wAnNAbBE

Ah...the admirable physician...

2011-11-03T20:52:00.005+08:00

I've always had my heart on being a medical specialist, i.e. physician. During my medical student days, Alhamdulillah, I was the second highest during my medical posting ( according to my mentor). I loved the subject. Even my notes were colourful , in which I had combined my readings from Davidson and Kumar and clark. I also fell in love with the Davidson book. Not to mention also the lecturers were inspirational.

When I was a houseman, medical posting was my fourth posting, a.k.a 2nd year houseman already. Thus, most of my medical officers were quite lenient and was trustworthy enough towards me. Alhamdulillah I was entrusted with various kinds of procedures.

Since I was also jonah in medical, I had the opportunity to witness and attend many different kind of patients and situations - which are life threatening.

I admit that medical posting during houseman was one of the most hectic of them all, yet to me the most exciting of them all. Again Alhamdulillah, throughout my houseman days, I only had to actually take 4 days of medical leave , and that was forced by my senior medical officers. At the time, I was suspected of having H1N1. I believe I had contracted the disease from a patient ( who died afterwards) at the H1N1 ward.

Amid all these fascination, I am also beginning to consider the complete opposite,which is to become a full time housewife. After 3 months of taking full care of my little baby, I just can't bear to leave him to the hands of others. What more since my mother has been a full time housewife, thus, I my self could not fathom of a childhood world without a mother who's there 24/7 for me.

I know I do not have that option, because....I am bonded to the government for another 7 more years. Or else I would have to pay RM250,000.Hah..

A trip not to be forgotten

2011-10-30T22:07:00.002+08:00

Alhamdulillah we have performed our umrah during my 7th month of pregnancy to Salahuddin..

Shy shy lah...

2011-10-30T02:01:00.008+08:00

Since the last decade, I think I've noticed that there seemed to be a major shift in the youngsters' trends. I'm not implying that I'm already that old, though, but then again, having a child already, do somewhat indicate that I'm in the older category now. :>

A teenager now is far more exposed than I was about 15 years ago. ( Oh my, now I do feel old saying this)...I can't blame them though, with all the stuff being bombarded towards them, who wouldn't want to try out new stuff. Children see, children do, as they say.

They are more daring, , more adventurous and more willing to try out new stuff--> new gadgets and experimenting new situations., so to speak. With uncontrolled technology, comes its consequences.

But we didn't foresee before what would happen if we let it be. Lo and behold, now so many splashes of news regarding youth immoral behavior are bombarding us everyday. Fingers pointing ensue, but not much are being done.

Haven't we realized all the telltale clues before the downfall hits hard? If you just go to a newsstand, there are throngs of entertainment magazine that's just full of fashionistas telling you how to dress, of which most of them are revealing. Or how the 'artistic idols' love stories and gossips fill the mags as well as the newspapers. And is it just me, or even the national and prominent newspaper tend to also protray artists in certain poses of which I consider inappropriate? While at the same time, in the same paper, they quote ' to be asking' why are our youngsters' involved in immoral activities. Go figure...

I mean, who wouldn't want to dress in a similar way, if the outcome looks appealing?

In Islam, as evidenced in other aspects such as the medical world, prevention is the best medicine.
Now we are seeing so many advertisement from the Ministry of Health regarding prevention of dengue and No smoking campaigns to deter health problems, this also goes for immoral activities.

We have to start doing preventions. Amar Ma'ruf Nahi Mungkar. And it starts with us...
But the problem is that, we as parents are also at lost because we are in the same predicament.
I mean, who are we to educate our children, when we ourselves do not adhere to the same rule.

If we see a magazine or in the television showing what is forbidden by Allah do we care? Do we feel anything when we ourselves do not cover our aurah properly?

Lest we forget, one of the reason that Rasulullah was sent was to purify this immoral activities. Islam is a way of life, not just a religion. Islam is not just about praying, and celebrating eid or some solitary event. It is in everything that you do. It is about submission to Allah.Allah has set certain rules because He had created us, and He knows best. As a Muslim, we believe that,...but do we really believe it? What is our proof? Yet , whenever we fall into a musibah, we turn to Allah. We doa really hard, while before this we never really remember Him..How is it so?

" This is the Book (the Qur'an), whereof there is no doubt, a guidance to those who are Al-Muttaqin ( the pious believers of Islamic Monotheism who fear Allah much (abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which He has forbidden) and love Allah much (perform all kinds of good deeds which He has ordained))" - Al Baqarah:2

From the time that we wake up until sleep, do we have the feeling that Allah is watching us? The angels are writing our deeds, be it evil or good.

Verily, our hearts are prone to wander off, and we are in need of a constant reminder. Nowadays, I feel that there are so much out there that just tugs our emotions and nafs.

"O Allah, You are my Lord, none has the right to be worshipped except You, You created me and I am Your servant and I abide to YOur covenant and promise as best as I can, I take refuge in You from the evil of which I have committed.I acknowledge Your favour upon me and I acknowledge my sin, so forgive me, for verily none can forgive sin except You."

"O Ever LIving, O Self-subsisting and supporter of all, by YOur mercy I seek assistance, rectify for me all of my affairs and do not leave me to myself, even for the blink of an eye"

(Remembrance said in the morning and evening, Hisnul Muslim, compiled and referenced by Sa'eed Ibn Wahf al-Qahtaani)

Oh baby ...

2011-10-25T15:38:00.008+08:00

I only have less than a month before my maternity leave ends. It's been 2 months taking care of little salahuddin. Before this, I wasn't much of a baby person. I wasn't really that kind of a person who would stop whenever I see a cute baby and pinch his chubby cheeks. Or the kind would coo seeing an adorable baby. My sister is like that. I was more leveled, I think.

Lo and behold, as time grew , motherhood sort of smothers you with this babyish adoration. I guess this what you call 'mercy' towards children.

I wonder how a person can just be heartless towards children. They are innocent and frail. What more if the victimiser are the parents themselves. This is another excerpt from Tarbiyatul Aulad..

Nowadays, there seems to be numerous cases whereby the ones who should be protecting , are of the opposite. Instead, they forsaken their own children. Naudzubillah...

REcently, I came across a newspaper article that was dated in 2007, reported that it was found 30 plastic bags full of fetuses near a private clinic in a city in India. It was estimated over 20 years, about 10 million of female child being aborted/killed. Yet, they could not really ascertain as it was not allowed to do further research in determining the gender.

It just goes to show that the jahiliyyah tradition that was upheld during the Rasulullah's time, apparently still viable until to this modern day.

It's just scary nowadays, to raise a child in this time. There's just too many bad influences that you can't control. I can't imagine how would it be like in 10 years to come. InsyaAllah, pray that it will be better.

handmade cards

2011-10-24T20:32:00.001+08:00

mommy hood versus housemanhood

2011-10-24T14:04:00.006+08:00

my little salahuddin

Being a mommy...is just stellar..Confusing at times.And of course, tiring. At wee morning when your child is needed to be changed or in need of milk, and your eyes just insist on closing, you just know that the child comes first. Regardless what your state is. I've had my share of oncalls during my hospital years, but being with a baby, it's non-stop oncalls. Twice this week, my little Salahuddin wont sleep until about subuh. I have no idea why, especially when so many people tell you that their little ones just sleep most of the time. Is it just my baby , or did I do something wrong in taking care of him? I admit, I sometimes feel sort of mad at the baby for not falling asleep after relentless effort to sleep him. But after he stares at you innocently, you just melt away.

Being a mom can also be scary at times. When Salahuddin was less than a month old, he had many incidents of 'colics' of which he started crying when the bouts came. Alhamdulillah, I have my senior consultant, which it Tok Mek, who would suggest for 'demah' or 'tungku' baby to alleviate the symptoms. There were also advices for gripe water and 'yu yee' oil, which I found to be helpful. Even if we are doctors ourselves, it just felt useless at time like that. He just turned 2 month yesterday, even though it felt way longer than that.

Motherhood is a very important part of one's life. Much more so than our career, if you say so. For example, if you treat a patient, you see that patient in that instance of time, for that particular problem. Yet, if you are a mother, you are seeing that same patient until either you die first, or vice versa. You are the caretaker and sole reference for the child, not just for his health and well being, but also in terms of his emotional, intelligence and social aspect.

If we ask ourselves, how much are we prepared for motherhood?I don't mean in terms of the baby clothes, bottles, diapers and such, but in terms of our spiritual, mental and knowledge.

Before we are eligible holding a job, we have to complete some sort of competency, i.e degree,diploma and what nots. But what about becoming a mother? Do we have some sort of a guide or knowledge as to become a mother? I mean, a competent mother.

Verily, Islam has set guidelines in bringing up a child. There's this very good book, entitled Tarbiyatul Aulad, to be recommended. The author is Abdullah Nasih ULwan. For example, with regards to naming our child, there is a chapter on it, which you can read an excerpt of it below:

That's just on aspect from so many that we have to be aware of.

It's not wrong to go online or pick up from the magazine concerning the gadgets for babies because it's also a necessity , but not to forget also the important aspect of ibadah with our little ones.

Wallahu'alam...

I am a donor!!

2011-10-13T20:10:00.003+08:00

Since being in the National Blood Bank, I am pretty much a dracula to say the least. Our main concern at the center is to ensure that there is enough blood for the hospital at the Klang valley - be it public or private sector. There is a very high demand for blood products from the hospitals. If one is oncall at the blood bank, you would know and be surprised that the usage is high indeed. With all the operations itself in need of back up blood products, then you can imagine how much we need in a day...
Thus, come in the role of the donors...which are most of us,mind you. Yet, there is stringent criteria nevertheless to become blood donors. It must be understood that, it is a privilege to become a donor, because we have to make sure that the blood products are in fact safe to be used for the patient. PATIENTS ARE THE UTMOST IMPORTANT FACTOR TO CONSIDER. REgardless how much a person is enthralled to become a donor, but if you are not eligible, it is because we put the patient in the consideration. Perhaps, you are at risk to transfer something detrimental to the patient.

For those who are eligible, do consider to become a regular blood donor as this is a very wonderful way to help others. Within a year, you can donate every 3 months. For apheresis donor, every 2 weeks at least. For red blood donor, you can save three lives as the blood are further more divided into 3 components - plasma, packed red cells and platelets. While the apheresis donor, platelets and plasma which are in need especially for cancer patients and paediatrics patients.

Think how much you can benefit others...

donate blood and save a life....insyaAllah

what is your priority in life?

2011-10-09T16:33:00.005+08:00

As I ponder about my increasing age, a tug of emotions run through me. A day older simply means a day nearer to the day that we will meet our Maker. With increasing age, comes more responsibility. If then, we were only mere child with no such care in the world. Joy and excitement comes from our interaction with our families and the environment. Everything fascinates us. As we become more mature and enter the teenage years, the world seems so different. No longer our parents become the sole reference, now the eyes of our friends becomes all important. Then biological evolution takes over with our hormones burgeoning into action. The term LOVE causes a nuisance into our life as we try to grapple with such strong emotion.

