The end, and it begins

OK, it's this time already. Got everything packed and ready, said my goodbyes (goodbye actually - only really know 1 person here), and typing one last blog entry since I don't know when I next will have a net connection. It is just so difficult living without the net!

The luggage is huge, no idea how I'm going to lug it around later. Going to call for a taxi, deposit my luggage at the hostel, then take a coach to the airport.

Bye for now then!!

You're kidding me, right?!?

OK, I have 10 minutes before the library closes (i.e. the last time I can use the internet with any certainty).

Passed the evaluation form to my supervisor today, with some trepidation. That man's gotta be kidding me! Overall A grade? "Highly motivated & enthusiastic", he said. Yeah right .. so enthusiastic that today, I actually strode right into theatre wearing street shoes! We were halfway through the operation when my boss looked at my shoes, and then I realised - SHIT. Ran right out and changed into OT boots. Anyway, PHEW. Glad that it's all over!!

Oh, and today's operations were the grossest EVER.

Q: When do you go for an eye surgery, and wake up with a painful mouth full of blood??
A: When the doctor sliced out pieces of your mouth's mucous lining to put INTO your eyes.

Yeah, saw a mucosal graft followed by an amniotic membrane graft in a patient with alkaline burns to the eye. It really looked extremely grotesque. After he sewed the buccal tissue onto the sclera, the entire eye looked like it's swollen - like in severe chemosis. And after that, he put some amniotic membrane (yes, the thing that babies are surrounded with in the womb) onto the entire eye. EWWW.

Alright, just a couple more photos before the start real ulu-ness.


One of the 3 swans in the pond near the hospital.


AH. My search for sundews led me to this lovely wood of Rhododendrons near the hall. =) It's oddly romantic to stroll here alone.

Backlogs

OK, I've been so excited over the plants that I've completely forgotten about life. =)

It's quite alright here right now, possibly cos the weekend's coming (i.e. mom and yx are arriving). Loads of interesting stuff in the clinics as usual, but boss wants me to meet him in theatre tomorrow. *groan*. I know. I said I like eye operations, but if you're the one DOING it.

Anyway it was a total madhouse in the clinics today, and I was spun round and round and got extremely confused. 3 different clinics asking me to go in to see stuff all at the same time, and I was running from one end of the place to the other. Dr. R had a crazy 28 patients to see in the morning itself, and halfway through, Dr. B asked me in to see some retinal stuff. Dr. B is excellent - very very friendly to students, and he asked me to please take a seat every 10 minutes. However, he is so very expert at looking at retinas.

Dr. B: "Come and take a look at this, it's a vitreous haemorrhage and blah blah blah blah"
I peer hopefully into the teaching scope.
FOR 2 SECONDS.
Dr. B: "Excellent!" And he switches off the slit lamp.

Alas! OK, I've learnt to look at retinas really quickly at least. Basically just look at 3 things unless otherwise told to - first the background (obvious stuff like dot, blot and flame haemorrhages, cotton wool spots and exudates/drusen), then quickly at the optic disc (pallor and cupping) and finally the macula (is it grey? Any drusen?). And I've learnt to differentiate between the various layers in the cornea through the slit lamp too .. not bad huh? That comes from my boss being a cornea guy ...

Anyway, I was at the Eye Casualty the other day, and had to resist a terrible urge to giggle. Yes, not unlike that awful first day at AH when The Boss arrived with curry-puff hair and sat right in front of me. The reason? I just kept thinking about one fine day during my ophthalmology posting in NUH, when a doctor stood up, sat back on his roller chair and fell right off onto the floor. HEEHEE.

Beautiful weather

Yx and mom are so lucky, they missed out on all the bad weather! Here's a pic of part of the wooded area I walk through every day. Quite a pretty splash of colours.