Speak Out

This month's issue of the SMA News is now online, with a section of particular interest. "Voicing Out" is written by my fellow Editorial Board member John Chiam, who, by the way, has one of the highest levels of deep concern for the welfare of junior doctors in Singapore. Joining him is Foo Chuan Kit, who helped me out during a minor scuffle a few months ago ( details shall remain a secret :) ).

If you are a medical or house officer, this article is of great importance! Medical students should also take a look, and keep up with any new developments, which will no doubt be published in future issues. The last junior doctor survey carried out in 1995 brought about major changes that greatly improved the lives of the overworked and underpaid medical professionals of that era. And although we live in better times now, there's still room for further modifications.

My fellow classmates who just got out of National Service a few months ago may have a bone to pick. Clue: It involves a "bonus".

So spread the word, and get as many people as possible to participate in this survey.

News Totally Unrelated To Medicine
You've been warned, 'cos I'm going to ramble here! :D

Clay Aiken's debut full-length CD has been confirmed to be titled "Measure Of A Man", and will be released in mid-September. This is still presumably tentative, since Ruben Studdard's own album has no title or release date as of this moment. Clay's been up in the top 5 in pre-order sales ever since it was made available on Amazon.com. He's now still at #3 or #4.

Was recently made aware of a website from a local animal rights group called AnimalWatch. Some of their articles have been most enlightening, albeit in an alarming way. The one that made a big impact on me involved the methods employed in obtaining foie gras ( aka goose liver ). Descriptions are graphic, complete with photos that made my stomach turn. That's it -- I'm never ever going to touch this dish for the rest of my life! ( I think I ate it once before, but hated the taste. )

There's also a link to PETA ( People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals ), which is world-famous. Their lists of companies that do or do not conduct inhumane tests on animals had me scrambling to check whether the products I use may have gone through such experiments. Thankfully, none of the brands I favour were blacklisted: Tommy Hilfiger, Estee Lauder, Clinique, The Body Shop, just to name a few.

My support goes out to the many volunteers who make up AnimalWatch. Their projects include attempts to educate Singaporeans about foie gras ( especially since we have annual food festivals with international chefs visiting to conduct gourmet tours, etc ). Did you know that, despite numerous published letters in The Straits Times and The New Paper, organizers of these gastronomical events refused to respond or halt servings of goose liver? I guess profits always take priority over the lives of measly waterfowl. We've got so many French restaurants on this tiny island as it is. Who's going to be brave enough to anger their owners by criticizing their dishes? Sacre bleu!

So it's up to us, the consumers, to do something about it. Some of you may think, "Like it's going to make any difference." Well, the way I see it, some effort is always better than none. There are millions of others out there who take this seriously, and by boycotting products that result from acts of cruelty against innocent animals, we're also addressing our own consciences. Another way we can help is to alert others to these animal rights groups, so they'll be made aware and will hopefully spread the news even further.

* Getting off the podium now * :)

Okay, some last-minute medical stuff. :P

Today was, you guessed it, NS Man Day. The young fellows I saw today were extremely well, with the occasional one being sick enough to warrant medical leave. One guy who complained of ankle pain after a mild sprain had a completely normal gait and no swelling or tenderness of the joint whatsoever. He later wanted a couple of days off. I sweetly asked him why, and he actually answered, "So I can go for a massage at the Chinese sinseh's clinic." It was downhill from there. He begged, I repeatedly refused. A staff nurse who passed by told me some MOs ( probably guys who know how things in NS work ) will ask the patients which camps they are from. This tactic apparently strikes fear into the hearts of all army recruits, because knowing the camp's name will mean the possibility of the camp MO being informed of some "dubious behaviour" from the NS boy, and a black mark on their records. ( Kinda like the "cry wolf" story )
Female A&E MOs who haven't developed a hard shell yet, take note! :)

Less than an hour to the end of my shift. "ER" is on tonight, woohoo!