Covid pandemic in Malaysia

 Number of covid case in Malaysia against top three countries in the world with covid infection.

We have already beats US and India, and fast approaching Brazil.

A total lockdown coupled with widespread vaccination is the key to stop our rapid progression. Financial assisstance should also be given for those being affected during this crisis. 

No more scrambling for power for those elected representatives. 

No more controversies againts covid infection and vaccination. 

No more controversies for unproven herb or supplement treatment in treating covid.

Covid infection is real and it kills people. It is not a propaganda or part of an elaborate hoax. 

The frontliners are already tired,exhausted and burned out. The hospital is full and we are approaching the limits.

For those patient with non covid infection, I am sorry to say that we have limited bed in the general ward and ICU to treat your infection.  The covid infection has become the main priority and it seems that the Covid pandemic is getting worse.

It is time for us to come together, put aside our differences and fight to restore our nation.

Pergi tak kembali

Al-fatihah to Ustaz Asri. Read more.

15 days later

The title refers the number of days this blog last updated. Lots of things has happened in the last two weeks.

1. Swine flu is now officially an epidemic. Malaysia currently has more 90 cases of swine flu and the reaction from the Malaysian newspapers has managed to over exaggerate the severity of the swine flu. In fact, many of my friends who are going back to Malaysia for winter holiday are quite worried that they will be under home quarantine too, since few cases of swine flu in Malaysia originate from here. Go read this; Swine flu's not that bad.
2. Riot in Iran. I wonder what will happen to Iran in the next few months. Hopefully, if there is any chaos in the future, it won't lead to lots of unnecessary killing among the citizens and disrupting the petroleum production. Petrol prices has already been increasing and we don't need another riot to push up the petrol price.
3. New operators for tram and train in Melbourne. Hopefully this will improve the quality of public transport in Melbourne in the future.
   
4. Exams. I have finished two written exams and will be sitting for OSCE next week. Will write more about those written exam later.
5. Firefox has released the third Firefox 3.5 release candidate. I am patiently waiting for the next version of Firefox . Read this; Firefox 3.5 memory usage, Top 10 features in Firefox 3.5

Iklan 1960an

Sungguh klasik bahasa yang digunakan .

How much a young doctor earns?

Taken from The Star

lt starts at RM2.456.39 (Grade UD41, P1T6) as against those of other schemes of service. The initial salary takes into consideration the period of six years that an undergraduate takes to qualify as a medical officer.

Furthermore, the total takehome pay for newly-appointed medical officers is RM4,058.39 when all the monthly allowances and Incentive Payment for Critical Service (the highest compared to those of other critical schemes) are factored in .

In addition, medical officers als o receive the following allowances:

> On-call allowance at the rate of RM150 per night;

> Locum at the rate of RM80 per hour; and

> Incentive payment for specialist ranging from RM1,600 to RM3,100 per month, depending on the grade of the officer.

The ruling that will entitle newly-appointed medical officers to receive RM6,000 per month will take affect in 2010, after the current batch of medical graduates have completed their internship at a local government hospital.

To further advance their career prospects, the Government has improved promotion opportunities of medical officers by creating more promotional posts. At the same time, the Government has increased the number of scholarships for the Masters programme to 600.

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Will this be enough to lure Malaysia medical students to work in Malaysia public hospital? Personally, I don't think this will be enough to keep doctors in public health care system. There are various factors that need to be improved such as working environment, more opportunities to do specialist training at overseas, opportunity to work in private sector and the Ministry of Health should conduct more surveys from junior doctors to capture the suffering and burden among young doctors.

Any opinion?

Blog Statistics

Since I don't know what else to write at the moment, I will write the statistics regarding this blog. I have been using Google Analytics since August 2006.

Statistics (August 2006 - March 2009)

Total visit : 19906 (Pretty low and this is expected since I don't write anything that can attract large audience)
Total Pageviews: 28439
New Visitors: 68.16%

Top 10 referring sites

1. blogger-templates.blogspot.com
   
2. images.google.com
   
3. Hayad
   
4. hafiz238.efx2.com
   
5. Reazal Effendy
   
6. Sarah Mohd Shukor
7. gambrine.blogspot.com
   
8. Petaling Street
   
9. Sofie Nur
   
10. Minci
    

Top 10 Keywords

1. kembara di bumi melbourne
2. e-novel malay
3. hafiz238
4. ladybug layouts
5. erti kemerdekaan
6. aurat wanita
7. ladybug layout
8. candid syndrome
9. kembara
10. kelebihan al mathurat

Top 20 weirdest keywords

1. misteri awan cerah bertukar gelap
2. klara causen
3. broken heart layouts
4. gambar mercu tanda di malaysia
5. statistik penggunaan telefon bimbit di malaysia
   
6. kompas cecair
7. perkara perkara pelik di bumi
8. "friendship is always a sweet responsibility, never an opportunity" with explanation
9. hate medical students
10. 36c titis
11. agaknya bila tarikh aidil fitri
12. contoh panggilan sayang
13. di mana lalat tidur
14. ex-kisas student blog
15. excuses for being late, typical
16. kisah pelik dan benar
17. melapah manusia
18. nama website untuk cari map di google
19. rumah berhantu di england
20. tahun ni korang beraya di mana
    

