MEDICO

At a point, you just don’t care. Well, let me re-phrase…it’s not that you don’t care, but you’ve actually reached the end of your rope and can go no further. The phenomenon of past-pointing: It seems like you’re reaching far beyond your original/intended objective- and not in a good way, mind you. Pathological? Maybe not. What I however know is this- at that point, take a deep breath, pause if you wish/must…but don’t stop. You just might hit the target…you just might.

Maybe that’s one of the really genuine reasons the general public considers doctors/medical professionals/scrub nurses/ OR staff mean. Debridement, I mean. Anyone who’s ever had a relatively extensive wound that required this process of removing necrosed (dead) tissue would be familiar with the pain…well, if not done under anaesthesia. But we all have undergone some form of debridement…at one point in time or the other. How? You ask me. I’d say through corrections e.g. when someone ‘shouts on your head’ or talks sense into you; or when the great dad/mum refused to spare the rod and had you severely flogged for an unpardonable(?) offence committed or better still, when God gives you grueling tasks to complete with seemingly little assistance. I think that’s pretty close to the process of debridement, for as in debridement, the immediate thought is that ‘this person hates me’. However, it helps- well, eventually- but definitely not on the spot. My point is this…pain is pain ...

I know hope exists, but I don't want to assume that I know all of what hope holds. Joy maybe? Sadness maybe? Longing maybe? Or maybe a little of everything... Seems like a riddle.

I have heard of so many triads- Virchow’s triad, Cushing’s triad being just 2 examples that I can readily recall at the moment. Triads simply point to common occurrences (in threes) that characterize a particular state or condition. Well, I have a triad to add and its known as the hyper-tired triad. Ever being tired? A negative response is similar to a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score of say 3! (lol), in essence, we’ve all being tired @ one point in time or the other. Some people are even tired of doing nothing (I wish). The classical triad I am pointing out has these 3 features: 1.       OVERWHELMING SLEEPINESS 2.       HIGH LEVEL OF IRRITABILITY  3.       REDUCED SPEED OF PROCESSING INFORMATION I know this is a triad, but can I add a fourth feature? (Thanks…) It’s the tendency to repeat the phrase “I am tired” with every spare breath you can take. Well, as I am apparently tired this i...

Learning confers on each of us a certain privilege…from actually sitting down in a classroom and being taught by a teacher, to standing by the roadside and watching people go about their daily activities, to watching a surgeon perform a surgical procedure; the process of learning is definitely one of teaching. The paradoxical thing about learning is that we do not learn until we have learnt. If you don’t have as a basis a certain amount of knowledge e.g. of English language, you might not be able to read an essay or interpret a discussion.  Same follows in the world of calculations, you cannot solve a complex mathematical equation if you lack the knowledge of simple arithmetic. But the thing about life is that paradoxes abound. You want to learn right? But really, learning comes and is consolidated ONLY after learning.

I saw a woman crying today. She was in front of the accident and emergency ward, crying and praying, because most likely, a relative of hers was in that ward, receiving immediate treatment. I felt for her. Just yesterday, I asked a friend to remind me of what I was doing in medical school once again. She asked me if I had received another calling… I have been called to help. I am studying medicine BECAUSE of that woman and several others who are in pain. The only- or should I say, the most important (?) reason I am here today, studying this beautiful course, which is extremely time-consuming is to put a smile on their faces- as many of them as God would have me treat. And for this reason, I have to be the best of the best, knowing as much as I can and should- birthing and keeping and transforming lives. I just had to remind myself, and for as many people are doing things they love, don’t give up. Make a difference.

Of course, I watch Grey’s Anatomy. What’s funny that I started not so long ago. And trust me, I’ve gotten so into it that I barely go a day without seeing an episode. Their love lives, I must confess, however, attract me more than their lives as medical professionals…or is it the intertwined assortment/blend? I guess it is. The vital lesson this series has taught me is that not all happily ever afters eventually end up becoming “happily ever after” and that not all sweethearts/connected lovebirds make it to the end. That’s funny, ain’t it? Coz I thought love was supposed to be enough. I was particularly baffled when I learnt that Izzy left Karev- after how much he stood by her when she had cancer! I haven’t even seen the episode and my heart is already breaking at the thought. Well, back to the point: Not every love story will last, it’s simply a fact. And while it’s not a fact that makes me happy, it’s one that makes me cautious. A relationship- and consequently marriage, isn...