This era of our life determines a lot how our future is shaped. Some survives it successfully, while some fall hopelessly.

The adult world itself brings an eormous change into one's life. Beginning of a new family and holding a job further distracts oneself from our real objectives. A strong anchor is needed to hold oneself glued to the right path.

If we do not reflect ourself and our life, we can easily be diverted by the powerful force of attraction to the life of dunia.

ECO mama

2011-10-07T14:30:00.005+08:00

it has been one of my aims to be an eco friendly person.now, with a new role to play as a mother, the intention has been stronger. with an addition of a baby, the realization that we are hurting the environment through our everyday dealings with an infant has increased. Imagine that per day, a baby needs to be chaged is about a minimum of 3-4 times per day. so, per month, about 120 diapers are needed for only 1 baby.that is a equivalent to what if you multiply that to the whole of malaysian babies? What more is that, especially malays, have about 3-4 babies per person. That is only considering the diapers.How about the wipes or tissues invovled? Yet, its not fair to single out that regarding babies, us adults are also to blame. Countless of products we encounter everyday end up in the trash.

my little saladin

2011-10-07T14:06:00.006+08:00

my very own salahuddin al-ayubi had arrived on the 23rd ramadhan..in the wee hours of 0308AM.

After hours of enduring pain , alhamdulillah he was born not long after starting to push, without any assisted delivery. The pain had subdued as soon as he was out. Lo and behold, there was this beautiful baby boy in front of me. There was this magical feeling, to hold your own flesh and blood.

It was23rd of ramadhan...and how I had hoped it to be lailatul qadr.

As soon as I had been admitted to the hospital, my husband was there throughout the whole ordeal. He was reading the Quran until the time of delivery, which had greatly calmed me.

InsyaAllah, he will be another salahuddin al-ayubi in the making....

38 weeks of gestation!!

2011-08-10T10:29:00.007+08:00

This is what a baby would look like inside the mother's womb at 38 weeks of gestation...such as that I am right now.

The due date is on the 40th week of pregnancy...which for me falls 1 week prior to eidulfitri...if Allah izin that I really do deliver on the date itself, then i could proceed with the akikah 1 week after birth, (which is the sunnah thing to do) on eidulfitri, which is very much memorable.

The issues with my current pregnancy is that regarding fasting during my 3rd trimester. In general, there is leniency with regards to pregnant women fasting , especially so if in the 1st and 3rd trimester.

So far, I've fasted for the past one week. but today, i was so dehydrated, that I actually was not able to continue with my fast.

The thing is, I've made a mistake of not drinking enough water throughout the fasting season. As a tip for the pregnant mothers who are healthy enough to fast, please do keep yourself hydrated. Make sure that after breaking fast until the sahur, mind yourself to drink and drink.

From numerous articles, it has mentioned that at least 2 liters of fluids per day for those who chooose to fast.

Being pregnant, especially in the last weeks of pregnancy during the ramadhan month has its challenges. what more if before this you were the kind who tried to do as much as possible during the holy month. Nowadays,even getting up from bed is a hard task.

Thank goodness i've chosen to actually take 2 week earlier leave, which unfortunately has to be taken from my 3 month maternity leave.

InsyaAllah, there will be a lot more berkah being pregnant and hopefully deliver during this holy month....

After a long absence....

2011-07-28T20:31:00.004+08:00

IT has been AGES since i last updated this blog...

Tons and tons has happened since the last time i wrote anything...

I guess I just got too caught up in the change of life...

in about 1 week's time, we'll be celebrating ramadhan...insyaAllah this time around,i'll be celebrating the holy month with a newly added beloved into our family.

Last year was the first time I celebrated ramadhan as a wife...and with a husband..

This year, insyaAllah, i will be a mother...

Sometimes, i just can't believe that i'm actually going to be a mother...

I still can't fathom that realization.

Even if most of my close friends have started their families, it just hasn't dawned on me that I would follow suit...hehe...

Last week I had a 3D scan of my little baby....my husband and I were ecstatic as we could visualize his face clearly....his cute little nose and all...his eyes all shut.

Currently i'm already 36+weeks ...and in just about 3 weeks, it will be the due date....if i dont deliver earlier that is....

BLOOdy DAy

2010-11-16T17:39:00.004+08:00

Day 2 at the National Blood BAnk

What I can say is that it's definitely different from the previous 2 settings that I have worked with.

The hospital is a crazy-havoc place where you run around all over and always having work to do. Especially so when you are a houseman. With lethal consequences and high mortality rate.

Then I had a short stint at a research center. Well, it is a somewhat less hectic place with routine working hours and not so crazy shift. You deal with statistics and lots of writing.

Then comes the BLOOd BANK. Where your core business is...well...simply to get blood and testing of blood.

I'm still in the orientation process...so can't really comment much. Yet, so far, it's quite interesting. And you get to see hemophiliac patients...

The routine work consist of going out in the mobile clinics - blood drive , where you encounter healthy 'donors' to get more blood stock.

Then you have the 'slides' show...hehe...This means that you need to read the full blood picture slides.

You also get to see hemophiliac patients...which is quite a rare occasion if you go elsewhere.

You have oncalls, in which you are in charge of the whole of blood bank for that day. You will receive calls from hospitals , especially that from the Klang Valley regardign blood products.

Dont underestimate Blood Donation campaign...it's really an important business...

Imagine that these blood products are potentially lifesavers...a thin line between life and death...

especially in the cases of accidents or any bleeding that by replacement of blood, these lives can be saved ( of course, by Allah's Will)...

IN Malaysia, where cases of accidents are indeed high, these are inevitable life savers....

To all healthy people out there...please donate blood...you can save a life...

As a Muslim, we are very encouraged to help other people...why not so by donating blood...

The Decline of a Civilization?

2010-11-10T09:12:00.003+08:00

The Millenia....

When it was the Y2K countdown, everybody was prophecizing so many outcomes toward our world...the Y2K bug...the so called apocalypse and so forth...

And now a decade has passed since the Y2K event....

Those who were born in the 90's...now becoming in their early 20's...the age of the NOT SO INNOCENCE...

the Gen-Y, so to speak...

I am ending my 20's soon...THis month I have turned 27...an age that I deem to be quite an aged individual...as of now,..i am a daughter,an elder sister to another 6 more younger siblings,a wife and a doctor...and waiting anxiously whether i can be a mother....

But as Allah has planned it so that I would able to open my eyes...WIDE OPEN...or in other words.. a shout out for me..that life is not as it used to be....

These few weeks , i have had to take care of the household...with my mother and father going away...the 2 younger siblings beneath me, need no taking care of from me...

But the other 4...one is 22, 17,13 and 10 respectively...

EAch with their own individual needs and different characters....OH MY....and I do mean dIFFERENT....

I realize a lot since this few weeks..i tried to juggle as a working person, a sister and a wife...

Initially I tried to make everything picture perfect...with ironing my husband's clothes, preparing breakfast and dinner for them all...

It took a different twist when suddenly I had been ordered by the minstry to be sent to the blood bank.. It was quite a jolt as I had thought of trying out for my entrance exam...

LO and behold..gone werer the days I actually tried to cook and everything..the Study was priority... I had a fixed idea that this one month I would do nothing but study..study and study...

HOwever being someone who is not accustomed to just studying.. I found it quite hard...

wait...I think it's getting out of the topic...

What I meant to write was that during this few weeks, I had the opportunity of being the caretaker of my siblings.. and handle all their problems...

Being in charge of them meant dealing with them in a lot of aspects of their life...

It made me realize that we have led differnt lives...even though we were raised in the same household..but the time we led were different,...even if it has only been a decade apart....

Their knowledge, their hobbies,pasttimes and all were altogether different form mine..

i remember I had my first handphone when I was in the university...so that I could contact my parents easily....

NOw my brother at the age of 15 already has his own handphone....

Chatting, messaging, facebook,my space and what nots... Yes I do know it also applies to that of my age....but albeit, i'm not that quirky about social networking....

Yet, the very idea of getting connected to a lot of people, those who you know and not..has created a phenomenon that is beyond our control....

and at a PRICE...a heavy price, that is....

for all its positive effect on our cvilization,...it has created a monster without us realizing it..

I should know...because it has also affected my family so much...

I can see the difference within my 3 younger siblings who are so hooked on the net ...they tend to pay attention to the computer.. and become somewhat lacking in terms of REAL SOCIAZLING, whihc in the real world...

With all these affecting our young generation, who can prophesize what would happen next...

na'uzubillah...May Allah Help Us ALL....

2010-11-10T01:48:00.006+08:00

Who was the first one to develop stethoscope? Rene Theophile Hyacinthe Laennec

HE was a french physician who invested the stethoscope and perfected the art of auditory examination of the chest cavity

The stethoscope is one of the most vital instrument that doctors must have...

The use of stethoscope is that it functions as an amplifier...it helps in our diagnosis of a disease when we auscultate patient ...especially that of respiratory and cardiovascular problems....

teringat zaman-zaman houseman dulu

2010-11-09T19:02:00.005+08:00

The days as a houseman..............

tepat 4 bulan habis houseman...pada umur 27 tahun

Grad umur 25...

time jadi houseman..terasa macam laaaaaaaaaammmmmmmmmmmmmaaaaaaaaaa nye masa nak berlalu..dan sekarang..kadang-kadang rindu pulak time2 tu..

rindu pada suasana hospital..degupan jantung yang tak menentu...

tidur yang x dpt tidur sgt..

cuti yang x cuti sangat..

hectic..havoc..jonah..semua ada....

bye bye kitty

2010-10-31T15:05:00.004+08:00

4 days ago, we were suprised with one adorable kitten who appeared in front of our doorstep. Apparently, the mother had just given birth probably near the doorstep and left one of the kitten there. The whole day it sat there alone and unattended. By the time I noticed it , the time was already evening. There were blood stain all over the place. In fact, the umbilical cord was still attached to the abdomen.

Being someone who is actually scared of cats..imagine my surprise..

Of course i cannot simply let it outside like that. i waited and waited and waited...for the mother to come. she never came..

Lest, i took it inside and we named it 'kitty'..i wasn't sure whether it was a male or female..being ignorant as i am towards cat, i fed it cow's milk wiht a spoon. it seemed not to like it.

Lo and behold, i went to the internet for some info on newborn kitty..it stated that the best is for the mother ot take care of it. or get a foster mother cat..

wherer can i get that????

then if not, feed it with milk replacement... DO NOt GIVE COW's MILK..

AArrghh!! too late!!!

I went ot the pet shop that evening after work and got some low downs on how to take care of newborn kitten., The shopowner gave some tips and such..

I actually bought a bottle to feed it with!!

For the first itme in my life, i actually fed a kitten wiht a bottle.

At first it seemed to be getting better. the fur was getting more beautiful..

i tried to feed it as the advice said, tried to feed it every 2 hours..

and i was ecstatit when it actually pooped..hehe

OR SO I THOUGHT...

D4 of life...

I was shocked ot hear from my brother that after subuh prayers he had tried to wake up kitty and it never woke up..

