Tomorrow's Doctors...

Our University class Yahoo Group has always been quite a hub of communication all year. All was done in an endeavour to keep ourselves updated with everything going on at medical school, from lectures to other leisure activities. But lately, the emails (in red) that are being sent are so shameful, that I thought they deserve a little mention. As implied in the previous sentence, some people know no shame whatsoever. (But repetition is justified, you know, for the sake of emphasis) It is during this crucial time of the year were people are asking questions regarding issues that have been dealt with many months before such as...

"I was wondering why the viva [oral exam] for pathology is held a day before paediatrics exam. Can you check with secretary whether this thing can be changed? [OMG! You've never had two exams in succession before?] i have heard from previous years that people end up failing their paeds exam or do badly. would a day or 2 make a difference for them? after all a viva in pathology never helped anyone but people still have to go and thus waste a day or 2 before paeds exam."

And whilst they're at it, these same people are, naturally, asking for the pharmacology past papers...

"Can anyone kindly tell me what past papers are available for pharmacology as last time i checked at papier i found only 3. (btw i checked a week ago)"

And... wait for it...

"Wasn't there supposed to be a full set of past papers?"

Kindly note that past papers have been put in the stationer's for everyone to photocopy ages ago by our class representatives. (Yes... We are so childish in our ways that we actually need the "prefect system" that one only finds in secondary schools in order to ensure that things are working in some order.)

And they are also asking for notes too, as though our class reps haven't done a good enough job to collect and distribute all notes available throughout the year. Naturally, these people would have found it pointless coming to the lecture since the PowerPoint used is, in 99.9% of cases, found in the Yahoo Group ready for everyone to download... And emails such as follows naturally ensue...

"Hi, does anyone have the notes from Dr. N. Spiteri about vaccines please? Thanks"

And someone rightly replied...

"sa fejn naf jien [as far as I'm concerned] we don't have any notes of Dr. N Spiteri, she had written them out on the white board"

Another bright mind sends an email on the same thread...

"Anyone typed them out and can send them on the server?" [:O]

Needless to say, no one really bothered posting anything on the server. And so, people continued their panick sequence with regards to the pharmacology that most medical students never touch until the last two weeks of the year...

"hi, [Yeah, hello there] does anyone have notes for gynae pharm pls? thanks"

"And what about ophthalmic pharmacology? Are there any notes? If not, can anyone kindly list very briefly what was discussed?" [You have got to be kidding me!!!!]

[And here come the email that bursts the bubble...] "Gynae and Obs notes werent given because of poor attendence + lecturer dispute with university."

The prompt reply?

"*******... [like lecturers are expected to give us notes!] [But... the persistence of some people never ceases to amaze me...] and what about ophthalmology?"

Now, I'm a very reasonable individual. There is no harm is asking the odd query here and there. But... To all those people who expect to be spoon fed, all so that they can stay studying comfortably at home whilst the rest of their colleagues go to lectures and ward rounds as asked of them... We are forth year medical students, who will hopefully manage to become doctors in around 12 months time... Supposedly respectable and responsible citizens of society, as our duties, after all, require us to be. So, next time, instead of resting on the Yahoo Group, come to lectures and do your job as a student properly. You are free to decide otherwise and just do your own thing, in which case, when notes are missing, stop sending the class mail and go sod off!

On a more sober note, the real doctors of tomorrow (i.e. the 5th years) are just a few minutes away from sitting their first written exam (at 9am and at 3pm). I'm sure that any prayers at this stage will be greatly appreciated. :)

SPHYGMO Exam Edition

The third issue of SPHYGMO is out!!!

Check it out on the MMSA Website!

NB: This is the last issue of Sphygmo for this year and it is, very very sadly, also my last contribution to Sphygmo as editor. It's been a wonderful experience working with this year's Editorial Board and the rest of MMSA Media Sub-Committee. But now it's time to step down and move on. With 5th year round the corner and other commitments (including Faculty Rep), I already have more than enough on my plate as it is...

Why People Come and Go

This won't be the usual "meant to entertain you" post. Was meant to write this for quite a while but was a bit busier than usual.

