Gynaecology Portfolio for Semester 10

Just completed my Gynae portfolio. Emailed it to Dr Su for review and assessment. It feels inadequate and I know it can be improved further. However, I am having difficulties organizing my thoughts into words. At the moment it feels disorganised and the level of discussion is just mediocre. sigh. Hopefully I wont disappoint her too much.

Eve of Kampung Angkat

One day to Kampung Angkat. The last two months have seen us busy with the planning and preparation for Kampung Angkat. The 12 of us in the core committee have been working on different aspects with the same goal of a successful day. Today, we spent almost the entire day at the kampung, unloading the goody bags, health screening tools, setting up the canopy, wiping the chairs, filling the goody bags, rehearsal for KAP and etc. It was a tiring day. The T shirts have been distributed to our batch-mates. We managed to get a short time off watching TV at the student lounge and a decent dinner. Most of the preparation is complete. Now for the moment of truth. All the hard work, planning and preparation leads to one day. Tomorrow will be our D-Day. May tomorrow be a great success. Good luck C209!

MBBS- 97.5% Complete

Today marks the end of my 2nd last posting for MBBS. We have completer 97.5% of our course. Just one more five week posting and we will be done! Finally, the end of our five year has arrived. How time flew by. Tis five years will always be my most treasured moments. The time we spend through clinical school, all the friends, the company, the house-mates. The joy, the laughter, the tears, the sweat, the blood, the anger, the frustration and the wisdom. To all my batch-mates of C209. May we meet again one day. C209 ROCKS!!

Wisdom Tooth

Removed my right wisdom tooth today. It has been giving me some problem with food getting stuck and the gums getting inflamed. Two hours has passed, so far so good.

1/72 F-117A

I picked up a new model over the weekend. A 1/72 Lockheed F-117A Nighthawk. It was the first airplane utilizing stealth technology, used by the US until its retirement in 2008. This shall be the 2nd plane in my collection.

With some experience from my last aircraft, I have picked up a few more tools including thinner for thin layers of paint compared to the thick ones i used previously. I will also experiment with spray can for the larger part of this airplane. I foresee this will be slightly easier than the last plane as it is completely in black and has less parts.

I also intend to fix another model which has been sitting on my table for quite some time. bought this when I was 9, but only assembled it 2 years ago. I could not figure out how to apply the decals and made the wise decision to leave it for later. It will need applications of its 15 year old decals and repair of its tires which has fell off. Hopefully with the right tools it will work out this time.

Its a 1/20 Jordan 191. Purchased by mum when we were in Australia. The Jordan 191 was designed by the Jordan Grand Prix and participated in the 1991 Formula One session. Michael Schumacher debuted in F1 with this car. 

1:72 Soviet Fighter Mig-3 by Revell

This weekend I embarked on a new activity. Scaled Model Aircraft. This is a 1:72 scaled model of a Soviet Fighter Mig-3 produced by Revell. Skill Level 3. It was given to me by a close friend, Mezhen who bought it in the UK during her electives last year. It has been sitting in my cupboard for a year, so I decided to fix it.

My workspace with basic equipments 

Components fresh from the box

Pilots seat assembled and painted

Dry fitting the wings and fuselage

Glued and waiting to dry

Landing gears

Landing gears in place

Windshield installed and painted

Adding the camo.

Painting the bottom of the plane. I don't have light blue paint, so I compromised with a greener option instead

Front view half painted

Green paint added

Completed model with decals

I think the hardest part is applying the paint due to my lack of equipment. It would have turned out much nicer if I had a airbrush or at least better brushes. Applying the tiny decals was a great test of my hand eye coordination and my patience. Could have been better, but I'm happy with my production. Thanks Mezhen.

Research on Breast Cancer Awareness

After much paperwork and red tape, I have submitted my proposal to the hospital director for approval. Next will be to run a small pilot study and then the main study itself. I hope I will have enough time to collect adequate sample before I finish Semester 10. I only have 8 more weeks in Batu Pahat, and the next two postings do not provide much luxury of free time.

Another portfolio weekend

The weekend is here again. However, I am doubtful there will be much rest this weekend. I have 2 portfolio to complete and still need to identify a case for my Psychiatry portfolio. After I have accomplished that, there is a whole pile of things to revise and study. That's the life of a Semester 10 medical student.

