Scaring Kiddies… Unintentionally

When I rotated through Paediatric Oncology during my elective, I had some trouble. Remember how I wrote about the incredibly late detection of tumours – well, that is largely due to the fact that the Eastern Cape has a large rural population. Also, a lot of these children are first taken to traditional healers and

Letter to the Neonates

I know you will probably never read this, but I hope you will one day grow to be able to read. I hope that you will attend a school that has electricity and running water and teachers that love their job. I want you to know that you inspire me. When I see you in

I was a patient

Yesterday I was a patient at a local casualty. I had been rolling around with the worst abdominal pains ever, and eventually decided that I couldn’t wait for our GP to start his day. I thought I was dying. Things I learned: IV lines really hurt – I get really annoyed when people act like

Paediatric Oncology in a South African Hospital

I’m spending some of my elective-time at a Paediatric Oncology ward. It was the thing (and incidentally also the exact ward) that started my tentative steps into the world of medicine many years ago. In South Africa, common childhood malignancies include ALL (Acute Lymphocytic Leukaemia), Wilm’s Tumours (Nephroblastoma), malignancies of the CNS and Retinoblastoma. I

A week in a township hospital

Remember how my elective in Kolkata completely bummed out? It was then organised that I do my elective at a public hospital complex in my home town. The hospital I have been at this week is situated in a large township. I won’t lie – I was particularly worried. It is very scary adjusting to

Confession: Green-eyed

I am jealous of them. Not because their medical schools are rated higher than ours. Not because the exchange rate is in their favour and they get to see more of my own country than I do. Not even because they are not exposed to as much violence and infection risks as we are. Nope.

Another Step Closer!

Yesterday I received an email informing me that my application to Semester at Sea Spring 2013 voyage was successful. Despite being a little down and out from a bug I seem to have contracted in the Paediatric Wards, I haven’t been able to contain my giddiness. Guys, it’s working out! This makes the punch of

Medical Elective: Grand Désastre

My medical elective is scheduled to start in a little over three months and I thought I was pretty sorted. I was to go to a wonderful little place in India. Everything except the flight tickets were good to go. Guess it’s kind of a good thing I delayed purchasing the tickets, because those plans

TTT: Best Procrastination Sites

So for about five months I’ve been meme-ing along with The Broke and the Bookish on a weekly basis – and I had no idea there were so many book blogs out there. This week, TBTB asks about the Top Ten Blogs or Sites we visit regularly that aren’t about books. I think I’m going to like this, because

The Meeting: Ni & Mi

Today (a public holiday) I went to Stellenbosch, in the Winelands District of the Western Cape. The medical campus is far from the main campus, so I don’t get to go to Stellenbosch very often. But today I met Nazirah.