Masters Interview

I went for my interview for Masters in Emergency Medicine at the National University of Malaysia (NUM) for the 2011/2012 intake today. I had to write an entrance exam at the Faculty of Medicine of NUM followed by an interview at the NUM Medical Center. This year holds the largest candidacy for the program with 78 applicants throughout the country. I am very encouraged to see more doctors getting involved in Emergency Medicine as it is one of the youngest medical specialty in Malaysia. We are no longer a department that take in mediocre doctors or a bunch of medical graduates who are famous for trafficking patients to their respective discipline of care. Emergency Physicians are now highly sought after, as our importance are now compatible with the Internists and General Surgeons. Though we still handle outpatient and non-emergent cases at large, we are moving forward with new developments that have been integrated into our discipline to enhance better care and prognoses. I gave a short presentation on End-of-life Care in Emergency Medicine and have learnt much while preparing it. I have learnt much from this experience and I hope that it will continue to spur me into deeper knowledge and understanding in acute medicine. {S}

A New Day Has Come...

2011 is finally here. This is the time of the year where new resolutions are made but seldom kept. I am not going to make any new resolutions this year. I will continue to strive for the five core values that run through my veins: LOVE, FAITH, HOPE, JOY and FREEDOM. I have come to a realization that we frequently run after temporal gains and miss the harvest that lay over the mountains. It is only through perseverance and determination that we shall reach our destination. This is why I want to be a man of character to my Wife and my Family. Lord, strengthen and empower me to do and live Your Will. {S}

June is already here?

Lo & behold... it's June already! Much have happened since our last entry after the Formula One. April has been the month of preparations for the NCEM 2010 meeting in Kuala Terengganu where I had to prepare for a case presentation. However, just before the event, Granddad passed away peacefully at 85 years old on May 7th, 2010. Faith & I had to rush back to Kuching to attend the funeral. Granddad left behind Grandmom, 15 children and 122 grandchildren and great-grandchildren. May his spirit rest in the peace of the Almighty.

I was being given a slot for a clinical dialogue and it was a huge academic challenge. Faith travelled with me to Kuala Terengganu. She provided me the moral support I needed during my presentation & I won the Best Presentation Award, Amen! We were also blessed to be able to meet up with our friends from New Zealand - Murray, Adam, Cheryl (Adam's wife from Penang) and Ezra (their son). We had a wonderful time of fellowship! There wasn't much shopping to do in Kuala Terengganu but it was a good time for us to have a retreat from our busy days at the hospital.

June is another exciting month that we look forward to. It will be a month that we celebrate my Sweetheart's 26th birthday, followed by the celebration of our first year of marriage. Let us look forward to be blessed beyond measure! {S}

End of a long week

I have finally returned home after being away for a week at Sepang. It has been a very tiring but memorable week. I have missed my Sweetheart so much & it was wonderful to be able to hug & kiss her again. She is still as beautiful as ever & I can't help but to fall in love with her all over again!

I have finally gotten my chance to have a picture with Dr Gary Hartstein. He is an amazing person. Despite his seniority, he is also very approachable & likable. During our final medical inspection on race day, he stopped his medical car, came down & shook hands with me & my team, thanking us for our service at this year's Formula One. He even asked if my Wife was one of the spectators watching the race. This picture was taken very much earlier on before the medical inspection, haha.

Sebastian Vettel of Germany drove Red Bull to victory. Pole holder Matt Webber came in second bringing yet another Red Bull to top three while Nico Rosberg drove Team Mercedes GP to third place. It was a successful race despite seven other racers bowing out. There wasn't any rain as predicted earlier so there weren't any untoward casualties. Everyone had a good time & for us in the medical team, we were all relieved that each of us could go home safely to our respective families. I look forward to next year's Formula One, & hopefully, I will get a chance to be part of this great sporting event again. {S}

Economy of the race

I do not understand the economics of Formula One. There is just so much of money thrown into this business & much more earned out of it, The rich created Formula One to enjoy it as entertainment, while the poor tries their very best to enjoy it as a privilege. We are expecting for 100,000 spectators tomorrow from all walks of life to congregate at Sepang. Let's hope for a good weather on this year's Easter Sunday.

We were having a warm, sunny day when dark clouds moved over the circuit minutes before the qualifying race. Cars skidded about & fortunately, none were hurt. Ferrari & McLaren failed in their strategy of leaving the last from their respective pit lanes as they thought the cars leaving prior to them will help in washing & drying up the track by the time they are on. Instead, they suffered great losses as it started raining cats & dogs. Jenson Button skidded off the track & bowed out of the first qualifying round. His teammate, Lewis Hamilton topped the previous two practice races, also failed his first qualifying round. Instead, Red Bull's Mark Webber will be taking pole position for tomorrow's race.

