary was jokingly going “that stupid ___ ___, always accept students but he himself not around”). In the end, I was told to go to ward 43 to meet up with Dr Tan (whom i found out later to be the registrar under the consultant).
On the way towards Ward 43, I met Ethel and another JC student! Seems like the season for job-shadowing. Anyways we were all told to turn up in our school uniforms so it wasn’t hard to recognise people on job shadowing. We all got sent to different departments though, Ethel’s with paeds. There was another JC student at the lift who I think was with hepatobillary surgery.
I was eventually picked up by a doctor at ward 43 who was not Dr Tan. Turns out that it was the house officer (HO) that came to pick me up. That was when I realised that many workplace habits still exists even in healthcare, where the most junior staff takes the work. It was also a good idea to pair me up with someone who does all the laborious work so I can learn more and see more anyways. As a HO, his duties are to carry out all the instructions left by the Reg and the MO during the morning rounds (e.g. order medicine/tests for patients) after they have left, so it was quite a bit of hurrying around before it’s too late. Monday’s schedule’s quite packed for them, so my HO quickly sent off some of his orders before we headed down to the kopitiam, where I met the MO and Reg for the team. It was for a short coffee break before everyone headed off back to their duties. There’s this culture that the most senior doctor treats his team to the morning drinks, so I got a free ice milo (everyday)
The reg got a surprise phone call (after awhile I think it’s no longer is a surprise anymore) so he headed off first with a cup of coffee in his hand. I didn’t feel too awkward there cause the doctors were really welcoming and they didn’t seem bothered that a newbie like me who’s not even in med school yet is sitting right beside them listening to everything they say. In fact they started telling me about how medicine’s not really a good choice for the future. Nowadays, people demand more quality service for the payment to the hospital that doesn’t come with any more gratitude. People don’t always appreciate the work of doctors anymore. On top of that, it might be harder to get into specialist course in the future due to the switch into residency programme and sudden boom in slots for specialty course. In summary, they spent the time dissuading me to no avail. I don’t really seek immense gratitude in everything I do, nor do I have an idea for specialty yet cause I don’t really want to lose my general medical knowledge! It’s hard to say regarding specialty now, but I do know I’m fine with being a GP. (:
It was back to the wards to send off orders with the HO after morning tea. But after awhile of following him around, my HO thought that I felt bored and suggested I go to the clinic instead to sit in with the MO. Honestly, I wasn’t all that bored because I was still asking him some questions regarding life as a doctor along the way. I didn’t have very high expecations of the programme either cause I knew doctors don’t lead such glamourous lives we see in TV shows everyday. Anyways he “chased” me off in the end to the clinic to watch the MO see new patients. It was a packed clinic though, so the MO didn’t had much time to talk to me. I was just that observing silently and noticing how things run in a day. That’s fine with me too (:
I’ll just skip ahead to lunch, which I had to eat alone. I was also supposed to contact my HO beforehand, but apparently I took the wrong number from him -.- so I kept getting a void call. Luckily I managed to get the number from the MO from the contact list, but was told to grab my lunch first anyways. Those who know my phone would know that I have trouble making calls and absolutely can’t pick up calls, so calls are quite a hassle and I was relieved that I met my HO during lunch at the same kopitiam! Had lunch with him and a few other HOs (I think…) Okay during all these meal times I kept getting asked “Why medicine?” It’s something I still find trouble in expressing cause I don’t want to sound like I’m glorifying the career, though I pretty much know the reason why in my head. It’s something I tell my friends mostly when they ask though (:
After lunch, I was brought to the….. OPERATING THEATRE YAY! Haha okay this was just the cool part to spice up my job shadowing experience, but it’s not really much about seeing a doctor’s life. Anyways surgery is something that only surgeons by training do, though thanks to this I now don’t mind the idea of being a surgeon (despite the much more hectic work hours). But all these thoughts about specializing is for later (: Saw 2 ops for the day, both involving a laparotomy (meaning big incision through the abdomen). The first op was a case of colon cancer, so half the colon had to be removed. At least for now I sure that I’m not afraid of seeing all innards and blood haha. Even helped take a picture of the tumour (first time seeing a tumour intact). The second one was a exploratory laparotomy (meaning open up and find out what’s wrong I think) which lead to some twist and turns in the end cause the problem didn’t turn out to be in the colon, so other specialties came in. Think that’s something to expect in surgery, when some things don’t turn out as expected as the tests show.
Before we went in, we had to wear scrubs and masks to prevent dirt and germs (in layman terms) from spreading. Was quite lucky that my HO that day was really interested in surgery, so I got to follow him in too. There’s a locker room for us to change into surgical scrub (non-sterile), meaning we are just there mainly to observe and for the nurses its usually as assistants to go in and out of the surgical room. Even our shoes had to be changed into either Crocs sandals or rubber boots haha.