For verily it;s life was taken by Allah...

here we go bloody bank!!

2010-10-31T14:44:00.004+08:00

from a clinician to a researcher..to blood sucking vampire

what a road less traveled!! Phew...

Officially I was granted by the kementerian kesihatan to be sent to PDN now for my birthday..

too much has happened in so short of time that in the end cause me to have such a headache!!

Initially I had thought of becoming a clinician in the medical department, but now a part of me likes the thought of research/public health..but then again..i have to be sent to pusat darah negara...

2010-10-14T21:39:00.001+08:00

Freedom from the entaglement of being a houseman!!

Date of freedom : 9th July 2010

2010-10-14T10:34:00.003+08:00

The current institute....

statistics...statistics...statistics...

so different from the good old days at the hospital..

the institute director had mentioned that now we have to think as a researcher..no more thinking as a doctor,n utritionist , nurses and such...

it takes time to dissociate ourself from what we have been trained to do..

especially if we have been trained gruelly so..

CHILDHOOD MOMENTS

2010-05-20T15:30:00.005+08:00

the innocence of a child...

You can never reverse back your childhood...

childhood years are one of the magical moments in life...

No one can ever deny the happiness of a child..

Don't you remember what it was as a child

so full of carefree

all you could ever think of was fun & play

Mama & papa were your idols..

cartoons are everything..

ultraman..superman..were they real?

cherish your childhood...

HUMAN...

2010-05-19T11:36:00.003+08:00

How to become human? ...HUmane?

There are numerous more things that they do not teach you in school..
The Basic Human Necessities...

I just wonder..how is it to become human once again..

With the current predicament nowadays befalling our society...it is as if we are acting as we do not know how to behave like a HUMANE human...

2010-05-17T13:24:00.003+08:00

Luahan Hati Sebelum Pro EXam - revisited

2010-05-17T13:18:00.002+08:00

Sesungguhnya Islam itu begitu indah sekali bagi mereka yang mengerti akan prinsipnya dan juga isi kandungannya. Tiada yang lebih tinggi dari agama ini, dan sesungguhnya mati berjuang utk menegakkan syiar islamiyyah adalah suatu perjuangan yang sangat mulia. Namun, di sini harus ditekankan bahawasanya ia harus bermula dengan memahami akan ad-deen ini, bermula dengan mengenali apakah itu erti kehidupan dan seterusnya akan mengenali siapakah pencipta kita.

Kini, boleh dikatakn bahawa ana sudah hampir 7 tahun berkenalan dengan istilah ‘tarbiyyah’. Pada mulanya, ia terasa sangat asing dan janggal, akan tetapi apabila time goes on, then it becomes a strong entity of your life and soon you realize that it is to absolve oneself into the tarbiyyah program is the challenge itself. It is not purely theoretical, it never has been and it will never be as that. It is to incorporate and translate into one’s life. Verily, Islam is a way of life.

Mungkin ada yang akan bertanya, mengapakah ana ingin berbicara suatu topic, yang boleh dikatakan sebagai suatu benda yang asas, dan mungkin tidak lagi perlu utk di bincangkan. Fasa kita sekarang mungkin lebih kepada utk bekerja. Tapi, sesungguhnya bagi insan ini, yang masih lagi penuh dengan kelemahan , tendency for myself to jatuh dalam ujian adalah suatu fenomena yang biasa.

Kini, tinggal lagi 3 minggu sahaja sebelum berdepan dengan professional exam, suatu ujian yang besar & penentu samada seseorang pelajar medic akan beralih kepada gelaran ‘doktor’. Sepanjang 5 tahun , termasuk fasa pre-klinikal & seterusnya klinikal, akan berakhir dengan professional exam ni. Sesungguhnya, ia suatu perkara yang sangat digerunkan oleh rakan2 ana & ana sendiri. Namun, kita hanya boleh berusaha & penentunya terletak kepada Ilahi.

Tapi, situasi ini berkait rapat dengan tajuk atau topic yang ana ingin bicarakan. Disebabkan exam ini, ana sendiri telah meletakkan jawatan, atau ‘slowed down’ my involvement dalam J. Seharusnya, prog rasmi tarbiyyah sahaja yang di perlahankn, namun atas kelemahan diri ini, yang juga berada agak jauh dari sahibah2 yang sudah lama berada dalam prog T ini, ana juga telah slow down dlm prog Tarbiyyah yg tak rasmi. Situasi di sini mungkin tidak sama dengan tempat lain. Ana tak dapat nak menggambarkan macamana suasana di sini. Tapi, yang pastinya ialah suasana study itu yang dominant. Rata2 rakan ana di sini adalah mereka yang study oriented. Di sini kami hanya memikirkan ttg study. Yang menjadi keluhan bagi mereka adaalh berkaitan dengan study. Rehat adalah sekadar nak releasekan stress dari study. Stress pun berkaitan dengan study. Kehidupan di sini adalah utk lulus exam. Banyak topic perbualan berkisar tentang pelajaran, lecturer, patient, dan benda berkaitan dengan di hospital.

Sejak 1 blok terakhir ni, focus ana adalah pada study. Ini adalh suatu fenomena yang agak ganjil dan luarbiasa bagi diri ini. Sepanjang matriks & juga hampir 5 tahun di sini, ana tidak pernah lagi mengecualikan diri selama ini dari memikirkn ttg prog D&T yang rasmi. Tapi memandangkn pro exam ini adlh suatu yang amat genting, kita harus memikirkn ttg aulawiyyat & juga kemampuan diri sendiri. Oleh itu, ana mengambil keputusan sedemikian.

Ingin ana kongsi sedikit apakah perasaan ana sejak hampir 2 bulan berada dlm suasana ‘study oriented’. Sesungguhnya sekiranya niat kita ikhlas lillahita’ala, segalanya akan terasa indah jua, namun ana tidak sebaik itu dan keikhlasan itu seharusnya ana cuba utk pupukkan. Ana sendiri tidak dapat lari dari terikut dengan keadaan yang exam-oriented. Seringkali ana dilanda perasaan gundah gelana, keluh kesan apabila memikirkn ttg exam ini. Apakah ana akan lulus? Terasa takut dengan keadaan yang bakal menimpa.. adakah lecturer itu baik, garang? Patient nya macamana? Kes yang senang atau susah?

Apabila kita telah jauh dengan proses Tarbiyyah, maka niat kita utk menjadikan profession atau pelajaran kita sebagai wasilah/amal ibadah seringkali tersasar. Perasaan yang datang adalah perasaan yang tidak tenteram dan seterusnya menyebabkn kita hanya focus kepada duniawi sahaja. Kadangkala kita akan hanya akan memikirkan ttg exam dan bukan lagi kepada Islam yang tercinta. Apabila kita banyak fikir ttg duniawi, sesungguhnya kehidupan ini terasa sangat sempit & diri ini sangat selfish & mementingkan diri sendiri.

Dan di sinilah ana ingin kembali balik kepada ayat ana yang awal, sesungguhnya islam ini adlh tinggi dan hidup utk menegakkan syiarnya adalah kehidupan yang sebenarnya.
Sesungguhnya peganglah kepada prinsip ini dan jadikanlh kehidupan ini kehidupan yang diredhai Allah.

Rantings from yesteryear

2010-05-17T13:03:00.002+08:00

Life is full of surprises…well, you can’t really say life per se…but Allah planned things to be like those you can’t really expect. I don’t know…it’s just that you never know what’s going to happen next..even though you tend to plan at times..mostly you don’t. though..But the thing is, it’s hard to know what’s next in your life.
Life is really full of tawakal ilallah…Only Allah holds your future..you can never grab ahold of it, even for a second.
With the science all in an uproar state..with all this canggih thingamajigs and stuff,...you tend to lose out a lot on faith. We have this canny ability to actually feel high above the creator sometimes. We’d never really say it at times, but you can see it..from how people act nowadays. It seems as if knowledge and going higher and achieving more advancement is the real gem in life. Nothing less, nothing more.
People just get this demented idea that that’s what life’s all about. Achievements & self galore. It’s always been like that, all through out the history. Ever since the time of nabi adam, I suppose. With the story of habil and qabil..just to proves us that’s it’s part of being a human. And the problem existed eversince forever I guess.
Maybe we don’t realize it, but in a way we do have that riak feeling in us. We feel as though that we were the one that cause some things to happen. We forget that everything happens with biiznillah. The only syarat to pass is that it must comes from Allah, never do we have the power to achieve anything lest Allah gives us the permission.
When people do lose out on the feeling of being weak, we tend to feel strong. We tend to feel like it’s up to us …everything is up to us. And we forgot the part that we are weak. When that happens..all hells break loose. I do mean that to be as grave as it sound.
Life lies in an intricate balance… needing some sort of a system to make it stay in that balance. When something happens, tipping the balance, life goes out of order.
And that’s something that we don’t’ want to see. But you know what, that thing is happening right now…in front of our very own eyes.
And the sad part is that we’re accepting that imbalance in life as if it’s something normal and not to consider that it is something out of the ordinary;.
We’re saying yes to all the stuff that’s not supposed to.
We’re adopting it part of our life.
We’re even propogating it to other people.
Even more tragic, we are becoming the generators of the imbalance of life.

And what is that imbalance of life, you might ask..
Well..look around you…I might answer
You see the clouds around you..
You see the night coming after the day..
The day after the night..
The sun giving off sunshine so that life can propogate

Still don’t understand?
Well, look harder still then..

You see how beautiful the clouds are..
So fluffy and white..
The sun..so yellow and oh so bright
The nighttime..
Full of eerie & gives off a feeling of something that might lurks around you
That can’t be the imbalance…everything looks so in order..

Yes..you are right..
It is in order..

And again, what is that imbalance then?
Well,…look at the people around you , I say..

I don’t dare to describe the people around me..
It’s full of vanity, materialism..and what nots..
Deception..lust..hedonism..
It’ s everywhere nowadays…

Dunya has resided in the hearts of many men…a disease worth mentioning..
A disease of which there’s only one cure..

And what might that cure be?
It’s really simple..really…
Okay…so let’s see then…
To cure the dirt that has tainted the hearts of men…
In other words to make it white again,..to clean it..
Using what?

A detergent of utmost potency..a drug of high efficacy..
Something that is above the duniya..
The akhirah….
Iman…
Faith…

Islam…Allah…

All these mentioned…sounds familiar?
But how does it reside it in your heart?
The akhirah as reminder that it’s the world we’re going to live in after death
Iman as a source of power…a divine power to guide you in this forsaken world
Faith..as a place to hold on to in this twisted earth
Islam as a system to live onto..to hold onto..to be guided with..the only way of life
Allah..As th most benevolent …highly esteemed ..highly merciful creator of us all…
To Him only we owe our life…
And with this do we owe our balance of life..

GETTING TO KNOW YOUR MEDICINE

2010-05-14T08:43:00.006+08:00

One of the most important things as a son or daughter is that we take care and do take interest in the well being of our parents. For they have nurtured us for so well, the least that we can do is repay their love and kindness.