I will be heading back home after the race tomorrow night. I am just so deprived of my Sweetheart's love & attention that I really look forward to be in her embrace again! I miss my Sweetheart so, so much! Tomorrow will be an exciting day for the nation to be able to host such a reputable international event. Tomorrow will be an exciting day for me to be able to go back to the one Love of my life whom I can never live without. {S}

Practice race

It is really funny how people do not appreciate the free things in life until they miss it. Though not all freebies may be of premium quality or of exclusive selection, yet given its availability, it should be grasped. Today was one of the few days that free stuffs were given away... an opportunity to be sitting in the grandstand watching the practice race of Formula One for free. It may just be the practice race, yet it won't be everyday that we can see Lewis Hamilton drive. Prior to my medical standby this year at Formula One, I had no idea about this sport. I have only heard of Michael Schumacher through the media. I had no idea that Formula One will take 3 days to complete in Malaysia. I never heard of support races, nor was I ever aware of how elite this sport is. I am very thankful for this opportunity to be part of Formula One 2010 which has been around since 1950.

Today is the first day of the race. Tomorrow will be the qualifying race, followed by the final race on Sunday. Coincidentally, this is also the Easter weekend. My Sweetheart is on-call tonight & we have only spoken in phrases. I miss my Wife very much & I look forward to this weekend when I can go back to her & hold her close again. {S}

Medical inspection

FIA came to Sepang today. Their medical team definitely lives up to their pursuit of making motorsports safe. They flew in two of their own Mercedes-AMG SLS as their safety cars. They drove those beauties around the track a couple of times & we were already entertained. I bet this weekend's race will be a blast with all the 24 cars going around for 56 laps! The FIA medical team is headed by Dr Gary Hartstein, the same doctor who extricated Felipe Massa from his car crash during the Hungarian GP in July 25, 2009. He was simply awesome. He was also humble, approachable & positive. He focused on strengths as a team rather than weaknesses. He reinforced the positives of our medical rescue mission & then how we can improve on our negatives. He never picked on our deficiencies. If I haven't learnt much from this race, I have learnt a good deal from him, even in such a brief period.

We did not meet any racers today though we saw a few of their team members jogging around the track. We ended early after our tea break & had the chance to stop by the mall area that is located at the grand entrance. Many of the shops are still in the setting up process. One of the largest one there belonged to Mercedes. I couldn't help but to notice the car my Sweetheart has always wanted & spoke fondly of, the Mercedes B180. We have previously considered to purchase a used B170 which was much cheaper than the B180 (currently cost approximately a quarter million ringgit), but we abandoned that idea. We turned our focus on purchasing a landed property (which we are still looking around) & settled for a Vios instead. We had no regrets but having the opportunity to be able to see a B180 up close reminded me that it is never impossible to achieve it. I believe that someday I can present this as a gift for my Sweetheart on our anniversary. {S}

Tanned in Sepang

We are just two days away before all the cars roll unto Sepang track for their practice run on Friday, followed by the qualifying round on Saturday & the grand finale on Sunday. Tomorrow will be a long day for me & the other medical personnel as the FIA brushes up on the final details of Formula One. The track looks better today than the week before as the old paint has been replaced & lots of cleaning has taken place. We were in the middle of our medical inspection when Sebastien Buemi (Team Toro Rosso) jogged by my post. Let's hope I'll get to see Fernando Alonso or Felipe Massa jog by soon, haha. Today's weather was great. It was mainly cloudy & it only poured after 5 pm. Though I hope it will not rain during this weekend, I hope it will be cloudy. I am not really fond of getting a tan here in Sepang.

It has been awhile since I got tanned by our hot tropical sun. Hmm... let me see... I think it was most probable in Summer 2006 when we last went to Sematan beach. Faith & I may not know how to swim but we love the outdoors! We probably learn how to swim when our kids come along. For now, we still enjoy going to the beach, hiking up mountains (we done that for Gunung Gading), enjoying boat rides, & will someday attempt jumping off a cliff (paragliding) or a plane (skydiving). Someday we also hope we can go scuba diving once we learn how to swim so we can have a glimpse of the disappearing corals. We also plan to scale the Mulu Caves & Mount Kinabalu after Faith completes her internship. {S}