The surgical ward looks really spacious when I first entered. Right in the centre, the first operation was already underway. People doing the surgery had to “scrub-in”, going through a more meticulous and thorough wash process with additional gowns to be worn for the surgery. My HO was really interested so he went to don on his sterile scrubs while I just watched from aside. Unlike what they always show in TV shows, the lighting around the room is actually very bright, but they always turn off to give the scene a dramatic look. There were a lot of utensils and machinery around though, which each surgical tool having its own unique name. Everything sterile is laid down on green cloth and should not be touched by anyone in non-sterile dressing, if not the whole set had to be discarded/re-sterilized :O Luckily I wasn’t the clumsy one, neither did I felt like fainting at any point of time. Shall not elaborate too much on the surgical details (:
Anyways in between the 2 surgeries my HO was called out to help out at the procedure room. It’s where all the endoscopy procedures are carried out. After getting out of scrubs, we headed there, where I saw a patient having an endoscope in progress. Endoscopy fits the TV scenario where the surrounding light is dimmed out so that it shows up on the monitor better. I did not stay for long there though cause apparently another doctor arrived before my HO and was able to help out so we were dispatched back to the wards. With nothing much to do in the wards though, my HO brought me for the 2nd surgery! There was also when I saw a endoscopy and a cystoscopy on a patient in full haha.
I didn’t stay all the way till the 2nd surgery was complete though. We left halfway through the 2nd surgery to do the evening ward rounds. It’s just to check up on the patients before the night shift doctors take over. NUH is special cause there’s no longer an on-call system where doctors stay for 30+ hours straight, allowing doctors to head home to get sufficient rest for the day. The reg and the MO will also join in for the evening ward rounds, where another round of orders will be made and conditions checked for patients (which is settled by the HO at the end). This was also when my HO told me that I’ve pretty much seen everything there is to see in the department (which was true since I have seen all the procedures the department handles) and there’s not much need for me to go anymore :O For me though, I thought of this as a chance to experience the life of a doctor, so I was looking forward to sit through routine schedules rather than to turn up just for one day and see how things are like. I reassured him that I’ll be back the next day and left at about 6pm, where he still had to stay to settle the remaining orders. Surgical teams generally don’t have nice hours as compared to internal medicine teams haha X) But despite being probably among the last JC students to leave (HOs usually start chasing as soon as the evening ward rounds are complete), I had no regrets staying around and understanding how mundane life as a doctor can be too. At least I know what I’m getting myself into 
More posts to come in the next few days!
The soap’s running out
My maid left a week ago for her home for 3 weeks to enjoy her Hari Raya. She hasn’t been back for quite some time already, so I think she really should get some time off to visit her family. Besides, there are 3 boys at home (me and my brothers) to do the household chores still, so my parents were more than happy to give her a well-deserved break. My mum works from home anyways, so my house should continue running smoothly while she’s away. I wanted to use the opportunity to polish up my housework and probably pick up some simple cooking, just in case I have to travel overseas in the future for studies. They will be rather handy skills further down the road even if I had to stay local.
The past week hasn’t been too bad, especially since the homework load has decreased (PS: Homework is NOT refering to projects). Helping out in the household was more of a priority to me since both my parents had to work. My little brother’s doing his part too, so as an elder brother I must do something!
The day before my maid left, I reached home really late at night to see two suitcases at my doorstep. It had slipped my mind that she was leaving already, so I thought “Oh yay! New suitcases for holidays!” I went to sleep after I had washed up, anticipating good news from my parents tomorrow.
When I woke up the next day, it was around 10am or so. I sluggishly got off the bed, still feeling rather drained from sleeping late the previous night. Felt bad for waking up late again, so I proceded to grab my breakfast and quickly start the day. BUT WAIT!! How come there’s no breakfast prepared on the table? And where did the 2 briefcase go?
That was how I realised that I have completely forgotten that my maid was leaving that day. My mum only told me once before, and didn’t tell me much details. Oops, didn’t see her off that morning >< But my parents did send her off at the airport. Haiz… =/
I know I skipped breakfast that morning. There wasn't much to eat at home then, and lunch was coming soon. I pretty much drowned myself in housework that day, still feeling rather bad for forgetting that she was leaving. Taking out the laundry, buying groceries, preparing for dinner, mopping the floor. That was how my day went until evening before I took the night off to do my own work. Doing all those chores for the day was kinda tiring for me, and I realised it takes up a lot of time. My mum can't possibly handle all that by herself for the next few days…
Fortunately, my brothers were spending more time at home for the next few days, so all the work was divided equally among everyone. Besides, my holidays are coming soon too so I can cover my elder bro's duties while he's busy studying. It makes me feel more useful and productive when I do housework at home, but no I'm not aiming to be a maid in the future.