What you can do in terms of medical aspect, is to know what medication their taking...

in the elderly group of people, many of them, especially the grandfatehrs/fathers...have a background history of diabetes, hypertension , ischemic heart disease in which medications are of utmost important.

Medications such as aspirin, warfarin, or those with any anticoagualant effects are of topmost priorty to know, as this will cause bleeding disorder, mind you.

Always label correctly the medications, clarify with the pharmacist upon taking the medicatoin what are the medications are indicated for. When to take and how to store them.

DO NOT MIX THE MEDICATIONs or REPLACE BOTTLES WHCICH ARE FINISHED WITH DIFFERENT K IND OF MEDICATIONS

and do bring your medications when you go to follow up at the clinic

I feel that this is an important thing to know as it creates a bit of a problem when the patient does not what medication their taking and do not bring them along whenever they see a doctor..

LIFELINE FOR GAZA

2010-05-13T12:29:00.006+08:00

KINI, Pihak NGO daripada Turki IHH bersama-sama kerajaan Turki telahpun memulakan usaha untuk melaksanakan konvoi talian hayat Gaza yang ke empat. Satu usaha besar-besaran pada kali ini iaitu konvoi yang akan melalui jalan laut.

LL4G merupakan satu usaha jaringan NGO antarabangsa untuk menghantar bantuan kepada
penduduk Gaza yang telah sekian lama menderita dizalimi rejim Zionis Israel, seterusnya cuba untuk menamatkan sekatan dan embargo yang dikenakan ke atas Gaza.

Usaha murni ini diterajui oleh sebuah NGO dari Negara Turki iaitu Foundation for Human Rights & Freedoms & Humanitarian Relief, atau lebih dikenali sebagai IHH, bersama-sama NGO-NGO antarabangsa yang lain antaranya Free Gaza Movement dan European Campaign to End the Siege on Gaza (ECESG.)

Konvoi Kemanusiaan terbesar di dunia (setakat ini) dijangka bermula pada
pertengahan bulan May 2010, akan melibatkan tokoh-tokoh politik dan aktivis
kemanusiaan antarabangsa yang prihatin terhadap krisis kemanusiaan di Gaza
akan bersama-sama menyertai konvoi yang akan menaiki kapal dari Istanbul
terus ke Gaza. Kita menjangkakan sekitar 20 buah kapal dan bot muatan akan
bersama-sama merentasi Laut Mediterranean dari Istanbul melalui Cyprus, dan
seterusnya mendarat di Gaza.

Mereka akan membawa bersama-sama konvoi tersebut barang-barang yang
sangat diperlukan oleh penduduk di Gaza, termasuklah bahan binaan, ubatubatan
dan peralatan hospital (mesin MRI, Ultrasound, alat ujian darah)
peralatan sekolah, janakuasa elektrik dan juga bahan-bahan makanan.

Bantuan tersebut akan dibawa terus ke Gaza dengan menggunakan hubungan
diplomatik kerajaan Turki yang memang mempunyai Perjanjian Keselamatan
dengan rejim Israel semenjak peperangan dunia yang ke-dua lagi. Mengikut
butiran perjanjian tersebut, Israel tidak boleh mengganggu kapal-kapal
daripada Turki.

LIVE from Perhimpunan Perdana Palestin

2010-05-13T10:07:00.003+08:00

Salah Satu AJK Haluan Palestin

Emergency Department woes

2010-05-10T11:10:00.006+08:00

I'm SOOOO TIRED!!

Ever why they call it the emergency department?

Probably it has something to do with the fact that the presenting complaints are in need of emergency attendance..

Doing oncalls in the emergency department is something different than that of other departments. Here you would attend patient nonstop until the next morning. I do mean, NON STOP.

in other departments , we would only attend patient who have been REFERRED to the department, thus only specific complaints that are related are only seen. but, at ED, you have to attend to ALL complaints by patients.

It is a test of human patience, I believe.

Sometimes, it just makes me wonder why some people would want to bring themselves or family members with complaints of sore throat and runny nose at 2 or 3 am in the morning?

or fever about 2 hours ago and still feeling well, to come straight to the emergency department instead of going to the clinic?

It just makes me wonder.

The thing is, when this happens, it will cause a long queue for other patients who are in need of the emergency attendance. The normal waitign period for a person at the emergency department can take up to 3-4 hours.

What I can say about the emergency department is that you have to deal with so many different kinds of complains, diseases, characters of people - dealing with the patient themselves, family members and other doctors in other deparmtnets and to do so in a short interval of time.

in ED --> TIME is of the essence

Ya Allah, permudahkanlah urusan kami...

perhimpunan perdana palestin

2010-05-10T11:01:00.001+08:00

SHAH ALAM, 9 Mei: Sebanyak RM1.1 juta sumbangan rakyat Malaysia kepada warga Palestin berjaya dikumpul oleh Konvoi Lifeline4Gaza (LL4G) yang bakal diserahkan kepada mangsa kekejaman Zionis Antarabangsa itu pertengahan Mei ini.
Jumlah tersebut diumumkan di dalam Perhimpunan Perdana Palestin yang diadakan Stadium Malawati, dekat sini malam tadi dengan kehadiran luar biasa memenuhi ruang dewan dengan acara memberangsangkan.
Majlis malam tadi bermula dengan solat hajat, ucapan-ucapan dari wakil-wakil NGO termasuk Timbalan Presiden Muslim Care, Zulkifli Mohd Nani dan selingan nasyid persembahan dari Muadz, Raihan dan Shoutul Harokah dari seberang.
Turut berucap adalah Wakil Pimpinan Palestin di Gaza, Syeikh Ziyad Al-Qishawi yang juga Koordinator Bantuan Antarabangsa Ikatan Ulama Palestin dan Naib Presiden Foundation For Human Right & Freedom Relief (IHH) dari Turki, Mr Hussain Oruc.
Mereka berdua menyampaikan salam perjuangan dan terima kasih tidak terhingga dari rakyat Palestin kerana sanggup memberikan sumbangan dan doa di atas mala petaka yang dikenakan ke atas mereka selama ini.
Untuk rekod, krisis kemanusiaan selama ini di Palestin membangkit rasa kebersamaan kepada rakyat dan NGO prihatin negara ini yang menggerakkan konvoi Lifeline4Gaza – Break The Siege ataupun Talian Hayat Untuk Gaza – Menerobos Tembok Kematian.
Mereka disertai oleh Pertubuhan Himpunan Lepasan Institusi-institusi Pengajian Tinggi Malaysia (HALUAN), Angkatan Belia Islam Malaysia (ABIM), Jemaah Islah Malaysia (JIM), Yayasan Amal, Palestinian Center of Excellence (PACE), Aqsa Syarif, Dewan Pemuda Masjid Malaysia (Dewan Pemuda), Pertubuhan Mawaddah Malaysia dan Viva Palestina Malaysia (VPM).
Bagi menjayakan misi menghantar bantuan ke Gaza ini, mereka akan menyertai usaha konvoi antarabangsa yang diketuai oleh sebuah NGO dari Negara Turki iaitu Foundation for Human Rights & Freedoms & Humanitarian Relief (Insan Hak ve Hurriyetleri – atau lebih dikenali sebagai I.H.H.) bersama-sama NGO-NGO antarabangsa yang lain seperti Free Gaza Movement dan European Campaign to End the Siege on Gaza (ECESG).
Kini, IHH dengan sokongan penuh kerajaan Turki dan NGO-NGO antarabangsa dari lebih 17 buah negara lain telah memulakan usaha untuk melaksanakan konvoi talian hayat Gaza yang ke-empat iaitu Lifeline4Gaza. Satu usaha besar-besaran iaitu satu konvoi yang akan merentasi Laut Mediterranean bermula dari Istanbul, Cyprus dan akhirnya terus ke Gaza mengikut jalan laut. Konvoi ini akan membawa lebih daripada 20 buah kapal dan bot.
Kempen ini diketuai oleh Perdana Menteri Turki sendiri, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Konvoi kemanusiaan terbesar di dunia ini akan membawa bantuan asas keperluan seperti bahan pembinaan hospital, bahan perubatan, peralatan sekolah dan bahan-bahan makanan. Mereka juga akan diiringi oleh tokoh-tokoh politik dan kemanusiaan sedunia yang prihatin terhadap krisis kemanusiaan di Gaza.
Bantuan tersebut akan dibawa terus ke Gaza dengan menggunakan hubungan diplomatik kerajaan Turki yang memang mempunyai Perjanjian Keselamatan dengan rejim Israel semenjak peperangan dunia yang ke-dua lagi. Mengikut butiran perjanjian tersebut, Israel tidak boleh mengganggu kapal-kapal daripada Turki.
Sumbangan derma bagi menjayakan bantuan ini boleh disalurkan terus melalui akaun khusus untuk projek Lifeline4Gaza seperti berikut:
Nama akaun : "TABUNG PALESTIN HALUAN"
Nombor akaun: 5644 9020 8528
Bank : Maybank Berhad
HarakahDaily
__._,_.___

JOM KITA BERHIMPUN FOR A GOOD CAUSE!!

2010-05-07T13:06:00.001+08:00

TAwaKKAL

2010-04-20T12:45:00.004+08:00

" Wahai Rabb Yang Mahahidup, wahai Rabb Yang Berdiri Sendiri ( tidak butuh segala sesuatu), dengan rahmat-Mu aku mohon pertolongan, perbaikilah segala urusanku dan jangan diserahkan kepadaku sekalipun sekejap mata ( tanpa mendapat pertolongan dari -Mu)"

Life is a roller coaster, I always say..

One minute you're up, the next thing you just go downhill

One thing that has taught me at the emergency department is that the only that thing that is predictable in life is that it is not predictable

Due to its nature, there is constant worry about what might happen to your patient once you have attended to them.

The feeling just leaves you in a state of uncertainty, in which to some people might amount to some sort of discomfort and anxiety.

The thing is, the answer is so simple..yet to have fully embedded it inside your heart is another different thing..
Just do the best in your ability to serve your patient and leave the rest to Allah... for He has the Power over all things..

" Allah lah yang mencukupi ( segala kebutuhanku), Tidak ada Ilah yang berhak diibadahi dengan benar selain Dia, kepada Nya aku bertawakal. Dialah Rabb ( yang menguasai) 'Arsy yang agung"
- HR Ibnu Sunni ( from Dzikir Pagi & petang - syaikh sa'id bin 'Ali wahf al Qahthani)

GIFT OF LOVE...

2010-03-26T08:12:00.005+08:00

THE RULES OF THUMB...

2010-03-26T07:30:00.002+08:00

TAKE NOTE: ALWAYS KEEP COOL IN WHATEVER SITUATIONS..IN OTHER WORDS, THE ROLE OF SABAR IS THE UTMOST IMPORTANT..

LA TAGHDOB...LA TAGHDOB....TAGHDOB...OOPS...I MEANT, LA TAGHDOB..

Accident & emergency department...