Top 20 pages (in bracket, number of pageviews)

1. mnemonic for forearm muscles and bone (899)
2. archive July 2005 (758)
3. Interpreting Electrocardiogram [ECG] (757)
4. medical abbreviations (662)
5. useful links for new blogger (500)
6. archive January 2005 (495)
7. another online novel (491)
8. ladybug (363)
9. diencephalon (345)
10. ladybug red theme (279)
11. archive November 2004 (256)
12. 100 tahun meneroka sejarah (209)
13. few blogger hacks (206)
14. archive February 2005 (204)
15. how to migrate from old classic blogger layout to new blogger layout (194)
16. archive March 2007 (191)
    
17. archive August 2005 (159)
18. Google Reader shared items hack (151)
19. broken heart syndrome (136)
20. photoshop tutorial pattern 1 (135)
    

Top 10 Commentators (I only started to use Blogger commenting system on 26 May 2007. Previously I used Haloscan. The figure in the bracket represents the number of comments made on Blogger commenting system)

1. Hayad (61)
2. mosh (33) + moshimoshi (23) = 56 [mosh and moshimoshi is the same person. However, the system that I used to count is based on the username.]
3. aria ayumi (27) + diya (25) = 52
   
4. Chem (36)
5. Ummu Layth (34)
6. Sofie Nur (30)
7. arsaili (29)
8. Sarah Mohd Shukor (26)
9. minci (23)
10. farah yusri (15)
    

To Malaysian Politicians

Dear Malaysian Politicians,

Please stop the power chase, call for a truce and focus on the economy.

I do not claim to speak on behalf of all Malaysians, but I have strong convictions that many share my sentiments.

Our concern today is not who rules the country or heads the state governments but the looming bad economy.

Whether Barisan Nasional or Pakatan Rakyat leads, it is meaningless if Malaysians have no job to go to, no money to pay rent and no means to put food on the table.

Read more.

I totally agree with the writer. Why do our leaders keep quarrelling against each other when our entire economy is looking quite bleak?

p/s: I'm still could not understand the reason the government would like to increase the toll rates when there are many people who are suffering from the global economy crisis. Perhaps they should consider DAP suggestion to make PLUS toll free by 2016.

Second and third class patients

Depending on your social status and income, you might be admitted to first or second or third class ward in Malaysia's hospital. The different ward class could mean that your stay at hospital either be comfortable or staying in a crowded cubicle.

If I'm not mistaken, being in third class means that you have to pay for every blood test but you pay less for admission fee whereas in second class, you don't need to pay for any test/investigations since that is being covered under admission fee. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

In Australia, there is no such thing as second, third or even first class. Every patient received the same standard of medical care. The only different perhaps whether you are in a single room or in a room with 4 people. Back in Malaysia, being in third class could mean that one cubicle containing around 10 patients.

I think in Australia, they have quite large amount of resources such that they could afford to provide one television per bed and every hospital has air-conds. In Malaysia, there is only one television per ward and a ward might have between fourty to sixty patients. I guess if you are admitted to public hospital in Malaysia, you might get bored easily and don't have the luxury to see any form of entertainment.

I'm not sure the needs of segregating patients in different ward class since I thought the provision of health care towards Malaysian citizens should be universal and be standardised regardless of your social status or income. At least for those who come from higher social status, they can afford to go to private sector.

Why am I writing about this matter? This might be one of the potential improvements that could be implemented in the future, provided that the government has enough staff, resources and facilities.

News: Public unhappy with government medical services

Medical Abbreviations in Malaysia

After four weeks doing elective in Malaysia, these are some of the common medical abbreviations used in the hospital.

AFNT – Anterior Fontanelle NormoTensive
AGE – Acute Gastro Enteritis
ARF – Acute Renal Failure
BE – Base Excess
CBD – Continuous Bladder Drainage (Fancy phrase of saying putting up a urinary catheter)
CBS – Capillary Blood Sugar
CKD – Chronic Kidney Disease
CLD – Chronic Liver Disease
DFU – Diabetic Foot Ulcers
DIL – Death In Line
DRNM – Dual Rhythm No Murmur (This is used to describe cardiovascular examination findings)
EES - Erythromycin ethyl succinate
EMCS – Emergency Caesarean Section
FTSVD – Full Term Spontaneous Vaginal Delivery
JE – Japanese Encephalitis [PDF]
KIV – Keep In View
NNJ – Neonatal Jaundice
OA – Orang Asli
PCM – Paracetamol
PD – Peritoneal Dialysis
SCR – Subcostal Recession
SGOT - Serum Glutamic Oxaloacetic Transaminase. Another name for AST (Aspartate aminotransferase)
TCA – To Come Again. Example TCA eye clinic 6/52
TRO – To Rule Out
UFEME – Urine Full Examination Microscopic Examination
UGIB - Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding

p/s: Most of these abbreviations are quite different from the one we used in Australia.