On a side note, I realised that I have been using a lot more soap the previous few days, especially the handsoap. I think it comes with being lab-trained in our school that we wash our hands frequently, so I do that VERY often. I don't even trust my handtowel now for it gets used over and over again before being washed. It's a good practice to be as sterile and clean as possible but.. at home it gets a bit excessive, especially in the kitchen. =X I think in the future I might just furnish my kitchen into a cooking lab!
I suppose all these clean practices do erode away after doing somemore household chores… if not I'm having OCD =O
Commando VA
I had to drag myself off the bed today at 5.30am today. It’s too early to be up at this time on a no-school day, so my body didn’t feel fairly treated and was hard to work with. Afterall, it only had 5.5h of rest, so I expected its grouchy behaviour. Nevertheless, it still got off the bed in the end (as I always put my phone far away from me to force myself to get up). Why do I have to be up so early? To make a 2-hour long trip across the country to get to Hendon Camp for my Commando Vocational Assessment.
So off I went, MRT-ing to Tampines and then getting a bus from there to Hendon Camp. I initially planned for a 1.5h trip, but I forgot to factor in the traffic condition, especially since some industrial complexes are in that area as well. Neither did I expect there to still be a short walk after I alight, so it ended up as a 2h trip which is technically late.
But who will know that you’re late when you mingle into the crowd? ^^ It so happened that there was a long queue outside the registration table. Besides, they weren’t particularly strict with punctuality, so everyone still went ahead in. The current vocational assessments will last for 4 days from Mon till Thurs, with each day screening about 200 guys. Out of the 200 guys, we got split up into 10 groups which they termed as “detail” (e.g. Detail 1). They sort us into our detail based on the time we arrived, so I was in detail 8.
The test today could be split into morning and afternoon, where for me the morning was spent on physical examination and the afternoon was spent on examination of the mind (depends on which detail you’re in). Physical examination comprises of a set of physical exercises – Pull up, push up, sit up, SBJ and a set of psychomotor tests – Balance, agility, endurance and flexibility. There was also a simple medical examination (the MO looked a LOT like Donnie Yen :O just that he doesn’t smile at all) as well as an interview portion where a commando regular will be assessing your suitability for commando. Your physical fitness is not what they look out for in selecting their commandos apparently, because those are things that can be trained. As such, the physical aspect of today can be considered more like a bonus and just a gauge for them to know your fitness level. It wasn’t very pressuring for me so I kinda slacked a bit as compared to my Napfa test. Also, not everyone being called for the VA is as buff as you might imagine commandos to be. Commandos only become fit and buff after training, but not necessarily before.
The more important factor (I think) for commando selection is the mental resilience and strength, which came in the form of MCQ questions in the afternoon. There were 2 sections – an IQ component with 60qns in 25mins and a personality test component with 185qns, OTOT. It was rather mind-draining to complete both sections + the airconditioned auditorium and the comfortable seats were very sleep inducing. Most questions aren’t that hard though. It was all much easier and I would say slightly more enjoyable to do than the test at CMPB where all guys go through.
By the time we completed all the tests, it was about 5pm in the evening already. There were a lot of waiting time in between though, especially in the morning while waiting for the testing stations to clear. I would suggest anyone going to bring perhaps something to read. Sleeping doesn’t sound like a good idea (although the people in there are generally very nice and don’t really mind). The lunch serving was very small (though cheap) and we had to pay for it.
We will only know about our selection results in Oct, when we get the letter of enlistment. Well.. I don’t exactly know whether I want to get in or not, but I’m still fine with either. At least it’s over and done with, so I don’t have to think about it anymore and leave everything to fate, chance and luck.
Commando?
I’m very lazy to continue typing out the UQ trip. At least the pictures are all on facebook though! I still have to catch up with school work (~80% complete) and finish new work (~10% complete), which leaves me with quite a lot of work to clear. I don’t even have time to filter through the photos now =.= (supposed to do so for the school). If you like to know more you can always ask me in person, right? ^^
Or wait for our experiential trip report to be out too. But we have yet to start on it so don’t expect it anytime soon.
Got a letter from Mindef when I got back from UQ. Apparently, I’ve got a further reporting order for Commando VA tomorrow at Hendon Camp. See how it goes tomorrow though. I will probably blog about that when I’m back, cause there isn’t much details of it online for newbies like me. That’s provided I make it back it one piece… X)