2010-03-17T10:20:00.008+08:00

Alhamdulillah, i have completed my 5th posting of which was surgery and now..i have just started my last posting as an Houseman...the elusive Accident & emergency department.

I am currently into my 2nd week as tagging houseman in the dept..in which we are to be posted in the triage counter.

But before we go further into the department..why not we start off with an introductory bit regarding the dept..

The Emergency Department (ED), sometimes termed Accident & Emergency (A&E), Emergency Room (ER), Emergency Ward (EW), or Casualty Department is a hospital or primary care department that provides initial treatment to patients with a broad spectrum of illnesses and injuries, some of which may be life-threatening and require immediate attention.

The first specialized trauma care center in the world was opened in 1911 in the United States at the University of Louisville Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky, and was developed by surgeon Arnold Griswold during the 1930s. Griswold also equipped police and fire vehicles with medical supplies and trained officers to give emergency care while en route to the hospital.

Department layout
A typical emergency department has several different areas, each specialized for patients with particular severities or types of illness.
In the triage area, patients are seen by the medical assistant or LPN, who completes a preliminary evaluation, before they are transferred to another area of the ED or a different department in the hospital

WHat it triage, by the way?

Triage (pronounced /ˈtriːɑːʒ/) is a process of prioritizing patients based on the severity of their condition. This rations patient treatment efficiently when resources are insufficient for all to be treated immediately. The term comes from the French verb trier, meaning to separate, sort, sift or select. Two types of triage exist: simple and advanced.The outcome may result in determining the order and priority of emergency treatment, the order and priority of emergency transport, or the transport destination for the patient, based upon the special needs of the patient or the balancing of patient distribution in a mass-casualty setting.

How does the A&E operate? --> please review the flowchart

So far, it has been quite an experience..and all I can say that it's only the beginning and there will be much more to come...

TO BE CONTINUED...

a new life.. a new beginning..

2010-03-08T23:44:00.002+08:00

The past 3 months has been so uneventful in my life that updating blog has been put aside for quite some time..

For your information, during the past 3 months, i had been engaged and surprise...gotten married..

mmm.....

Sakitnya perut..

2009-11-30T20:21:00.008+08:00

( PICTURE OF SMALL INTESTINE - USUS KECIL)

"sakitnya perut...ish..!" ..Air mata Rosnah membasahi pipinya..Aku dah tak tahan ni..getus hatinya

"kenapa ni Senah...dari tadi lagi asyik dok mengeluh.." ibunya memandang ke arahnya..Rungsing melihat anak bongsunya menahan kesakitan

"Mak bawak Senah ke hospital sekarang ye..risaulah mak lihat senah , semakin lama makin sakit je nampak.."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

" saya dr. jenab..datang sebab sakit apa ye?"

" anak saya ni...dari semalam lagi sakit perut..tak pernah saya tengok dia sakit macam ni"

seterusnya Dr jenab menemuramah Rosnah:

HISTORY:

1)COLICKY ABDOMINAL PAIN ( SAKIT PERUT YANG DATANG - HILANG
2) NAUSEA ( RASA MUAL)

3) VOMITING ( MUNTAH)

4) NO BOWEL OUTPUT ( TIADA KENTUT ATAU BERAK)

RUPA-RUPANYA ROSNAH PERNAH ADA OPERATION BEBERAPA TAHUN DAHULU UNTUK APPENDICITIS ( UNDERWENT APPENDICECTOMY)

KEMUDIA, ROSNAH DIPERIKSA...

PHYSICAL EXAMINATION:

generally , patient is in pain, dehydrated. Not tachycardic, Blood pressure still within normal range. per abdomen, the abdomen is mildly distended, soft, tender on the Right iliac fosse. no guarding or rigidity. no mass palpable or visualized.

INVESTIGATION:

ABDOMINAL X-RAY AND CHEST ERECT

ABDOMINAL X-RAY:SMALL BOWEL DIILATATION
IMPRESSION: INTESTINAL OBSTRUCTION SECONDARY TO ADHESION

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

INTESTINAL OBSTRUCTION:

What is a bowel obstruction?
A bowel obstruction happens when either your small or large intestine is partly or completely blocked. The blockage prevents food, fluids, and gas from moving through the intestines in the normal way. The blockage may cause severe pain that comes and goes.

Pathophysiology
Obstruction of the small bowel leads to proximal dilatation of the intestine due to accumulation of GI secretions and swallowed air.

This bowel dilatation stimulates cell secretory activity resulting in more fluid accumulation. This leads to increased peristalsis both above and below the obstruction with frequent loose stools and flatus early in its course.

Vomiting occurs if the level of obstruction is proximal. Increasing small-bowel distention leads to increased intraluminal pressures. This can cause compression of mucosal lymphatics leading to bowel wall lymphedema. With even higher intraluminal hydrostatic pressures, increased hydrostatic pressure in the capillary beds results in massive third spacing of fluid, electrolytes, and proteins into the intestinal lumen. The fluid loss and dehydration that ensue may be severe and contribute to increased morbidity and mortality.

Strangulated Small bowel Obtructions are most commonly associated with adhesions and occur when a loop of distended bowel twists on its mesenteric pedicle. The arterial occlusion leads to bowel ischemia and necrosis. If left untreated, this progresses to perforation, peritonitis, and death.

Bacteria in the gut proliferate proximal to the obstruction. Microvascular changes in the bowel wall allow translocation to the mesenteric lymph nodes. This is associated with an increase in incidence of bacteremia due to Escherichia coli, but the clinical significance is unclear.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

TREATMENT OF ACUTE INTESTINAL OBSTRUCTION

- GASTROINTESTINAL DRAINAGE

- FLUID AND ELECTROLYTE REPLACEMENT

- RELIEF OF OBSTRUCTION

- SURGICAL TREATMENT IS NECESSARY FOR MOST CASES OF INTESTINAL OBSTRUCTION BUT SHOULD BE DELAYED UNTIL RESUSCITATION IS COMPLETE , PROVIDED THERE IS NO SIGN OF STRANGULATION OR EVIDENCE OF CLOSE LOOOP OBSTRUCTION

sources:

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/374962-overview

BAILEY & LOVE'S SHORT PRACTICE OF SURGERY

The HADJ

2009-11-28T18:25:00.004+08:00

Alhamdulillah, this year I had been blessed with being able to celebrate the eiduladha with my family. I think for the past 2 years , it was not so.

however, celebrating the eid at KL was nonetheless, a far cry from that in Kota Bharu. It seemed to be like any other day.

Being that I do not have the pleasure as to dwell in numerous holidays, I had taken this opportunity as to pay a visit to the book store. Something was disturbing my mind and my heart, and books have been an endearing way for me to release the pressure that was buiding within me.

I had come across a book that I had read more than 10 years ago and had touched me deeply. It was written by Daniel Keyes, entitled Flowers for Algernon. It revolves around Charlie, who was not so bright and was later given a leash of life when he undergone an experiment whereby his intelligence was heightened. It depicts how his life had changed as he honestly tells it in a diary and subsequently how he suffered when the change of IQ lasted only for a while.

i had thought of buying that book when I had come across another book that caught my attention. It was called the Hadj, written by Michael Wolfe, an account of an American's pilgrimage to Mecca. He is an author and had embraced islam and since then had written a lot about ISlam, mostly regarding the Hajj.

I'm halfway through right now and the book had enchanted me in so many ways. And it also brought about memories and previous conflicts that I used to have regarding the religion. It honestly puts up questions and wonderings by someone who is in search of the right religion.

During my childhood, I had the opportunity to live in the US, in which I feel that it had changed my life forever .

I used to be such a quiet girl, as to the extent I had been labelled taciturn by my teachers there.
It felt hard fitting in. I was only 11 years old back then. Moving to a different country did not bode well at first. I had come from a small town in Kelantan,..not even used to going to the K.L, but then totally drift to an altogether different culture and country was a nervewrecking experience.

I had worn the scarf at the time, but not completely covering my aurah at the time. When I had arrived there and had to enroll in the primary school, I was the only one wearing the scarf.

I had felt like an outcast. Many of them would cast glances at me, but many of them were nice enough. The thing about American is that they are friendly towards you.

I had enrolled in the 4th grade, with Mrs. Sallee as my class teacher. The classroom were cosy and had a library-esque kind of feeling. It was fully carpeted and there were arrays of books stacked in every corner. The chairs were colorfully painted and there were games stashed inside the cupboards.

Initially I had trouble fitting in, of course. They had never seen anybody wearing the scarf before. What more is that, oklahoma, where I was living at the time, is considered part of the christian belt. There were few Arabs or Malaysians at the school, but none of them wore the scarf. I also suffered language problem, in which I was not able to converse in english.

That had made me a certified prey for bullying. Every afternoon, during reccess, I had to suffer a few namecallings and interrogations from a boy next door.

And then I felt more alienated as I had to creep back to my classroom in the afternoon to solat. I had explained to my class teacher regarding our duty to perform the solat 5 times a day. During that tiem , zohor would end by the time I arrive home from school. Thus, I needed a place to perform the solat at school. The only time available, was during the recess time where the class would be empty.

It had become a problem later on when some students had lost some things and they had accused that it was stolen. The thing is, I became a suspect somewhat since i would go back to the classroom during which nobody was in side the class. Nevertheless, the teacher was nice enough as not to point out this fact to everybody else.

Primary school was still peaceful and I had been able to go through it rather nicely. ..Only to suffer much more so as I enter the Middle school. In oklahoma, Middle school consists of 6th and 7th grade. There was only one middle school in stillwater, thus all the primary schoolchildren from stillwater had to go to the Stillwater middle school.

Thus began another journey for me..At the time, I was 12 years old.

Middle school was much more larger and difficult to adapt for me. Now there were students from all the primary schools of stillwater. IT starts all over again. I was still the only one wearing the scarf. This time around, I had to wear the full gear,covering my aurah. My elder brother did not suffer much, as there was nothing to distinct him from others.

At this time, I had become more paranoid and felt much more out of place. Middle school was burgeoning a different kind of atmosphere. During these years, the students were much more social. There were dances, datings and the popular groups.

I fared well in the academic side, which then became a somewhat of a savior to me during this period of my life.

luckily enough I had founds friends that would become my staple group. They were above average students but socially apt.

But something -- someone had come way of that changed the scene of my life at this time.

His name was Joel. He was in the same language arts and science class as me. OF course, being the only person wearing the scarf there attracted much attention from the students there. And again, I became the prey of many jokes there. Including him.

They did not understand much about Islam. THey thought I had worn this because of culture. Especially when there are also muslims in the school , but did not wear properly.They even wore shorts to school.That had created a bit of a problem for me to explain it to the students.

During this time, I had suffered severe low self esteem. I was a foreigner of course, of different religion and the only one wearing the hijab and covering the aurah. I did not mix well with the opposite gender.

I was also having trouble to find time and a place to perform the solat. Here we have to move to 6 different classes each day. I performed my wudu' during reccess and would perform the solat whenever there was free time. In between breaks, and most of the time, it was during class or in the bus. Because Zohor would end during my trip home.