I was rather pissed off earlier at how poor some people's attitude can be. There are those who looks so highly on themselves, thinks they are so smart and that they can go around insulting and looking down on us. How childish. We should realize that we are never the best and we are never better that others. Everyone is good at something. You may think you are better, but trust me when I say you are not. Do not think so highly of yourself, do not look down on others and do not think you are all mighty. You have no idea what the future holds. Remember this.

Lesson of the day

Examine your patient every time you do your rounds. Especially if the patient is acutely ill. They may deteriorate at any moment, and a good repeated physical examination is the only way to catch it early.

Just for laughs

Another old video for those who appreciate British Comedy. Eggs-Box 3.60? haha

Another Step Closer

Five weeks of Surgery Posting in Semester 10 is over and we are one step closer to graduation. We have completed 92.5% of our MBBS. 7.5% more to go. Almost there. It's so close, I can almost grasp it already.

It's amazing how quickly we have (almost) passed through medical school. Five years has passed. I went back to the Bukit Jalil campus on Friday, and it felt like it has been ages since we were last there. Two years in Seremban has changed us so much. We grew, we matured, we became doctors. It is funny to think how our mindset and goals were when we were back in Phase 1. The way we placed emphasis on all the wrong things, the way I played too much and studied too little. There is a saying, "Don't teach a person who is not ready. When he is ready, he will learn even when no one wants to teach him" which I think is very true.

20 more weeks to go. Let's make the most out of it.

I Phone 4S

The new iPhone 4 has been released. As predicted, it is called the iPhone 4S. It looks like an iPhone 4, but has faster processors, better camera and etc. I think the coolest new feature is the what they call Siri. It allows you to give voice commands to your phone and it will interact with you as if it was artificial intelligence. The promotional video looks impressive. You can ask about the weather, traffic, send text messages all just by speaking to your iPhone. If this works out as smooth as the video, the new iPhone will surely sell like hot cakes. I WANT AN IPHONE!!!! hahaha

The Passing of Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs have changed our lives in more ways than we know. Iphones, Ipods, Ipads, Mac Books. It seems everyone is carrying at least one of his creations these days. Let's all celebrate the life that he has lived. The changes that he has brought to our lives. They way we live, communicate and work will never be the same again.

Steven Paul Jobs 

1955-2011

The past, present and future of surgery

For those who love surgery. The evolution of surgery from the stone age, the era of the barber surgeon, surgery in the present day and the future.

A video worth watching

My lecturer shared this video with us. This is a good video highlighting many important but forgotten point. The doctor's touch, caring for our patients and examining our patients. That's what being a doctor is about. It is not about technologies, computer screens, radiology films or laboratory results. Enjoy and Reflect.

Portfolio Done.

Finished my portfolio. It feels good to finish work earlier than the deadline. I started early, so I didn't have to rush towards the end. The best part is I can have a free weekend to work on some side projects (and do some revision). hehehe

Ok. It is not completely finished. I still need to do some corrections and all but the burden is off my shoulder.

Meeting a Deaf Patient

Followed a Deaf patient to the OT today. I realized two things.

1. I need to upgrade my level of Sign Language
2. I really should use it more often. I have forgotten so many signs I cant have a proper conversation any more. sigh.

What Mutant Powers Do You Want?

I actually saw this video a long time ago but decided to share it. So, say you have 50k and you want mutant powers. What would you choose? Please don't choose Ardamantium claws without mutant healing. I do not recommend this unless you want to end up like the two in the video.

My choice would be Telepathy (like Prof X). Then I will mind control that lab guy for Ardamantium claws and Mutant healing for free. I can get all the powers, without paying.. hahaha Great idea huh..

Research and SPSS

It is time I started work on my research write up. It has been delayed for many months now, due to exams and other issues. I cannot afford to push this aside any longer as I only have a few more months in IMU.

I decided to invest some time (though I still have my Ortho portfolio to complete) last night to look through our previous research write up and SPSS data. I realised that we have made many mistakes the previous time.

I now understand what Dr S meant when she said our discussion was too superficial and etc. And I do agree as well on her comments. I guess I have learnt a lot in the last couple of months from writing experimental Case Reports. I can say that I have gained much important experience and maturity. I am now more apt at finding data, citing, preparing manuscript, phrasing of sentences and deciding what is (and what is not) important in a write up. Hopefully this time around, I will be able to prepare a better write up.

