Into working life for about two months now. Start to see things clearer. And I start to know people.
There are a type of people, who is genuinely being a friend with you, helping you out, guide you and cover your back. They treat you as a team, working together towards a common goal.
On the other hand, there are also people who likes to take advantage on other people, thinking that everyone else is stupid and they are the only clever one on earth. Every time a challenging task is assigned to them, they will start to find every one else:" Can you do me this favor?" "Can you help me with this?" "I am really rushing home. Can you manage this case for me?" All sorts of excuses, to evade from work. These people haven't grown out of their cocoon world, still living in the student years, where there is no need for responsibility. In the student years, you can leave the ward anytime you want, throw aside the branula for the houseman if you can't set it and have plenty of holidays. Not anymore since I ventured into housemanship time.
Everyone is getting the same pay. Why would one answer so many favours while the other one just wait and see? Between giving fishes and teaches a person to fish, I would rather go for the latter. As the time comes, our service will be needed to do the daunting task in the middle of the night without any guidance. Only pure skill will help us through. I don't mind sharing the skills, which I did most of the time. But I hate people taking advantage by asking favor everytime the same problem arise.
And the third type of people are those who only work within their working boundaries. They did their job perfectly well, no question asked. But when it comes to do a little bit more, they will be calculative. Team spirit is never existence. These people are hard to work with as well. In the end, the one that works alone will be suffering more.
Which types are you belongs to?
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Friday, July 18, 2008
The Meaning of Life
Life...
Life is between this breath and the next. Are you aware of the breath you are taking now? Are you consciously believe that you are alive now?
Many don't. Many take for granted for this life. Some even wasting their life now.
Without knowing it, the next breath that we take will be more effortful, more difficult. Every breath we take brings us closer to death. whatever said, it is not the destination that matters. The journey through this life is the things that bring colours to our life.
I work along with death. I see him many times a day. In the morning, during ward rounds, when I am having lunch, and especially in the middle of the night when everyone is fast asleep. I particularly remembered one event, seeing Mr. Death in the resuscitation room. He brought along a boy, in his early twenties, left a lifeless body with many fractures and scars. At one glance, most probably high velocity motor vehicle accident that cause his demise. Another glance, maybe he is someone that I mentioned before, someone who wasted their life by racing illegally. Cause of death - polytrauma and spleen ruptured leading to hypovolaemic shock.
Today, 364 days to my 27 birthday. War of the the middle earth has ceased. The race to the end has already begun.
Life is between this breath and the next. Are you aware of the breath you are taking now? Are you consciously believe that you are alive now?
Many don't. Many take for granted for this life. Some even wasting their life now.
Without knowing it, the next breath that we take will be more effortful, more difficult. Every breath we take brings us closer to death. whatever said, it is not the destination that matters. The journey through this life is the things that bring colours to our life.
I work along with death. I see him many times a day. In the morning, during ward rounds, when I am having lunch, and especially in the middle of the night when everyone is fast asleep. I particularly remembered one event, seeing Mr. Death in the resuscitation room. He brought along a boy, in his early twenties, left a lifeless body with many fractures and scars. At one glance, most probably high velocity motor vehicle accident that cause his demise. Another glance, maybe he is someone that I mentioned before, someone who wasted their life by racing illegally. Cause of death - polytrauma and spleen ruptured leading to hypovolaemic shock.
Today, 364 days to my 27 birthday. War of the the middle earth has ceased. The race to the end has already begun.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
When The Pager Rings...
I couldn't help but agree to my Professor who said this to us one day...
" When I was a student, I longed to have that pager when I work as Doctor. When I first had a hold on the pager, how I wished I wouldn't have it."
On my second day of on-call, I was doing 3rd/4th caller, which means I care for 2 passive wards as well as the whole hospital where medical patient is located. That covers from rhesus room in emergency department till the first class in 8th floor.
The first ring from the pager when I was doing my morning rounds. It was a call from first class ward.
"Hello, Dr. This is ward 8A. We have a patient from medical side. She is currently complaining of..."
"No, no, no, This is 8.30 am. You should call the the peripheral doctor in charge." I said.
"Is that so? OK then."
The second one was about 2.30pm. It was from 2197, rhesus room.
"Dr Goh, please come down to rhesus room now for a arterial blood gas sampling."
I was doing my acute rounds in female ward when the third and fourth pager blares.
"Dr Goh, there is a patient complaining of cough. Can you come over to see him?" This one from first class ward.
"How bad is the cough? I am doing acute rounds now. How bad is the patient?"
"Not very bad. SpO2 is stable"
"Then prescribe her with syrup diphenhydramine 15 mls stat and tds."
The other one from second class ward.
"Dr, there is a patient requires a headblock (needle inserted for drip infusion or intravenous medication). Can you come down please?"
"I am still doing my acute bed rounds. Could that patient waits?"
"Yes."
"Ok then, I will come down when I finish the acute rounds."
When I finish the acute rounds it was already 8.30 pm. So I went to insert the headblock to the patient. It was a male patient.
The fifth pager rings when it was about 12.30 am. Again, it was from the rhesus room asking me to do ABG sampling.
Finally, I get a chance to sleep at 2 am.
Beep! Beep! (2.30 am)
"Hello, HO medical on call speaking. How can I help you?"