I was 12 at the time, and at some point I began to question myself as to why I need to do all this obligations - wearing hijab, not mixing with the opposite gender, perform solat..Whereas all my other peers are having the time of their life.

I began to question my religion. I began to question their religion.

All of us were born into the religion that we were in right now.

Thus, who to saywhich one is right?

There was not an ustaz or ustazah there which I could seek help.

There was an Islamic center in which we sometimes would learn the quran, and situated just a few houses away from where I was staying.

Internet was still new at the time and there were not much sites that I could really look for.

At the same time, I felt so guilty as to question my own religion.

I had found solace in observation.

The fun and freedom that I was envying them..what was it?
I finally realized after some time of observation, that our life needs a rule. We can't just simply do whatever we want, or else it would be chaos.

Take for example, the school's ruling, that a student is now allowed to dress inappropriately, in which they are not supposed to wear apparels that is see through or exposing much skin.

In Islam, we have a specific rulings already regarding aurah.

If not for the regulations by the Islamic law, our life would be in hazardous state, i realize that. Islam teaches us how to be a good person with a balance between the spiritual and worldly aspect.

The struggle to keep steadfast to my religion had shaped me to become a stronger person.Alhamdulillah, it is with Allah's will.

La hawla wala quwwata illa billah...

A Case of Sudden onset of breathlessness

2009-11-27T11:54:00.006+08:00

" Aduh...sakitnya dada..." keluh Abdullah. Tangannya mengusap-usap dadanya.

" Kenapa ni Dollah?" Rosli mula risau..kellihatan Abdullah berada dalam kesakitan yang amat. Dahinya berkerut dan nafasnya makin susah..

Tanpa melengahkan masa lagi..dia segera di bawa ke kecemasan...

Dr Ira was working at the A&E at the time...

The case: Abdullah, 39 year old malay gentleman, who has no known medical illness, but was a heavy smoker had presented to the emergency department with sudden onset of chest pain and shortness of breath...

o/e not breathless at the moment, diminished breathsounds and hyperresonant note on the right lower side of the chest

provisional diagnosis;
How would you investigate this patient?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Answers:
provisional diagnosis;pneumothorax

investigation:
Chest X RAy
Blood gases

Pneumothorax:
A pneumothorax refers to a collection of gas in the pleural space resulting in collapse of the lung on the affected side.

What are the causes of pneumothorax
Primary spontaneous pneumothorax

- Spontaneous pneumothorax is heavily associated with smoking, with 80-90% of primary spontaneous pneumothorax cases occurring in smokers.
- Physical height: It has been noted that typical patients tend to have a tall and thin body habitus. Whether height affects development of subpleural blebs or whether more negative apical pleural pressures cause preexisting blebs to rupture is unclear.
- Valsalva results in increased intrathoracic pressure. However, contrary to popular belief, most spontaneous pneumothoraces occur while the patient is at rest.
- Changes in atmospheric pressure, proximity to loud music, and low frequency noises have also been reported to be associated with pneumothorax
- Familial associations have been noted in more than 10% of patients. Some are due to rare connective tissue diseases, but recently, mutations in the gene encoding folliculin (FLCN) have been described. These patients may represent an incomplete penetrance of a genetic disorder. Birt-Hogg-Dube syndrome is characterized by benign skin growths, pulmonary cysts, and renal cancers and is caused by mutations in the FLCN gene.
Secondary spontaneous pneumothorax
- COPD or emphysema
- Asthma
- Cystic fibrosis
- Interstitial lung disease
- Tuberculosis
- Bronchogenic or metastatic carcinoma
- Pneumonia (fungal, caseating, HIV)
- Collagen vascular disease including Marfan syndrome
- Catamenial pneumothorax (see Special Concerns)
Iatrogenic pneumothorax
- Transthoracic needle aspiration procedures (most common cause, accounting for 32-37% of cases)
- Subclavian and supraclavicular needle sticks
- Thoracentesis
- Mechanical ventilation (directly related to peak airway pressures)
- Pleural biopsy
- Transbronchial lung biopsy
- Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (Consider the possibility of a pneumothorax if ventilation becomes progressively more difficult.)
- Tracheostomy
Pneumomediastinum
- Acute production of high intrathoracic pressures (often as a result of inhalational drug use)
- Smoking marijuana
- Inhalation of cocaine
- Asthma
- Athletic competition
- Respiratory tract infection
- Parturition
- Emesis
- Severe cough
- Mechanical ventilation
- Trauma or surgical disruption of the oropharyngeal, esophageal, or respiratory mucosa

Radiological findings

Fig 3

(left) Loculated left sided pneumothorax in a patient with severe chronic obstructive airways disease. Placement of chest drain into fifth intercostal space (arrow) might have entered lung parenchyma and would most likely not have achieved complete drainage of this loculated collection. (right) Percutaneous pigtail catheters (arrows) placed in apical and basal components of pneumothorax under fluoroscopic guidance. After several days of drainage the lung re-expanded completely

BMJ. 2005 June 25; 330(7506): 1493–1497.

doi: 10.1136/bmj.330.7506.1493.

A true pneumothorax line. Note that the visceral pleural line is observed clearly, with the absence of vascular marking beyond the pleural line.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

HOW DO YOU MANAGE PNEUMOTHORAX?

Emergency Department Care

Immediate attention to the ABCs while assessing vital signs and oxygen saturation is paramount. ED care depends on the hemodynamic stability of the patient. All patients should receive supplemental oxygen to increase oxygen saturation and to enhance the reabsorption of free air. Treatments for primary and secondary spontaneous pneumothorax are the following:

Primary spontaneous pneumothorax
- If the pneumothorax is smaller than 15% (or estimated as small, see Imaging Studies) and the patient is symptomatic but hemodynamically stable, needle aspiration is the treatment of choice.
- If the pneumothorax is smaller than 15% and if the patient is asymptomatic, many consider observation to be the treatment of choice. (If the patient is admitted, administer oxygen, since this has been shown to speed resolution of the pneumothorax.)
- If the pneumothorax is greater than 15% (or estimated as large, see Imaging Studies), aspiration using a pigtail catheter left to low suction or water seal is recommended.
Secondary spontaneous pneumothorax
- Tube thoracostomy is the procedure of choice.
- Pleurodesis decreases the risk of recurrence, as does thoracotomy or video-assisted thoracoscopy to excise the bullae.
Iatrogenic pneumothorax: Aspiration is the technique of choice for iatrogenic pneumothoraces because recurrence usually is not a factor. Tube thoracostomy is reserved for very symptomatic patients.
Most patients with pneumomediastinum should be admitted and observed for signs of serious complications (eg, pneumothorax, tension pneumothorax, mediastinitis). If the pneumomediastinum occurred from the inhalation of cocaine or smoking of marijuana, observation in the ED for progression may be indicated.

sources;
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/360796-overview
http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/827551-overview

THE ART OF WAR

2009-11-26T21:44:00.006+08:00

I'm very much intrigued in the whole phoenomenom in war. It is not to say that I agree to the action. But, it is interesting to note how a person is ' motivated' so to speak, or can be engineered to the extent as to risk his own life as to be involved in a war.

Being in a war, essentially means that you are willing to sacrifice everything that you have, including your own life

What we are willing to sacrifice for a belief is daunting..
but to what extent?
for what reason?
is it enough to justify the loss of your own people?economy?risk the civilization that others before you have built?

One of the greatest war ever was of course the World War II in which history has changed forever.

Hitler ultimately wanted to establish a New Order of absolute Nazi German hegemony in Europe. To achieve this, he pursued a foreign policy with the declared goal of seizing Lebensraum "living space" for the Aryan people; directing the resources of the state towards this goal.

AT WHAT EXPENSES ?

Casualties and war crimes

Main articles: World War II casualties and War crimes during World War II

Estimates for the total casualties of the war vary, but most suggest that some 60 million people died in the war, including about 20 million soldiers and 40 million civilians.

Many civilians died because of disease, starvation, massacres, bombing and deliberate genocide. The Soviet Union lost around 27 million people during the war, almost half of all World War II deaths.^[253] Of the total deaths in World War II, approximately 85 percent were on the Allied side (mostly Soviet and Chinese) and 15 percent on the Axis side.

The effects of World War II had far-reaching implications for the international community. Many millions of lives had been lost as a result of the war. Germany was divided into four quadrants, which were controlled by the Allied Powers — the United States, Great Britain, France, and the Soviet Union. The war can be identified to varying degrees as the catalyst for many continental, national and local phenomena, such as the redrawing of European borders, the birth of the United Kingdom's welfare state, the communist takeover of China and Eastern Europe, the creation of Israel, and the 4 divisions of Germany and Korea and later of Vietnam. In addition, many organizations have roots in the Second World War; for example, the United Nations, the World Bank, the WTO, and the IMF. Technologies, such as nuclear fission, the computer and the jet engine, also appeared during this period.

A multipolar world was replaced by a bipolar one dominated by the two most powerful victors, the United States and Soviet Union, which became known as the superpowers

What we see today in our world, in which so oftenly we take for granted, is the result from those who toil before us. So many things have shaped and defined our world today, but we do not realize its importance and many of us, including myself, only take in stride..

CEO of the Decade

2009-11-26T21:39:00.000+08:00

Fortune Magazine Steve Jobs: CEO of the decade

The decade of Steve

How Apple's imperious, brilliant CEO transformed American business.

By Adam Lashinsky, editor at large

Last Updated: November 5, 2009: 8:13 AM ET

Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple

Steve Jobs: CEO of the decade

He revived Apple and remade entire industries, defying the worst economic conditions since the Great Depression -- and his own serious health problems.

(Fortune magazine) -- How's this for a gripping corporate story line: Youthful founder gets booted from his company in the 1980s, returns in the 1990s, and in the following decade survives two brushes with death, one securities-law scandal, an also-ran product lineup, and his own often unpleasant demeanor to become the dominant personality in four distinct industries, a billionaire many times over, and CEO of the most valuable company in Silicon Valley.

Sound too far-fetched to be true? Perhaps. Yet it happens to be the real-life story of Steve Jobs and his outsize impact on everything he touches.

The past decade in business belongs to Jobs. What makes that simple statement even more remarkable is that barely a year ago it seemed likely that any review of his accomplishments would be valedictory. But by deeds and accounts, Jobs is back.

It's as if his signature "one more thing" line now applies to him as well. After a six-month leave of absence in the early part of this year, during which he received a liver transplant, he is once again commanding a 34,000-strong corporate army that is as powerful, awe-inspiring, creative, secretive, bullying, arrogant -- and yes, profitable -- as at any time since he and his chum Steve Wozniak founded Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) in 1976.

Superlatives have attached themselves to Jobs since he was a young man. Now that he's 54, merely listing his achievements is sufficient explanation of why he's Fortune's CEO of the Decade (though the superlatives continue). In the past 10 years alone he has radically and lucratively reordered three markets -- music, movies, and mobile telephones -- and his impact on his original industry, computing, has only grown.