The reasons behind this post are three:

1. I read Benji's blog post called People Come and Go... And I wanted to reply to that.

2. Went to mass last Sunday which I found very relevant to point number 1 above

3. Saw a comic on Chalkboard Manifesto (see later) that, again, is very relevant to points 1 & 2.

As Ben put it, "This isn't just about y4j but everywhere we Christians go..." Likewise, this is not about community, or any other prayer group. So, really, any possible "controversy" is not intended. But this is something important to bring up...

This is because MANY people have asked me why bother going to church? A lot of people rightly wonder why the hell bother with mass. And I sometimes struggled with the question why bother with community!

Personally, I don't blame people asking those questions, especially when mass is perceived as being something as follows...

This is the misfortune of today! That church is somewhere you go to and not somewhere to belong to. Last Sunday's gospel (Luke 24: 35-48), we were given a glimpse of how the early church was... people talked to each other, shared with each other, broke the bread and ate together. A group of people become a church, a community, when people share. And as Jesus said in Matthew 18: 20, "...where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." In fact, even in the Bible, when Jesus appeared, He usually did so when there were a group of people.

Even in last Sunday's Gospel, more than three people were gathered in Jesus' name. And Jesus appeared to them saying, "Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have." Such people had the fortune of having such a profound and life changing experience of Jesus like never before.

Today, we can't touch Jesus directly. But the Bible says that the church is indeed the body of Christ (Romans 12: 4-5).

"Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others."

For people not to "come and go" they need to be given the opportunity to move away from Christianity as being a simple idea, and more towards Christianity as being a profound and life changing experience. For that to happen, an experience of God's love is necessary... A love which is today manifested in other people... Manifested in the church.

So, if community is so important, why do people miss out?

People nowadays speak about feeling close to God thanks to personal prayer, but still don't go to mass. When I went to 18:30 mass at Naxxar on Sunday (29th of March), this mentality was out rightly condemned when the priest was able to have his 15 minutes say on the pulpit. When I went last Sunday, the priest was a bit more understanding. Nevertheless, the community aspect of our faith is important and church is necessary.

This is a fact that is worth repeating, especially in the light of hearing many community/prayer group members say, "you should come to the meetings for God and God alone". But it's a flawed principle, that is not really Biblical when you think about it. Apart from what has already been stated above, God made it very clear in the very first book of the Bible, the book of Genesis (2: 18)...

"The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone."

It is not good... i.e. it is wrong... for man to be alone.

What is most striking is that this was said at a time when Adam still had a PERFECT relationship with God, with no hardship, no separation and no sin in between. And yet, God still found it unjust for man to be alone! Let alone now! Sin, with all it's consequences (doubts, fear, worry, sickness) now makes a healthy community experience even more essential to have a healthy relationship with God.

This is why Benji's observation is so important. As very rightly put by Ben...

"Am i really testifying the love of God by including, them talking to them and sharing with them?"

Again, this is not about not having our own group of friends. This is more about breaking our comfort zones to reach out to other people. We keep ourselves busy, immersed in things to do, projects to carry out, outreaches to organise, healing services to do, dances to rehearse, programmes to film, DVDs to make and websites to update. And in all this busyness, we forget the people who come and go. The very people we would have done outreaches for, the people we would have done programmes for, or Lenten talks, or healing services, and youthful worship... All to win souls for God.

And we manage. We lure new people into our meetings to give them a taste of who God is and how much He loves us. But then the worship stops...
The music fades...
The noise ceases...
The talk ends...
And then...

What do we do?

Little Tweets

If I had Twitter and spoke in Tweets, here is what I would write about today (tweets in red)...

It's my friend's birthday. Gave her a present which she LOVED. But I think I left the receipt in the bag by mistake. :S

Sent my nomination for Student Faculty Rep. Not that I want to get too excited about it. No idea who other candidates are. We wait & see.

Saw MANY magazines lying around in the library & thought of patients @outpatients. They’d like something to read while waiting for doctor.

Went to take the magazines at OBGYN outpatients with two librarians who liked the idea. Maybe it will help reduce a few cat fights.

