23 posts tagged “humour”
On and off I do come across some hilarious debates with patients. Brightens up the day. Usually they are the very elderly ones from interior districts. Usually they have some chronic disorder, not too serious but may not be too benign either. And they inevitably will refuse any invasive investigations.
It usually goes like this (via translation sometimes):
Me : Makcik kenapa tak mahu?
Makcik : Takpe lah, dah tua. Bagi ubat saja lah.
Me: Tapi kalau tak tau apa sakit, apa ubat nak bagi?
Makcik : ...ubat sakit-sakit...ubat dugal...sini sakit...sini ada angin...sini asam...etc..
Me : Makcik...macam kereta...kalau tak jalan sudah mesti bukak enjin tengok apa rosak...Kalau itu kilang rosak...mesti tengok apa yang tak jalan...
Makcik : (smiling)
Me : Macam kereta...badan tak ada spare part...mesti baiki jugak.
Makcik : Takpe lah..sudah tua...lain kali sajalah
Me : Kalau lain kali...nanti sudah lambat...nanti...nanti...
Makcik : ...boleh terus masuk gol lah...hahaha...
Another familiar conversation:
Pakcik : ...sudah tua...sakit sini..sakit sana...
Me : Masih muda pakcik...boleh hidup lagi sampai 100 tahun
Pakcik : Hahaha...dulu masa zaman Jepun...bla...bla...bla...dulu ada sakit-sakit sikit tapi sekarang jalan pun susah...
Me : Ya pakcik..memanglah macam ini...macam kereta...minyak enjin tak cukup, tayar sudah botak...jalan pun bunyi-bunyi...
Pakcik : Ya betul...betul...doktor, terima kasih banyak-banyak
Interesting to converse with analogy :)
Thought of printing this T-shirt for my regular squash buddies from the hospital. Especially for tournaments.
Our esteemed Minister says civil servants can now take up part time job or businesses. Check out here
The last time I check when I was in Form 5, the rate for working in Pizza Hut was RM3.50 per hour. That was so looooong ago. KFC and Mc Donalds was a bit less.
Since I'm getting only RM50 for a 24 hour on call work, I might just request not to be put on call and perhaps work in Pizza Hut instead (RM3.50 per hour = RM84 per 24 hour), or KFC or Mc Donalds.
Problem is that patients might meet me in the Pizza Hut saying "Eh doctor, you're working here also ah?" Doesn't look very impressive huh?
Well I can then proceed to say "Yeah, let me recommend you some low fat pizzas. But if you choose this fatty one, you can later come to see me during office hours to get some anti-cholesterol medication"
"If you buy 3 pizzas, I'll throw in some cholesterol medication for you later free. And if you order this coca-cola, just take another half tablet of your diabetic medication"
Waiiiit a minute....just wait a minute. Maybe can work with these businesses too...more profitable lah.
"If you develop shortness of breath, you can see me also during office hours at this hospital"
"And If you buy 3 packs now, I'll throw in a Ventolin inhaler free of charge during office hours"
Hahahahahaahahahahahah.....just jokinglah. It's not ethical but it might not be that outrageous. Perhaps nurses or medical assistants may consider doing it. Seriously.
Let's see which part time job or business looks enticing...
My sole comb is hidden somewhere inside the "jungle". Can anyone spot it? Hahahahahaaha. They say in a marriage one must give and take....the problem is the proportion of the give and the proportion of the take kakakakah.
Nope, I'm not upset at all, I'm amused. After all, I only need space for one comb ;)
Less than a year after I bought my new pair of "industrial quality" boots for work, it has begun to age. It had performed "par excellence" against rain, mud, stones, sewage, shit, blood, urine, vomitus, glass, needles, blades, corrosive medications...you name it. It held it's own against all external forces. Alas, as they say, your worse enemy is yourself.
The sole has worn out till it exposes a hard metal/rubber base which hurts my sole terribly each time I walked. Just imagine how much I walked each day until my "industrial strength" boots gave way.
I was thinking of getting a new pair of boots already. I had set my eyes on this shop - a hardware shop. Yeah I need a stronger "industrial quality" boots. Yup, we are laborers in our own way.And I love industrial stuffs - they are masculine, durable, strong and perhaps makes me look a little more "macho" hahaha. These boots are one of a kind, metal toe, oil proof, nail proof ...proof etc. Perfect for my needs! It has even it's own website but sadly I can't seem to access it now. Alas the design of my choice did not have my size.
However, I spotted an "industrial quality" soft rubber shoe pad at the corner of the display. Yup, I'll get those. It's not a cure but it will extend the life of my boots for a couple of months more :) Not bad, it's very comfortable.
Yup, we need industrial boots for the kind of high risk job we do. Those thin black leather "shine till you can see your face" type just won't do.
The health system works in a very weired manner. Having been in the system for many years, let me explain why. Some are even humorous.
Illegal foreigners are treated and admitted to the hospitals with equal care (well, almost) as local citizens. For humanity sake, many are treated without any deposit payments.The only catch is that they will have to pay for any investigations except blood investigations (eg chest x-ray) before it can be done. These illegals are usually the sickest and needs the most investigations. Frequently they are put into high dependency wards and given multiple medical support which doesn't need a deposit even to the extent for ventilation and artificial support. They may be given expensive treatments which can reach up to hundreds if not thousands of ringgit. We can spend hundreds and thousands of ringgit for empirical (on a best guess basis) treatment while an extremely simple but important investigation like a Chest X-ray cannot be done because the foreigner cannot pay RM50 !!! Illogical isn't it?
We give prolonged antibiotics for suspected infection of the heart valves when a simple ECHO cannot be done because the foreigner cannot afford to pay a hundred bucks? We ventilate illegal foreigners for suspected bleed in the brain and give them prolonged supportive treatment when a CT brain which costs about RM150 cannot be done? And so we'll continue (expensive) treatments because we just can't be sure! For example if it can be confirmed that it is a very large bleed with a poor outcome, withdrawal of treatment can be contemplated. Check out the cost of ventilatory care in private hospitals - it may reach more than a thousand bucks PER DAY.
But then again, every rule has its loopholes. Just write in the case notes that the patient possibly has say dengue or tuberculosis however remote the possibility and all fees are waived! Pronto! - problem solved.You can even write down a VERY LONG list of possiblities if you're uncertain and bingo - infection is ALWAYS one of them. All fees are waived for infective cases with public health importance. Kakakah!
We can buy extremely expensive medications which costs up to thousands while the wards doesn't even have enough PAPER and stationaries! I've always joked to the nurses, saying if I just omit ONE dose of this expensive antibiotic, the cost of it can buy one year's supply of paper for the entire ward. Or if I choose a less expensive antibiotic, the cost saved can buy paper for the whole hospital for many years. But it doesn't work this way. You can't take from John to give Jane. If Jane is poor, she has to somehow find money elsewhere even if John is a millionaire. What a joke!
To those who are prone to depression and despair, I do not recommend this. Maybe they are appropriate for UMNO, MCA, MIC, PPP and Gerakan kakakah! I found this website which specializes in selling posters of despair ! The total opposite of the usual inspirational posters. Perhaps this is reverse psychology at work, I don't know. Scaringly I find some of these posters somewhat comforting with a hint of humour. Perhaps it brings us back to earth. I warn ya, do not scroll down!