Remaking any one business is a career-defining achievement; four is unheard-of. Think about that for a moment. Henry Ford altered the course of the nascent auto industry. PanAm's Juan Trippe invented the global airline. Conrad Hilton internationalized American hospitality.

In all instances, and many more like them, these entrepreneurs turned captains of industry defined a single market that had previously not been dominated by anyone. The industries that Jobs has turned topsy-turvy already existed when he focused on them.

He is the rare businessman with legitimate worldwide celebrity. (His quirks and predilections are such common knowledge that they were knowingly parodied on an episode of "The Simpsons.") He pals around with U2's Bono.

Consumers who have never picked up an annual report or even a business magazine gush about his design taste, his elegant retail stores, and his outside-the-box approach to advertising. ("Think different," indeed.)

It's often noted that he's a showman, a born salesman, a magician who creates a famed reality-distortion field, a tyrannical perfectionist. It's totally accurate, of course, and the descriptions contribute to his legend.

Yet for all his hanging out with copywriters and industrial designers and musicians -- and despite his anticorporate attire -- make no mistake: Jobs is all about business. He may not pay attention to customer research, but he works slavishly to make products customers will buy.

He's a visionary, but he's grounded in reality too, closely monitoring Apple's various operational and market metrics. He isn't motivated by money, says friend Larry Ellison, CEO of Oracle (ORCL, Fortune 500). Rather, Jobs is understandably driven by a visceral ardor for Apple, his first love (to which he returned after being spurned -- proof that you can go home again) and the vehicle through which he can be both an arbiter of cool and a force for changing the world.

The financial results have been nothing short of astounding -- for Apple and for Jobs. The company was worth about $5 billion in 2000, just before Jobs unleashed Apple's groundbreaking "digital lifestyle" strategy, understood at the time by few critics. Today, at about $170 billion, Apple is slightly more valuable than Google (GOOG, Fortune 500).

Its market share in personal computers was plummeting back then, and the cash drain was so severe that bankruptcy was a possibility. Now Apple has $34 billion in cash and marketable securities, surpassing the total market cap of rival Dell (DELL, Fortune 500). Macintoshes make up 9% of the PC market in the U.S. today, but that share is increasingly beside the point.

With 275 retail stores in nine countries, a 73% share of the U.S. MP3 player market, and the undisputed leadership position in innovation when it comes to mobile phones, Apple and its CEO are no one's idea of underdogs anymore.

In 2006 Disney (DIS, Fortune 500) paid $7.5 billion to acquire Pixar, the computer animation film studio Jobs had nurtured and controlled. Jobs, in turn, became a Disney director and the blue-chip company's largest shareholder. His net worth, solely based on his stakes in Apple and Disney, is about $5 billion. Other executives have had stellar decades but none can compare with Steve's.

With Jobs back at the helm of his company, plenty of challenges lie ahead. Will the Goliath role suit him nearly as well as playing David clearly has? How will he respond to the competition he has awakened, particularly in smartphones, even as the personal computer fades in relative importance? Has he fashioned an organization that can succeed him? Can he possibly be as dominant in the decade to come as the one that is ending?

The "decade" of Steve actually began in 1997, when he returned to Apple after having been ousted a dozen years earlier. That was a year of triage, of a humbling investment from Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500), of paring Apple's product line to a bare minimum of four computers.

OH.. WOE IS ME...

2009-11-26T12:59:00.005+08:00

I'm stumped..Sometimes I feel so exasperated about myself. I've been working for almost 1 1/2 year. Currently I'm in my 5th posting. In my posting, I'm the most senior Houseman, except for one of my other friend. By right, by this time, the training for me should be more towards becoming a medical officer. It puts much more pressure per se. To function still as a regular houseman, but the expectation is to already be prepared to become a medical officer.

For those who are not aware of the national health system, after graduation, we are called houseman - " pegawai perubatan siswazah", in which it is a training period for a doctor to be.

Previously the used to be up to 3 -4 postings, then it got extended to 5 postings and the latest system is to include all 6 major postings : surgery, medical, orthopaedics, obstetrics & gynaecology, paediatrics and Accident and emergency. (A&E)

I started my posting with Paediatrics which was quite pleasant. Followed by O&G, orthopaedics, medical and currently surgery. The last posting , insyaAllah would be A&E

I think I have gained quite an experience throughout this 1 & 1/2 year. Truly, it has been a gruelling journey and altogether difference experience than what it used to be as a student.

During the student days, it was mostly hitting the books. The statement ," Go back and read" would always be uttered by our beloved lecturers.

However, during the working days...what matters most is regarding your patients and the responsibility you hold towards them.

To tell you the truth..how you are as person would reflect also how you are as a doctors, in some extent. How you were as a student would also give a base on how you would perform as houseman.

But that how it was when you initially become a houseman..but after a year of toil, you become tired. Tired of going up early, going back home late, taking bloods, setting branulas..and THE ONCALLS....

The thing is , throughout these 2 years...it's all about learning..it is a new learning experience for us..something that we only learned in theory, now comes into practice.

AND IT COMES AT A PRICE... what we are dealing are with real humans..when we do a mistake, it is at the expense of a another person's life. Thus, it must be dealt with seriously..And you DO NOT WANT TO MAKE A MISTAKE...

Once you do a mistake, you feel so bad...to the patients..your medical officer and to yourself. The patients would include always the family members..from wife/husband, son & daughter, sister & Brother, not to count also the aunt, uncle and such...

MOst of the time during the houseman years, most of us are enclosed in the white walls of the hospital. Even if we try to get away from the hospital, we are not able to run away from it.

Every time my friends and I would converse, somewhat or another, we would always eventually talk about the hospitals, be it regarding the staff or what had happened to the ward.

And why is that? because we have no other life except for being in the hospital..but interestingly, with so much time spent, still i feel that it is an inadequate training to become a competent doctor..

2009-11-14T22:24:00.005+08:00

nilai lah seseorang itu dengan neraca yang benar

Pada hemat ana yang tidak seberapa ini, ingin ana utarakan pandangan ana tentang isu wahabi dan juga aliran 'tajdid' yang telah dikritik oleh beberapa pihak. Ana bukan lah yang layak untuk memperkatakan dan membincangkan bab ini, akan tetapi ia merupakan sesuatu yang agak sensitif kepada ana.

apabila kita mendengar perkataan wahabi, terus dalam minda kita terbayangkan sesuatu yang sesat dan lagi menyesatkan. akan tetapi, apakah kita mengetahui apakah maksud wahabi? di sini ana tidak berniat untuk memperdalamkan untuk diskusi tentang tajuk ini. Akan tetapi ana hanya ingin melahirkan pandangan tentang seseorang yang dikaitkan dengan isu ini.

dan semestinya isu ini dikaitkan dengan seorang tokoh yang sudah dikenali ramai iaitu Dr.asri. Ana telah mengikuti kuliahya sejak 2003, sewaktu ana tahun pertama di universiti. Pada masa itu, ana masih ghairah untuk mendapatkan ilmu-ilmu agama di mana sahaja, dan tidak mengendahkan dari siapa.

kali pertama ana mendengar ucapan beliau merupakan dalam sebuah seminar berkenaan ahli sunnah wal jamaah. Ana merupakan seseorang yang tidak pernah mempunyai pengalaman berada dalam suasana 'sekolah agama', malah sebelum ini hanya terdedah kepada suasana yang tidak islamik. Jadi, konsep ahli sunnah wal jamaah adalah benda yang agak asing bagi pada ketika itu.

Ana tertarik dengan pendekatan yang diambil oleh dr asri dalam menyampaikan ceramah beliau. Sejak itu,ana sentiasa mengambil peluang untuk mengikuti kuliah-kuliahnya sekiranya mempunyai kesempatan.

ana bukanlah bermaksud menyatakan bahawa ana setuju dengan semua yang diperkatakannya,bahkan itulah yang sentiasa diingatkan pada mereka yang mengikuti kuliah beliau, iaitu untuk tidak ghulu' atau taasub.

antara impak yang begitu besar dari ana dapat iaitu untuk berfikir balik secara kritis, mengetahui balik dari mana sumber sesuatu dan untuk mendalami kembali 2 rujukan utama iaitu alquran dan sunnah.

pada ketika ini ana baru sedar betapa luasnya ilmu tentang agama dan semuanya merujuk kepada alquran dan sunnah. cabanng agama sangat luas sebenarnya, dan bagi seseorang seperti ana yang sememangnya tidak pernah mempunyai background agama, ia merupakan sesuatu yang agak baru dan tidak pernah diketahui. Selama ini dunia ana hanya berkisarkan tentang makan, minum , solat, pelajaran di sekolah , kawan-kawan , dan hiburan. ana tidak pernah pedulikan untuk mendalami ilmu agama selain mendengar ceramah-ceramah dari sesiapa.

Akan tetapi, dari pendedahan ini, baru ana tahu betap indahnya agama ini. Tidakkah kita sedari bahawa ilmu agama dalam islam sangat di jaga,iaitu untuk kita mendapatkan ilmu sekarang adalah dari suatu periwayatan dari tokoh-tokoh agama yang sangat amanah tentang agama ini. Ilmu periwayatan hadis, dan melalui cabang -cabang lain seperti tafsir , fiqh , usul fiqh.

dalam keghairahan kita untuk mendapatkan keunggulan dan cemerlang dalam bidang akademik, kita sudah lupa akan mempertingkatkan ilmu kita tentang agama. Di sini ingin ana ingatkan bahawa agama bukanlah milik seseorang ustaz dan sesiapa yang berada dalam bidang itu. Islam adalah bukan sekadar agama, ia merupkan suatu cara hidup. Oleh itu, kita perlu tahu cara-cara nya kerana islam menyentuh aspek kehidupan,ia bukan merupakan suatu khazanah ilmu semata-mata.

Sekarang sudah ramai graduan yang mempunyai masters atau PhD, malah tesis dan research sudah pun diajar tika undergraduate lagi. Kita sudah pun menuju ke arah zaman information di mana maklumat boleh didapati di mana -mana sahaja. sekiranya kita berupaya untuk bertungkus lumus untuk mendapatkan segulung ijazah, semestinya kita juga mempunyai keupayaan untuk memperdalamkan juga tentang ilmu agama, bukan setakat menadah telinga sahaja mendengar.

akan tetapi yang sedihnya adalah apabila seseorang yang sudahpun mempunyai latarbelakang agama mengatakan apa yang dipelajarinya, bersertakan hujah dan dalil dianggap seolah boleh memesongkan agama. kalau begitu, para artis yang beragama islam melakukan maksiat dan perkara yang bertentangan dengan agama dengan terang-terangan sekali dan disiarkan di seluruh negara menerusi kaca tv dan berupaya untuk menjadi ikutan remaja sekarang, apakah nama tindakan itu?

wallahu'alam

luahan tika zaman student...revisited

2009-11-08T22:16:00.002+08:00

Peranan harakah islamiah dlm dnt..

