DAY 2289-2317

Dec 8 - Jan 5

1) Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year 2023!! And what a year it has been. Starting where I last left off, the online exams (for the Research in Health Module) went smoothly, although we have yet to receive our results. Hopefully all of us pass and can progress to the next block of research in August, during the first block of Foundation Year 2 training.

2) Trauma and orthopaedics has been an interesting rotation so far, if slightly challenging to wrap one's head around. For example, there are five different wards - Wards 225-228, and Ward 112. Ward 226 is a mixed ward comprising both orthopaedic and spines patients, while Ward 228 is a neurosurgery ward with some ortho / spines patients. Ward 112 is the elective orthopaedic unit which has recently become a trauma unit, but is currently a medical ward. The other wards are more straightforward - Ward 225 is for neck of femur fractures, and Ward 227 is for acute trauma rehab. All of this took me some getting used to.

3) Overall, this is mainly a medical job in a surgical ward. Commonly encountered scenarios include prescribing adequate pain relief, managing constipation, managing infection, checking wound dressing sites, checking post-op X-rays, and medically optimising patients pre- and post-operatively. Based on my limited experience so far, I've found spines to be more challenging than orthopaedics, with more complex presentations requiring senior input. 

4) It is customary to have a New Year's resolution. For me, it is to make it through Foundation Year training, and then decide for certain what I'd like to pursue in life. With any luck, the coming rotations will help me make up my mind. For now, I'm quite happy and content with the way things are going. Hopefully this will be another good year for everyone. Thanks for visiting my blog as always, and have a great year ahead. Cheers!

Merry Xmas from Ward 228 :)

L-R: Myself, Julian, and Amir

A perk of working late shifts (14:00-22:00) is you get this "Nervecentre Device"

- essentially a repurposed iPhone that alerts the doctor of any urgent tasks

Guess who decided to grab two of these today

Freezing at -8° Celsius

Got myself a gym bag for travelling XD

Unexpectedly shift at County Hospital today

Love the Christmas decorations in front of the hospital

A rainy night

Yes, permission was sought beforehand

First time doing bloods in the paediatric ward

Bloods done today

The wards may be poorly staffed, but the staff are well fed :)

New Year, New Haircut

DAY 1637-1651

Feb 25 - Mar 11

Night has arrived, 

Another day survived,

The medical student returns late.

Dinner has gone to waste,

For they only long to taste, 

That warm embrace of their own bed.

In stress they thrive,

In sickness they strive,

For attendance equates to proficiency,

From dawn to dusk, 

They put on a mask,

To shield others from their own deficiency.

Exams are a priority, 

So say the majority,

The mindset of a student is resolute,

Like modulus in mathematics,

Or temperature in thermodynamics,

Their conviction is thus absolute.

From students to doctors in a flash,

From scratching their heads, to treating the rash,

Repeating to themselves that old lie,

That this will all be worth it before they die.

Years of stress have taken their toll,

The once bubbly figures have lost their soul,

The cost of their dreams was their own health,

Have they never learnt that health is wealth?

Pre exam week lunch with my friends @ Baby Sumo Restaurant

(l-r: Rachel, Myself, Sharifah, Afifah)

Dinner with my cousin Eo @ Arashi, Gurney Plaza

Thanks so much for the wonderful meal!!