The Coat of Professionalism

The person with the stethoscope is coming closer. The fear starts to build up. The pain gradually become more painful as that person is getting closer to them. The pain from needle is too much to bear with. The fear is too intense for them to handle. Then out of nowhere, they start to cry and try to run away from that person.

This was a common situation that I faced everyday while doing my elective in paediatrics back in Malaysia. Children are too afraid of anyone wearing stethoscope and will always associate them with needles. Any attempt of even touching them or putting the stethoscope on their chest will result in an endless crying and this may lead to futile effort to examine them.

Sometimes, we have to struggle with the children while the parent holding them down for us to check their heart and lung function. An outsider may saws this act as quite cruel but it was necessary for their own health.

Every doctor working in Malaysia has to wear white coat. The main reason behind this is to show the so-called professionalism. Every male doctor has to wear tie as well and this is certainly not suitable in hot humid environment in Malaysia.

The only department in the hospital that does not follow this code of conduct is paediatrics (a branch of medicine that looks after kids). White coat is the main source of fear to the patients. At least by not wearing white coat on the ward, this may help to reduce their anxiety. Nevertheless, any doctors or nurses for that matter, will always be associated with needles injection and most of the kids will developed intense fear towards the health professionals.

As a medical student who is trained in Australia, it was quite amusing for me to see everyone working in the hospital to wear white coats. Doctors, nurses and medical assistants have to wear white coat every day. I would not argue with this regulation if all the hospitals in Malaysia is fully air-conditioned but this was not the case.

In Australia, doctors are not required to wear white coat and it is not compulsory for male doctors to wear tie. Nurses have their own uniform but it is not white in colour . I guess we can be professional even without the white coat.

According to google, professionalism is defined as

• the expertness characteristic of a professional person
• professionalist - A person or organisation that supports a professional attitude
• an occupation, vocation or high-status career, usually involving prolonged academic training, formal qualifications and membership of a professional or regulatory body

clearing up alerts

Right now, I am reading all the alerts in my Google Reader. There are thousands of alerts that need to be clear up. This is the result of not accessing my Google Reader in the past two months.

I subscribed to all of my friend's blogs and it was surprising to read what have happened in the past two months. Few of them quit blogging for good and few of them stop temporarily.

It was interesting to see what have happened in the blogging world. Most of the blog that I subscribed to are Malaysian bloggers and it was fun to see how each blogger responds to each issue happening in Malaysia.

Each person is entitled to their own opinion and despite all of their differences, I learn to respect their own opinion. After all, no one is perfect in this world. If we are able to tolerate each other, and spend time to listen to each other problem, we are one step closer in achieving unity and peace

Being late = typical Malaysian

I'm not sure why but it is common for Malaysians to be late. Expect them to be late more than half an hour for any appointment. Even Malaysian students who are studying overseas couldn't escape from this culture. Perhaps this culture is already ingrained in the genetics and requires several generations for this symptom to be eradicated.

The article below sheds some light to possible reasons why Malaysians like to be late

Given the perpetual dilatory of Malaysians, one would expect valid and even original excuses. Yet, the conciliations remain the same; traffic, work, bad directions, traffic again (both sides of highway). But what even Malaysians don't know, is that they are really late because subconsciously they enjoy the knowledge that they are the center of attention and that people are waiting for them. It makes them feel good to know people anxiously await their presence and they will milk every last possible second until they arrive (once they do, they will feign a profusely apologetic stance). By doing this, they create the illusion that they are too important to show up on time because they are busy juggling the hundreds of other events in their lives. This constant lateness lowers punctuality expectations and on a day that they actually turn up on time, their friends will be ever so grateful to them for it ("It's so thoughtful of you to show up AND be on time today!").

read more: being late.

Famous high school alumni

In the past few weeks, Malaysian newspapers and blogosphere have been filled with lots of political headlines. Sometimes, I get tired of reading the news since I'm not sure which is the truth and which is the false facts. Perhaps we need to read between the lines in everything that we read in blog or newspapers.

The latest big news that is happening is another allegation to Malaysian ex-deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and endless story on Altantuya case. An interesting opinion on Anwar's case by Ustaz Abdul Halim Abdullah.

I personally don't like to be involved in politics. It can be confusing at times and you need to read on both sides to gain a better understanding of the whole situation. You have to be careful of not being too emotional when read anything that is related to politic. The newspapers like to play with emotions and therein lies the danger.

Once your emotion clouded your mind and thought, it is hard to change your perception towards some politicians. I think it is better to be open minded in things that you do not fully understand.

Anyway, I hope with the current pattern of news in Malaysia, we do not forget the real issue that is faced by many Malaysians. With the increase price in petrol and goods, many people are being affected. At least the vehicle owner can get rebate from the post office but I wonder if there is any some sort of rebate or cash subsidy to those poor people who doesn't even have the capacity to buy a car or a motorcycle.

The petrol price in Australia is around AUD 1.70 / L (roughly equal to RM 5.10 per litre) and it has already affected me financially. At least I'm still single and does not have anyone to take care of, but to those people with children, they will be affected the most from the current high inflation rate.