I AM YOU…. I am Tomorrow’s Doctor

“To cure sometimes, to relieve often, to comfort always”

This was the quotation that stuck in my mind after a talk by Dr John P Judson (aka Dr JPJ), a surgeon-turned-lecturer, in IMU on Medicine – A Passion for Healing. A doctor’s job is not to cure people, but to comfort and relieve people’s pain. I was wowed by this fresh perspective that I had never thought of before.

To put things into context, I went to IMU (International Medical University)’s Open Day 2009 in their Bukit Jalil campus on the 18th January 2009. Now that we are on the same page:

IMU is really an amazing place. Not that I am hired to do some marketing for them, but truly, I think IMU is a really nice place. I can imagine myself studying medicine here. And I think their marketing slogan “I AM YOU” which is phonetically I-M-U, is pure genius. (Jamie, maybe you can come up with something that is phonetically S-R-I-K-D-U??)

Marketing aside, I was given first-hand information about what to expect from a medical profesion. After speaking with Dr Margaret, my family doctor, about her life as a young doctor a few days back, I still wanted to do medicine in some way and hence the visit to IMU. I am not 100% sure yet, but I am definitely at 70%. I myself was surprised that I still wanted to pursue this profesion after a few myths about this profesion was busted.

——————————————————

Myth Number One: Doctors make a lot of money.

Wrong. OLD doctors make a lot of money.

Not intending to offend anyone, doctors do not make a lot of money in their early years of profesion. Only doctors who specialise and set up their own practice in the PRIVATE sector make a lot of money. By then, they are all past 30 and in their forties already.

For doctors out there who work in government hospitals, they are basically paid very low (small peanuts!) in their junior years. Some who stay in the service will get paid slightly more (bigger peanuts but still peanuts!). Mostly will go into the private sector for obvious reasons (say NO to peanuts!).

For GPs (General Practitioners) who set up ther own practice and open clinics, they are just making enough to cover their overheads. For those who are fortunate enough to open more outlets, they are confined by long working hours, which brings me to Myth Number Two.

Myth Number Two: Being a doctor is glamorous.

Wrong.  While being a doctor on ER, Grey’s Anatomy, Dr House and all the medical tv shows seem glamorous, being a real doctor is the exact opposite.

Try working from 6am to 6pm and being on call in midnight. Sometimes, you might have to miss your best friend’s wedding just because there are insufficient doctors in the hospital. Or miss your mum’s 60th anniversary because you need to work overtime!

You still need to work even on Public Holidays like Chinese New Year. While your peers and friends are celebrating and enjoying  the atmosphere of festivities, you are stuck in the hospital treating patients with cough, cold, flu, and a whole myriad of illnesses (probably they ate too much oranges.). You might probably fall sick too if your immune system is not serving you well.

Then, when you have free time, it’s either to eat, to shower, or to sleep. Sometimes, you are too tired until you don’t realise you felt asleep on the couch and it’s already 7am on the next morning. Hospitals open at 8am. You need to wash up, eat, and rush to work on your shift.

Dr Margaret: One reason why I set up my own practice after my MOship days (MO stands for Medical Officer, more on this later) is because I wanted to spend more time with my mum and family.

Dr JPJ: One reason why I quit surgery and lecture in IMU is because I wanted to spend more time with my family.

Both doctors opine that they both have to choose between work and family. And, of course we know, they chose the latter.

“Being a doctor is emotionally draining,” Dr Margaret said. She added, “This profesion will consume more than what you think it will expect it to.”

She recalled, “When I was young, my mum only gave us four career options: doctor, lawyer, engineer, and teacher. There are no other career options.” She continued, “then when my mum realised what she put me through after seeing my on-calls and long working hours, my mum said, ‘ I was stupid to force you into the profesion because I didn’t realise how much you have to work, girl. I am sorry.‘

Now, I don’t think that is portrayed in Dr House.

——————————————-

I can’t think of anymore myths to bust, but I definitely have these to add:

1) Being a doctor is choosing a hard life.

2) To be a good doctor, don’t expect to make a lot of money. Else, you are in it for the wrong reason.

3) A doctor needs to emphatise with all his patients. You must never get numbed by the same cold, cough, and flu that you will encounter daily. You must be able to treat all of them as individuals, and with respect.

4) To be a doctor, you need to study and serve the government an awfully a lof of years.

The progression of a doctor’s career in Malaysia

Basic med degree (5 years) — > Housemanship/Internship (2 years) —> Serve the government of Malaysia (3 years)

To be able to open your own clinic as a practicing doctor in Malaysia, you need to spend 10 years! As for me, I would love to specialise in cardio surgery:

Basic med degree (5 years) — > Housemanship/Internship (2 years) —> Serve the government of Malaysia (3 years) — > Specialization & Postgraduate studies in General Surgery (3-4 years) —> Sub-specialisation in Cardiac Surgery (2 years)

Another 6 years!

If you still want to be a doctor after reading this post, maybe you are born to be one. Like I mentioned earlier, I am surprised I still wanted to pursue this profesion after finding out about the truths and realities behind the title ‘Dr’.

Surviving medical school is another whole new story. But never lose sight of the bigger picture of the profesion which is “To cure sometimes, to relieve often, to comfort always”. Are you tomorrow’s doctor?

This article is inspired by I-M-U, the premier private medical school in Malaysia, located in Bukit Jalil.

——————————————-

The author felt that one week is an awfully long time for a blogger to be away from his blog. He had been busy with A LOT of banking (RHB Bank, CIMB Bank, EON Bank, Bank Rakyat, Maybank, Public Bank) so much so that now he can tell you how to buy a bank draft, do an interbank giro transcation, deposit a cheque and pay off your credit card the hard way, without e-banking.