Was supposed 2have a lecture on menstruation & all its problems but lecturer didn’t come. Probably realised our class is 75% female already!

Still waiting for lecturer. Instead, the Dep. of Medicine secretary came to ask us if we’re going to the lecture @Boffa Hospital. We said no*.

* The reasons behind our "no" are plenty and, although my readership is pathetically small, they cannot all be made public on the Internet... And they will most definitely NOT fit into one tweet. However the reply we got to our "no" does make it as The Tweet of the Day, be it written in English or in Maltese. Here it is as it was originally said by the concerned lecturer at Boffa on the phone...

"Dawn huma l-istudenti tar-Repubblika ta’ Malta. Jitħalsu biex jistudjaw. Għidilhom biex ma jiġux!!!”

Or rather in English...

"These are the students of the Republic of Malta. They get paid to study. Just tell them not to turn up!!!"

And fianlly, my last tweet...

Writing a letter to concerned authorities in reply to the above. More tweets next time.

Now I know why Miley Cyrus is so "Twitter obsessed". I found writing out these messages kind of fun. Thing is... My day is rarely as interesting as this one.

Just a Thought

From the Times of Malta:

"The allocation of doctors at the Mater Dei Emergency Department has never been ideal but was now going from bad to worse..."

"... it had now become a habit to send to this department newly graduated doctors before these were even given their registration license" which is "illegal in all western states, possibly even in Malta."

Although these young doctors "did their best to serve patients in the most effective and efficient manner" they, "understandably, took longer on the job because they lacked the necessary experience."

And Marquita wonders...

Maybe that is what the architects had in mind when they placed the Emergency Department so, so close to the mortuary...

KSU Elections... My 2c

Yelling it out like it is in so many words...

Goodbye Jade...

It's been a while since my last post and much has happened...

1. My blog is two years old and did not even notice! (again)

2. Matt's blog came to life! :O

3. The 7 weeks ordeal in the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Department are over... for the time being.

4. Media is in full swing working on this year's edition of Murmur... and hopefully even Sphygmo

5. MMSA will be having elections on Monday

6. And someone's suffering in the UK has come to an end today in the early hours of the morning after an admirable battle against cervical cancer.

This post will be a little tribute to Jade Goody, originally a dental nurse assistant born and bred in Bermondsey, south-east London, who entered the public eye after propelling into fame in 2002 when finishing 4th on Big Brother. Since then, Jade signed up to many a series of lucrative television, newspaper and magazine deals, wrote her autobiography and launched a top selling perfume Shh... In the meantime, she was a mother of 2 boys Bobby (5) and Freddie (4) and also had to support her own mother Jackiey Budden after suffering from a crippling motor vehicle accident.

In all honesty, I wasn't really a big fan of Jade. And neither was the press in the very beginning. Jade often attracted press mockery for her appearance and supposed ignorance, being considered as a personification of all that is wrong with Britain today. She was loud-mouthed, brash and came up with (perfect for Sphygmo) PEARLS OF WISDOM such as, "Is East Anglia (Cambridge) abroad?" In fact, her brashness and big mouth were almost going to ruin her public image when she joined racially tinged bullying of the Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty in the celebrity edition of Big Brother in 2007.

However, since Jade received the devastating news that she had cervical cancer in August 2008, I started keeping a closer eye on her. For the past few months I stayed watching the last few days of such an ordinary person, with no particular discernible talent and with all the characteristics making her an unlikely celebrity... I watched her leaving such a mark in so many women's lives. The Living TV documentary of Jade Goody's battle with cancer entitled Jade has touched the hearts of thousands of viewers. Also, cancer charities noted an increase in younger women booking screening tests for cervical cancer. In fact, this tidal increase in women going in for smear tests has been noticed even by the medical profession, with doctors referring to this as the Jade effect.

Although most of her TV appearances were done to provide financial security to her sons Bobby and Freddie, I think as a medical student I owe Jade Goody a big thank you. When you really think about it, no health campaign would have, and will ever, manage to drive home the importance of taking regular Pap smears like this! So...

Thanks Jade for managing to see the silver lining in every cloud. May you rest in peace.