"This is from the second class ward. There is a patient complaining of cough and wants to see a doctor."
"What? Only cough? At 2.30 am?"
"Yes Doctor."
It was the same patient that I inserted the headblock just now. When I finished my duty that night, it was already 3 am. Morning is just 2 steps away.
" When I was a student, I longed to have that pager when I work as Doctor. When I first had a hold on the pager, how I wished I wouldn't have it."
On my second day of on-call, I was doing 3rd/4th caller, which means I care for 2 passive wards as well as the whole hospital where medical patient is located. That covers from rhesus room in emergency department till the first class in 8th floor.
The first ring from the pager when I was doing my morning rounds. It was a call from first class ward.
"Hello, Dr. This is ward 8A. We have a patient from medical side. She is currently complaining of..."
"No, no, no, This is 8.30 am. You should call the the peripheral doctor in charge." I said.
"Is that so? OK then."
The second one was about 2.30pm. It was from 2197, rhesus room.
"Dr Goh, please come down to rhesus room now for a arterial blood gas sampling."
I was doing my acute rounds in female ward when the third and fourth pager blares.
"Dr Goh, there is a patient complaining of cough. Can you come over to see him?" This one from first class ward.
"How bad is the cough? I am doing acute rounds now. How bad is the patient?"
"Not very bad. SpO2 is stable"
"Then prescribe her with syrup diphenhydramine 15 mls stat and tds."
The other one from second class ward.
"Dr, there is a patient requires a headblock (needle inserted for drip infusion or intravenous medication). Can you come down please?"
"I am still doing my acute bed rounds. Could that patient waits?"
"Yes."
"Ok then, I will come down when I finish the acute rounds."
When I finish the acute rounds it was already 8.30 pm. So I went to insert the headblock to the patient. It was a male patient.
The fifth pager rings when it was about 12.30 am. Again, it was from the rhesus room asking me to do ABG sampling.
Finally, I get a chance to sleep at 2 am.
Beep! Beep! (2.30 am)
"Hello, HO medical on call speaking. How can I help you?"
"This is from the second class ward. There is a patient complaining of cough and wants to see a doctor."
"What? Only cough? At 2.30 am?"
"Yes Doctor."
It was the same patient that I inserted the headblock just now. When I finished my duty that night, it was already 3 am. Morning is just 2 steps away.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
The Difficult People
Somewhere in life, you had and ought to deal with extremely difficult people. I had one encounter last 3 weeks...
(Not to name this person as my future will be in jeopardy)
This person is my superior. He/she decides when do I starts working, when do I get my holiday and when do I get to upgrade to the next level. Glad enough he.she does not decide whether I get paid or not. So I was on tagging for the first 2 weeks. Towards the end of tagging, we will be reassessed whether we were deemed suitable or not for on-call.
At day 12 of tagging, I was extremely tired. Constant lack of sleep does not do any good to this barely functioning body. So I met up with this superior to discuss whether I can off tag slightly earlier than schedule. I believed I am competent enough to do the crap job.
No
There came his/her reply. Straight on the face. The reason being I haven't completed my procedures. Fair enough. Luckily that night she was having calls. So I got change to 'show' that I am able to do my procedures well. On the day 14, I went to find this superior again and finally green light was given for me to off tag.
Not so lucky for my friend that started her medical posting 5 days later than me. She is still on tag until today. That is like day 18 of tagging. Heard that she had problem with this superior.
How to deal with the difficult people?
This is my style:
(Not to name this person as my future will be in jeopardy)
This person is my superior. He/she decides when do I starts working, when do I get my holiday and when do I get to upgrade to the next level. Glad enough he.she does not decide whether I get paid or not. So I was on tagging for the first 2 weeks. Towards the end of tagging, we will be reassessed whether we were deemed suitable or not for on-call.
At day 12 of tagging, I was extremely tired. Constant lack of sleep does not do any good to this barely functioning body. So I met up with this superior to discuss whether I can off tag slightly earlier than schedule. I believed I am competent enough to do the crap job.
No
There came his/her reply. Straight on the face. The reason being I haven't completed my procedures. Fair enough. Luckily that night she was having calls. So I got change to 'show' that I am able to do my procedures well. On the day 14, I went to find this superior again and finally green light was given for me to off tag.
Not so lucky for my friend that started her medical posting 5 days later than me. She is still on tag until today. That is like day 18 of tagging. Heard that she had problem with this superior.
How to deal with the difficult people?
This is my style:
- Always says yes. Even though they were wrong, or against your principle. There is not much harm to follow them as compare to having them picking on us.
- Always follows their order. They maybe having a set of their ways in doing things that may not be of our liking, but they are our superior. They give orders, we follows.
- Always turn to a deaf ear for bad remarks. It is always nice to have a good ear and a bad ear so you could 'switch off' those hurtful words. Never, ever answer back on those bad remarks or being emotionally because that could leave a lasting scar on the relationship.
- Always look forward to the good things ahead e.g. paychecks, future improvements and important things to do. If we think this is our life and it never progress, then we are wrong. I always look forward to the time I myself become a superior, and always believe that the time of being houseman is only temporary, a stepping stone to become a specialist. Only then we will ignore all this tiny mini ripples in life.
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