We had many errors in our methodology and sampling no doubt. As mentioned, we were all green horns trying out a new task. I obtained my own copy of SPSS yesterday (thank you Ding) and tried to perform some analysis. It turns out that SPSS is not as enigmatic as I thought it was. I guess when you have no choice, you just got to figure it out. After this, I will need to print out all our references and run through them before preparing our discussion and editing our previous write up. I hope I will be able to produce something more substantial this time.

Outcomes of procrastination

Submitted a review for publishing in a journal and received the following respond.


"Thank you for sending us your paper. We read it with interest but I regret to say that we have decided not to publish it in the BMJ.

Unfortuntaely, I just accepted a paper on this exact topic, that is due to be published in December. I think it would be too soon to accept another article on pre-eclampsia as it covers alot of the same content. Apologiesm it was a matter of timing."


Sigh. Perhaps I should have sent it earlier and not waited till now to submit it. The effects of procrastination...

Diablo 3

First heard of the upcoming release of Diablo 3 since Semester 4. The beta version has just been released. D3 will probably be released in a year or so. I played D2 a lot and naturally I just cant wait for D3 to be released. Saw the game play trailer, and it looks good. They have improved it in game play, interface and storyline. Feels more realistic and less game-like now.



There will be 5 character classes. Demon Hunter, Wizard, Monk, Witch Doctor and my favourite Barbarian. Used Barbarian in D 2, will probably use Barbarian again in D3. Many of the new character classes have some attributes from the characters of D2. Demon hunter is somewhat like Amazon+ Assassin of D2. Monk - Paladin, Wizard- Sorceress, With Doctor- Necromancer. But they have been modified to have more specialized characteristic.


Man, I cant wait for this. I'm just worried my PC may not be able to support. I barely have the minimum requirement for RAM, my processor is lacking and my video card is not up to par with the minimum level. Damn it. What should I do? Should I get a new desktop for this? Is it worth it? Checked out the prices. It would set me back approximately RM1600.






Minimum PC Requirements
OS: Windows® XP/Windows Vista® / Windows® 7 (Latest Service Packs) with DirectX® 9.0c
CPU: Intel Pentium® D 2.8 GHz / AMD AthlonTM 64 X2 4400+
GFX: NVIDIA® GeForce® 7800 GT or ATI Radeon™ X1950 Pro or better
HDD: 12 GB available Hard Drive Space
RAM: 1 GB RAM (1.5 GB required for Windows Vista® / Windows® 7 users, 2 GB for Mac® users)
Other: Broadband Internet connection and 1024x768 minimum display resolution

(Note:  Be advised that some wireless connections do not meet the minimums required to be a true Broadband Internet connecton.  Wireless results may vary.)

Diablo 3 Recommended System Requirements

PC Requirements

OS: Windows Vista®/Windows® 7 (Latest Service Packs)

CPU: Intel® Core 2 Duo 2.4 GHz / AMD AthlonTM 64 X2 5600+ 2.8 GHz

RAM: 2 GB

GFX: NVIDIA® GeForce® 260 / ATI Radeon™ HD 4870 or better

My System
Windows Vista
Intel Core 2 Duo 2.0GHz
Ram 1GB
NVDIA GeForce Go 7200

Official Cinematic Trailer

Monk Gameplay Video

Barbarian Game play

Demon Hunter Trailer Video

Hospital Kluang

For the first time in two weeks, I'm spending a weekday evening at home. No on call tonight. haha Finally have some time to catch up on my ever growing list of learning issues. Right now, it's somewhere around 20-30 items and I'm tackling item nunber ONE.

We went to Hospital Kluang today. It's a district hospital. Going to the hospital felt like going back to the 60's. The hospital ground was huge. It was not a block or two blocks like how hospitals are now. Its a bunch of "houses" clumped together within a wall which forms a hospital. As I was saying this morning, it feels like a "health Village". haha I used the word house because there were multiple small buildings that looked like houses to me. Each unit/ department/ ward occupies one of this house. So radiology takes one, female surgical takes one, male surgical takes one, labour room another, HDW one and so on. As far as I know, that's how our hospitals used to be built. Maybe not the 60's but pre independence. The wards itself felt the same too. Imagine a long corridor, with two rows of beds on the side. That's how it is.

