1) This has been the longest interval in updating my blog, and for good reason. In the last update, I mentioned about having to submit our third report (on Paediatrics) before grinding away for our last 2.5 weeks before our end-of-rotation exams. Well, after a long hard struggle, we've finally finished with Paediatrics yesterday. But before I dwell on that, it's rewind time...
2) On August 6, we celebrated Kuhan's and Jason's birthday together at Nando's @ Gurney Plaza. As most of us are in different rotations (based on our groupings), we don't see each other nearly as often as we used to (when we had common lectures together). So it was indeed lovely to have everyone return for a celebration. At the same time, we shared our experience with the different rotations that we had been placed in.
3) As part of the MPU U3 Community Project, my group (consisting of Zi Yan, Melissa, Melvin, Esther, Girvana, Ice, Mehwish, Elaine and myself) decided to help out at a children's home. It was quite apt then, that we chose to volunteer at a children's home in the midst of our Paediatrics module - it gave us the opportunity to practice our communication and soft skills with them. After spending a full morning there, Zi Yan took us to Tai Tong Restaurant for lunch. I still remember coming to Tai Tong with my family during the first week of orientation eight months ago. How times flies...
4) Aug 15 and 16 were the dates of our end-of-rotation exams - OSCEs and 2 short cases. The OSCE stations tested various skills, including history taking, counselling, and clinical skills. They were adjudged by one internal examiner and one external. The second day was for our two short cases. We had twenty minutes for two short cases, in which we had to do a physical examination to elicit any positive findings, report them to the two examiners, and discuss the possible diagnoses and the most likely diagnosis, management and treatment plan. My short case consisted of a GI examination for a patient with hereditary spherocytosis, and a developmental assessment of a 9-month old child with hearing impediment.
5) For both days, I was with the last group of candidates, which added to the stress. I much rather get things done and over with, but having to watch as - one by one - my friends went in for their exams until the four or five of us were the only ones remaining, was mentally draining. Luckily, it was over soon enough, and now I have officially completed the first rotation of fourth year.
6) Throughout the rotation, I've been lucky to meet students from other medical schools - most notably electives students from Newcastle University Malaysia (NuMed). I still can't believe that they have 8 MONTHS worth of electives, as compared to our two months. As a result, many of them have been hopping from one hospital to the next in order to complete each rotation's requirements. Talking to other medical students was very interesting, as we found out how different institutions conduct their lessons and rotations differently. For instance, I heard from them that they have four weeks of paediatrics in year 3, followed by three weeks at the end of year 4. For us, our rotation is 7 weeks straight, so we start and complete a rotation and then move on.
7) While I take a short break from all that studying and cramming, I'm also busy packing up for my imminent departure from Penang back home. I'll be writing on that shortly, but first - I've to settle and enjoy a (well-deserved) break. Thanks for reading as always, and have a nice day. Cheers!
Celebrating Kuhan's and Jason's birthday at Nando's :)
(l-r: Stephanie, Myself, Melissa, Nee Kee, Khee Heng, Hong, Zi Yan, Esther, Melvin, Kuhan, Jason)
Chicken katsu set at Yoshinoya @ Gurney Plaza
Done for the day - lunch with Aneesha at Sri Ananda Bhawan :)
Who can truly resist the temptation of banana leaf rice - accompanied by three different kinds of vegetables, poppadom (crackers), a perfectly seasoned grilled fish, and a selection of chicken, fish or mixed curry?
Lunch at Tai Tong Restaurant after volunteering - with Zi Yan, Melissa, and Melvin
Dim sum to share :)
I ordered the Singapore-style fried mee hoon (vermicelli noodles) - tasted great!
Birthday cake for the two birthday boys
Quarter chicken and side dish of Mediterranean rice
Chocolate birthday cake tasted really good
So I sometimes crave for a snack; this is it - Penang muar chee (a.k.a. mochi in Japanese) is basically small glutinous rice balls coated in sweet and salty crushed peanuts. They come in many flavours - red bean, pandan, sesame, or original - and a real treat after a long day!
Chicken rice for lunch today...
... comes with chai boey (mustard greens stew)
Today Denise and myself made dinner together - her grandmother had supplied us with some lovely home-cured pork. Denise made the applesauce, while I was in charge of the cheesy mashed potatoes. A couple of cherry tomatoes, and a dollop of sour cream - and hey presto!
Never tried nasi lemak goreng (fried nasi lemak) before - it's really filling :)
