I blogged T.O.D.A.Y @ 23:59

Reminiscing 2013

Looking at how other people talk about what happened in 2013 and what new aspirations and hope they have for the new year, I thought I should have my own list for reminiscence too. The only difficulty now is that since I have stopped writing blog or diary so regularly, I am having some problems trying to recall what happened during the past 12 months. Nonetheless, I have my calendar and FB which provide some recollection. Somemore, FB has this “year in review” which briefly sums up what I have been up to. Those that I can’t remember, I guess they are probably not as important.

So, chronologically:

January
New watch (bought in Dec 12).
2nd high key reservist last 2 weeks of the month, first official high key under 18CSSB. The CO got disrupted in order to run for Punggol by-election. Revisited sleeping in the open field somewhere in Sim Pang (Yishun area).
Regular Sunday breakfast at Sembawang Hills, and the occasional visit to Upper Pierce Reservior.


February
Chinese New Year 9-12 Feb.


March
2 of my closest friends since medic days got married this month. Congrats D and EL.

April
Beginning of my long-awaited leave. Probably one of the greatest highlights of the year. The annual family trip this year is to Korea (9-15 April), where we visited Seoul and Jeju. 2nd time in Korea, but totally new experience.
Went for a dementia conference at Taiwan (17-23 April), Alzheimer’s Disease International. 2nd time in Taiwan, and I still miss the food. It’s a place which I foresee visiting more often in time to come.

May
Spent about 3 weeks in Dover Park Hospice for an attachment, and I must say that it was an awesome and intriguing experience. It gives life a new meaning, and death a new definition. It did stir me a bit to do palliative medicine. Thank you all for the guidance.

June
Another friend’s wedding dinner at Sentosa. A public health talk to the residents at Sembawang.
MO farewell dinner at Seletar country club on 18th.

July
Has a short respite in CH this month. Nothing too significant happened.

August
My birthday leave. One year older but none the wiser.
Another one of my closet fren got married. Congrats XJ!

September
Back to the place which brings back some fond memories. TTSH rehab. Hosted a geriatric professor and gained more insight into frailty.
1st marathon run @ Yellow prison run on 15 Sep. This is probably one of the marathon that I will sign up every year.

October
My GRM Exit exam on 16 Oct. Likely to be the last final biggest most important exams of my life unless I decide for a career switch or further upgrade myself at another domain. Thank you all for all your help in guiding me towards the route of success.
CCK big farm run on 27 Oct.

November
On leave the whole month, mainly to protect the country.
3rd high key reservist. This time in Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia. 12-30 Nov. Limited phone/internet access. Eccentric weather. Good experience of air/land/sea combo in one. Good catchup with reservist mates. “Nostalgic” feeling of the camp.

December
Last call of the century on 19 Dec.
Became a Specialist.
Festive season with Xmas and NY.
I love this month.

I blogged T.O.D.A.Y @ 08:50

The LAST Night Call ever

The exact post I had on FB, after my last night call on 19 Dec 2013.

THIS IS IT.
After so many years of night calls, this is finally the end.

I will never forget, in chronological order:

1) The smell of liquor, the episiotomies, the day I gave my patient 4mg of lorazepam for sleep instead of 4mg of piriton @ NUH O and G
2) I sat down at the nurse’s counter in ward 64 with 10 empty case-notes lying in front for me to clerk @ NUH Med
3) My first collapse: This pat...ient collapsed in front of me in ward 53 when I was catheterizing him @ NUH Med
4) How I finished clerking >20 patients myself when my MO was lazing somewhere @ NUH Med
5) How this reg-on-call made me, the poor HO, run all the way from KRW to Ward 56 to do ECG for a patient with chest pain when he was just standing there waiting @ NUH Med
6) How 2 HOs-on-call (be it same or different gender) have to share one call room (with 2 beds of course) @ NUH Med
7) Doing 8 calls per month, eating at Hongkong street @ AH GS
8) Cross-covering and helping one another when fellow GRM friends were on call together @ AH GRM
9) Sleeping on this yellow mucus-stained mattress in the hot office when doing DMSO (duty medical staff officer) calls @ SAF HQMC
10) My otherwise peaceful first ICU call @ TTSH GM
11) Refusing to use the supposedly-haunted call room in CDC2 @ TTSH GM
12) Doing IMC for X number of male patients in the middle of the night, watch a few episodes of Korean drama @ TTSH Rehab
13) Having 1-in-4 calls in MICU Ward 26 and having morning dim-sums at Holland village post call @ NUH Med
14) The night-float systems, how I hated to walk to-and-fro from Kent ridge wing to main block (see point 5) through the spooky quiet walkway @ NUH Med
15) The thick pile of lab results for me to sign in Ward 44, 47, 56 and CCU @ NHC Cardio
16) Set plug and take blood from minister and VIP @ NHC Cardio
17) Doing HO-MO night call, clerking the first patient in Ward 75 when KTPH first opened @ KTPH GRM
18) The routine Mac breakfasts post-call @ KTPH GRM
19) The first tag-on reg call @ KTPH
20) The first reg call @ KTPH
21) When there was only one reg on call per night and I have to cover medical and cardio patients in tower A/B/MICU/SICU, and I decide when to activate cath lab @ KTPH
22) Walking across level 5 from tower B to tower A, seeing my cute ah gongs and ah mas sleeping soundly (and perhaps not too soundly) in the middle of the night, admiring the clear sky with twinkling stars, knowing the call will eventually end, @ KTPH
23) When the night nursing staff gave us some tidbits and hot milo during the darkest moment of our lives @ NUH/AH/TTSH/NHC/KTPH
24) This 126th and FINAL reg call, , and still deciding if I should intubate this new patient I have admitted @ KTPH Ward 26

Thanks to all the juniors, seniors and fellow healthcare staff whom I have crossed path with and who have helped me along the way.

Thanks to those who gave me bad memories too, for making sure that I did not become the person I hate most.