Nevertheless, we managed to discuss a few cases. The visit was alright. There were very few patients there though. I don't want to end up in a hospital like this next time. A hospital like Batu Pahat I don't mind. Kluang? Not really.

Source: wikipedia.
This is UM in the 20's. Tha's how the wards looked like. Don't see wards like this anymore these days.

The Time For Change

"Semester 10 is a time for change." Dato K said so today during our VC. I see what he means by that statement. Semester 10 to IMU is a time where we stop thinking (and behaving) like medical students and start being a doctor. It is a transition period between two very different chapters of our lives. It may not be easy but it is a change we must make. The sooner the better. The time for change has arrived. Make the chance. Take charge of you patients, be responsible and start becoming a doctor.

Today I scrubbed in for OT for the 3rd time. The first was in semester 6 for an appendicetomy, second was during semester 8 electives for a laparoscopic salphingectomy and today was for a loop colostomy. Scrubbing in is always better for learning than just standing around. You get a 1st class view and play a role (small but nevertheless still a role) in the surgery. I must admit that Batu Pahat is much more conducive for students. Perhaps there is much less students here, hence the staff are more receptive of us. It was very easy to get permission to scrub in. Perhaps we should really consider smaller hospitals for housemanship. Food for thought.

Swimming pool at Batu Pahat

It appears that there are no swimming pool in or around Batu Pahat. Tried to Google for it, and the only results I found was hotels with swimming pool. Even that was a handful only. Apparently there is a public pool near Minyak Beku but the review was that it is small, dirty and poorly maintained. There goes my plan to be healthy and swim during the weekend. Anyone knows a place where I can swim in Batu Pahat?

Surgery in BP Day 2

It has been two days since we started our surgery posting in BP hospital. I still keep saying HTJS when I refer to the hospital. hahaha The hospital is great. Something like other district hospitals we have been to ( Kuala Pilah, Miri) but much bigger especially with the new ward block almost ready for use. The staff here are very friendly. Patients are not (yet) scared away by us. hahaha Most patients here speak Mandarin and Hokkien. It will be a good opportunity for me to brush up on my Hokkien. hehe

So far we have been rather busy with ward work and looking for portfolio cases. I have identified my case for Orthopedic and Surgery. Hopefully I will be able to use it in the end. Surgery in Sem 10 incorporated orthopedic. That means we need to cover both wards and attend to both discipline. Plus we have 3 on calls per week plus one weekend call. That's a grand total of 16 calls in 5 weeks. I think (hope) other postings wont be as hectic/ bust as surgery.

BP town itself seems ok. Have not had the leisure of time to look around. So far went to a few shops near my area. Food here is definitely better than in Seremban. Less salty too. And a big glass of fruit juice is only RM4. That's the best. The last time I had RM 4 large juice in KL was in 2002. hahaha

Internet

We finally have internet at our Batu Pahat house. Took a one week trial of Pi Wimax while waiting for our Streamyx tranfer. TM needs to work faster. Sorry P1 for abusing your kind free trial services. We just cannot live without internet in this world we live in.

Batu Pahat

Finally moved to Batu Pahat. Took me 3 hours ( perhaps more) to drive here from KL. Car was loaded till the roof, resembling a mover's van. I hope BP will be a good experience. Six more months to graduation. I have started feeling the anxiety of starting work already.

Now Everyone Can Fly

Air Asia's motto has been chosen very appropriately. In today's world, everyone can indeed fly. No more was the time when flying included making trips to tour agency to buy air tickets and holidays= join a tour group. Now you can plan, purchase and confirm everything from your room with an internet connection, a PC and a credit card.

It also means that flying is no longer as exclusive and glamorous as it used to be. I remember when I was young, flying by plane was something you really look forward to. We still look forward for the trip, but those days the whole experience of flying was awesome enough. There used to be a cool airport, nicely built and nicely furnished. The staff were friendly and the airport was spacious. Today, flying (especially with a budget airline) is like taking a bus. The terminal is crowded, minimally built, minimal facility (I was sweating in the waiting area), the staff less friendly, the place looks nothing like what it used to be. Seriously, flying now is rather.....  boring.

