Living my love of… Posted on 1st May 2013, 11:42am by Alvin

The month of May has always been the month where our newly graduated HOs start work in the hospitals. And what better way for everyone to get to know everyone better, than an orientation! XXX Residency Programme (figures I should remain non-partisan, lest I am deemed to be doing free publicity for a certain cluster haha..) decided to hold its Residency Orientation in Sentosa last month before the new HOs started work!

And so, 200 doctors – both newly minted, and old – descended on Siloso Beach on a rainy Saturday morning in April.. The day’s programme progressed with beach games as everyone split into their respective groups! Afternoon programme consisted of an amazing-race style game, seeing the groups scramble across the island in a race for the finishing line.

As my group boarded one of the internal shuttle buses travelling from the Images of Singapore –> Underwater World, a group of Indian tourists boarded the bus after us. I never knew how prominent the wordings were on the back of my lime-green orientation T-shirt, till…

Indian tourist: “Hi, I couldn’t help noticing that the back of your T-shirt reads, ‘I’m living my love of Medicine’. Are you all medical students or…?”

Me *taken aback*: “Oh hi! We are actually junior doctors, and we’re having our orientation before we start work.” (Ok fine, technically I’ve already started work, but why bother with the fine print? =P)

Indian tourist: “Oh wow! That’s really great! So you all are students, no?”

Me: “Erm no, we’ve just graduated recently, and are going to start work next month in the hospitals.. Today we are having our orientation programme in Sentosa so that we can get to know one another better.”

Indian tourist: “That’s really nice! I hope that you all have a great time today, and that you all will continue to live your love of medicine!” (Or something along those lines)

Our short encounter was cut off abruptly as the bus pulled infront of the Underwater World, and everyone disembarked.

Sitting in front of my computer this evening, it brings back certain deja vu memories. I have never liked to advertise the fact that I am a medical personnel. Regular readers of this blog would know that this is the second time I’ve said this line in the past 18 months. I’m not about to enter the same tirade on the usual downsides of advertising that fact.

Perhaps with age, comes more maturity – although I don’t know if you can consider 18 months as aging. Heh.

I’m still not about to run out into the streets to loudly proclaim my status as a medical professional. But I have become more accepting and embracing of the fact that when I first chose this vocation 9 years ago, the duties of this profession will be a part of me even when I’m not “on duty” in the hospital. You cannot just pretend that you’re not a doctor when someone around you in the street needs help. As much as we all like to joke about how we never declare the “Dr” in our salutation when we check into airplane flights – the real reason is that its a real pain to try to change your salutation; I know that we can always be counted to respond should someone in the aeroplane feels unwell or requires medical attention.

And perhaps as this new batch of newly graduated HOs enter the hospital wards as working adult professionals for the first time in life, it would be good for them to remember always, to live out their love of medicine.