Nevertheless, I guess we cant complain much can we. Budget airlines has after all enables students like us to travel around. If we really want the awesome services we used to get, just go book a flight on a better airlines. And pay more.. hahaha

Hong Kong Orthopedic Forum

I have accomplished the official objectives of my trip to Hong Kong. The Orthopedic Forum held at the Hong Kong Academy of Medicine concluded today. I must say I was very impressed by the overall organization of the event. For one, it was very well organized. All lectures were well prepared and presented by speakers who are more than competent in their fields. The standards that doctors in HK has set for themselves is way higher from any that I have seen before. Indeed, I can see the difference from where we come from and a first world country.

The forum was divided to different sections to cover topics focusing on spine, rehabilitation, trauma, pediatrics and etc. During breaks, we are free to walk around to "patronize" the many companies who have set up booths at the event. As usual, they will also bring in a lot of freebies, mostly pens though. haha There were many new technologies, surgical equipment and laparoscopic equipment showed at the event. I'm not sure if they are new, but I have not seen them. It also seemed that most of the doctors there are sub-specialist. This goes to show that the world has come to a point that everyone s going into sub speciality and we who are to join in the cohort soon should learn so too. Start planning for your subspeciality (After you get into a masters programme) =P

*pictures coming soon*

The Anticipation

The worse part of any exam is probably not during the exam but the long wait for your results. The anticipation, anxiety and the entire feeling of waiting for the one result that will determine everything is just overwhelming. No words to describe. So 12 hours after completing our OSCE yesterday, we gathered again in JBLT for our results day. The atmosphere was tense. Everyone was hoping for the best but also expecting the worse. Secretly in our hearts we were consoling ourselves that we have done fairly well enough. And openly we try to console each other as well. Four hour past. Probably the longest four in our lives. And the results was announced.

100% Passed!! Congratulations C2/09. We have done it again. We will now all move on to Batu Pahat. Hurray!!!

*pictures pending* hahaha

At this very moment, I am at LCCT, waiting for my flight to Hong Kong.  It will be a small post exam holiday as I attend an Orthopedic Forum and present a poster on behalf of IMU. I will also be spending a few days with relatives and travelling around at Hong Kong and Shenzen. First time flying on my own. So far so good. hahaha May this trip go well. See you Malaysia in a week. Cheers.

Post OSCE

Four hours post OSCE. Today went okay i suppose. Some stations were okay, some were not so okay. Hopefully it will all add up to at least 50% which translates to "I passed Semester 9 and I'm going to Batu Pahat for Semester 10 Huray!!"

Haha Wish me all the best, will be getting the results tomorrow morning. Now to pack my bags for my post exam Hong Kong trip. ;)

Ranting

Sometimes I wonder. My dad managed to put me through medical school. Will I be able to afford my children through medical school as well? With the influx of doctors and a finite opportunities, it will only get harder to make a living.

Comments and upkeeping

I just saw read a comment left here more than a year ago. hahaha I think I need to check on this page much more often. hahaha

It's unfortunate that I made this blog with the intentions of logging down my experiences in medical school but have placed so little in it. I guess I have failed to live up to the objectives and title of it. Maybe I could still resuscitate it during my last 6 months as a medical student. Unlikely, very optimistic but no harm trying.

Final Days at Seremban Clinical School

Tonight will be my last night in Seremban. It's amazing how the last 2 years has passed by so quickly. I still remember not long ago, when it was time to leave the Bukit Jalil campus and venture to a whole new campus and experience. Two years have quickly passed since then and today, we are preparing to move yet again to another campus.

Two years seemed like a long time. It seemed like many months in a small town with no entertainment and none of the comforts of KL. Looking back today, I guess we had a rather good time here didn't we. We have made many new friendships, strengthen existing ones and unfortunately lost some as well. We learned a lot both about life and about medicine. We grew up and we matured. We had our share of ups and downs. We probably played a little too much and studied a little too little ( or vice versa). Nevertheless, two years can bring big changes to a persons life. I wonder how much will change in the next two years of my life.

Tomorrow we will sit for OSCE. It is the final exam in Seremban Clinical School which is also the final paper of our Final Professional Examinations Part 1. May we all ace through tomorrows exam and move on to Batu Pahat together. My dear batch mates of C2/09. I'll be seeing you in Semester 10.

Batu Pahat,  here we come!!

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