Kini, gerakan jemaah haraki bkn lg suatu perkara yg asing di dunia ipta. Kebangkitan jemaah plg kuat terasa di Malaysia, pd lingkungan 70-80’an di mana kita melihat pada adanya surge of Islamic revivalism in Malaysia.

Di situ, (mengikut biografi tokoh gerakan di Malaysia ini) kelihatan bibit2 kecintaan trhdp isu islami. Contohnya, kita melihat adanya perkembangan nombor dr mereka yg mula memakai tudung. IPTA pd ketika itu menjadi tempat penyebaran dakwah ini. Manusia ketika itu baru mula sedar dari tidur yg panjang lena.

Pada ms itu juga, tekanan trhdp this new revivalism was at its greatest. Namun, ternyata tekanan yg dikenakan tlh brjaya utk repress the ongoing revivalism. Persoalannya, apakah kekuatan pd ms tu blm lg kuat utk menangkis serangan yg bertubi?Di manakah silapnya?kalau kita meneliti pd ms tu, blh dikatakan smgt mereka sgtlh kuat.Kita tinjau pula suasana ipta pasca era 90’s dan kini pd zaman millennium.

Kita tidak blh nafikan bahawasanya kemodenan yg dikecapi skrg adalah suatu benda yg blh dikatakan way beyond what we thought we could do before. Yes, I do agree to some extent that the modernization has helped the country in many aspects, as to refer to the education and the economic aspect. Yes, again regarding the professionalism, Malaysia have been able to produce laden of professionals..many degree holders. That is one feat that is not to look down upon.Tapi cuba kita meneliti suasana sekarang dgn lebih kritis..dgn minda yg lebih terbuka & iman yg hidup.

Walaupun scr eksterior kita melihat Malaysia adalah suatu negara yg democratic, aman, progressive & ‘islamic’ to some extent.Tapi adakah keadaan negara kita skrg menepati ciri2 syariah islamiah yg sbnrnya?jika tidak, sejauh manakah kita tlh lari dr landasan yg sebenar?Memandangkn saya masih lagi seorang student, yg blm lg menempuh alam pekerjaan & kehidupan luar yg lagi challenging..Saya hanya blh menilai dari kaca mata seorang student…

Pada awal penulisan ini, I’ve mentioned regarding the gerakan jemaah haraki di kampus..now, I would like to again reiterate the peranan it plays in the campus.Jika dulu kita lihat mereka yg menganggotai jemaah ini adalah mereka yg menjadi penggerak..yg bersuara lantang menegakkan kebenaran..yg menjdkn kampus suatu medan utk bergerak..kini suasana itu tidak lagi kelihatan.Kini..dan selamanya..para pelajar terlalu sibuk memikirkan bab2 study..iaitu segulung ijazah yg menjadi rebutan..cita2 menggunung..1st class honors..and what nots..again, I must stress that I am not against it at all..i believe wholeheartedly that as a muslim, we must strive our best..regardless in what field.Tapi I cannot help it but feel disappointed, to say the least.

Dlm kesibukan kita mencapai cita2, kita tlh melupakan matlamat kita yang sebenar..Kita tlh meninggalkan tugas kita yang unggul & membiarkan Islam dicemari begitu sahaja.Jika suatu ketika dahulu IPT menjadi penyebar fikrah islami yg berjaya, kini ia hanyalah suatu institusi utk mndptkn segulung ijazah..bkn utk membina kefahamn yg lebih mendalam & luas. Namun, saya tidak menafikan bhwsanya masih lagi ada nadi yg bergerak dlm kampus itu, tapi nadi itu terlalu lemah utk revive the entire body that is too weak.Usaha2 murni yg tlh dilakukan oleh our previous predecessors, in terms of building the Islamic environment within our society, yet cannot compete with the ever expanding jahiliyah empire.And again I ask, where did we go wrong?

Skrg tlh muncul byk gerakan islamiah..yg berdaftar & yg x brdftar...kolej2 islam, ratusan sekolah agama, menengah atau rendah..tapi kita lihat juga perkembangan jahiliyah yg juga begitu menakjubkan. For every Islamic things that have cropped up, there’s bound to be in place of it svrl times more of the Jahiliah things.Apakah institusi2 islam yg dibina tidak mencukupi?bknkah ribuan graduan Islamic studies that are generated each year? Adakah nombor2 ini tidak memadai?Bukan kah bilangan masjid/surau/madrasah makin brtambah for each year?Namun..persoalannya, what is the matter?Gerakan harakiah pada masa kini, jika kita teliti, dr segi numbernya it seems to be impressive..tp cuba kita lihat dari segi kualiti..Apakah mereka yg menganggotai gerakan itu memahami apakah tugas/peranan mereka?Ini juga merupakan masalah utama yg menghambat perjalanan suatu gerakan.

Kita lihat kini ramai yg mengikuti system usrah atau prog2..namun apakah mereka memahami apakah konsep di sebalik usrah itu?ia bkn sekadar pertemuan biasa, di mana kita hanya mendengar & berkata2 smata..Kini menjadi virus kpd suatu gerakan islamiah di mana ahli2 trasa ‘comfortable’ bila masa tlh join sesuatu Jemaah. Ikut program is just a preparation..the real challenge & the ultimate aim of the gerakan is to hasilkn para du’at. Bilamana masa seseorang itu tlh memahami tugasnya utk berperanan sbg seorang dai’e ilallah barulah dinamakn ia benar2 menganggotai sesebuah jemaah islam itu. Ini adlh kerana sesebuah jemaah islam yg sebenar adlh yg mencontohi jemaah Rasulullah & para sahabat. Iaitu suatu jemaah dakwah yg hidup dari prinsipnya..inilah baru blh dikatakan benar2 suatu jemaah harakiah islamiah.Slh satu problem yg dialami oleh para anggota jemaah harakiah adalh mereka yg tidak mempunyai kefahaman yg mndlm ttg alquran & sunnah ttp bersemangat utk mnjadi para amilin. Kita tahu bhw ilmu adalh sgt pntg bg mereka yg ingin menjadi para duat..ilmu dari segi agama & juga aspek psikologi amatlh penting.

Bukan setakat itu, para duat kini perlu menjadi mereka yg berfikiran kritikal. Tidak memadai setakat mereka mengikut proses tanpa memahami hakikat di sebaliknya. Rukun faham, seperti yg digariskn oleh ust Hassan al Banna, adalh suatu prinsip yg kita perlu ada & contohi.Tetapi ada juga yg terlalu mengagungkn prinsip haraki tp tidak menghalusi tradisi Hadith & sunnah. Prinsip haraki mempunyai dasar yg didapati drp kitab alquran & juga sunnah..jika para duat tidak teliti dr konsep ini, mereka akan terpengaruh dgn prinsip haraki tanpa memahami apakah dasar yg mnjadi tonggak kpd sesebuah prinsip itu..Jadi, gerakan pencinta sunnah & gerakan harakiah tidak blh dipisahkan..malah sgt perlu utk digabungkan pada ketika ini..Jika dulu, jahiliah & juga islam jelas nampak perbezaannya..bertudung atau tidak..clubbing/masjid..tapi kini kita mengalami suatu krisis identity yg amat serius di mana islam & jahiliah telah merge together..the thin line between jahiliah & islamik has somehow able to allude many muslims.After many years of struggle of the Islamic revivalism some 30 years ago..we have come to this mixed culture.

Kini tlh muncul trend2 jahiliyah yg berunsurkan islamik..sms2 ‘tazkirah’ di klgn para pndkwah muslimah & muslimin, konsep nasyid ‘cinta’ dan sebagainya. Terbaru, kita lihat fesyen busana muslimah di mana fesyen trsebut ada kalanya tidak menepati ciri2 yg sbnrnya..To say the least..islamik pada luarnya..but the essence is not.Dan persoalan skrg apakah peranan gerakan islam dlm menangani mslh ini? Bagaimanakah harus perjalanan kerja kita skrg utk menangani mslh2 ini?

AKU RINDUKAN SUASANA ITU..

2009-11-08T01:19:00.003+08:00

SUASANA TARBAWI..SUASANA ILMIAH..

Aku masih teringat pada suatu ketika dahulu..di mana menjadi buruan ialah suasana yang tarbawi...

Di Surau CF - mingguan kuliah sering diadakan..

Prof omar..

Kapten hafiz firdaus

Ust Ghazali

tidak dilupakan..tafsir mingguan bersama rakan2..solat berjemaah setiap waktu bersama rakan sebilik atau se blok..di mana masing2 akan mengelak untuk menjadi imam..

Apabila di umumkan akan ada kuliah di luar kawasan universiti , kami akan mengaturkan kenderaan untuk ke sana..apa lagi sekiranya kuliah itu luar dari negeri pahang...

Program-program islami telah menjadi sebati sewaktu masih belajar..

Program sifat solat nabi, islamic awareness week, remembering of alquds menjadi annual program di sana..

dan tika itu masih lagi baru diperkenalkan di UIA kuantan tentang ASWJ..

Suasana pada masa itu, boleh dikatakan suasana yang agak memberangsangkan untuk perkembangan D&T..

tapi kini..tidak lagi begitu..

Suasana bekerja bukan seperti suasana belajar...

Kini agak susah untuk mencari sahabat untuk berjemaah sekali

Bahkan kadang-kadang untuk mencari masa untuk solat wajib pun susah..

Sewaktu di Obstetrics and gynaecology ( sakit puan dan perbidanan), jadual sangat sibuk dan terdapat kes-kes kecemasan yang terpaksa kami attend..dan ada waktunya terpaksa mengorbankan solat wajib..

Kuliah-kuliah agama...kalau dapat dengar sekali sekala, Alhamdulillah..

Sesungguhnya bukan seperti dulu..

Suasana bersama rakan juga berbeza..agak sukar untuk mencari mereka yang mempunyai fikrah islam...

apatah lagi dengan pergaulan yang agak bebas dikalangan rakan setugas..

Susah untuk menjaga wara'...

Sesungguhnya ku rindukan suasana dulu...

That old feeling again...

2009-11-08T00:46:00.003+08:00

SURGERY...here we come...

sometimes i get confused...or more of a mixed feeling, so to speak...

during the end of my medical posting, i was a bit enthralled regarding further my studies in the department..

it has been during my student days that i was slightly awed with medical..

I do admit that the workload in medical posting supersede other postings but it feels somewhat exciting...

Probably I am not that enthused with the prospect in other postings that would need for us to go through operations...

But during the medical posting, I was delighted to be a doctor, at least for once...

Allah has granted me to be working with one medical officer that had inspired much..

She was such a dedicated doctor...very knowledgeable and very efficient...

She had inspired me to the extent that I felt the need to be a good and wholesome doctor..

but alas, the inspiration dwindled as I seeped into the holidays..

Even though it was only more than 1 week away from the hospital..yet it was enough to loosen up the enthralled feeling that once resided within me...

As you drift away from the profession, even for a while, then the sinking feeling of going through arduous work gets into you..

The oncalls..the resuscitation..the morning bloods..repeat bloods..presenting to specialists...i repeat...oncalls..oncalls and oncalls..

the stress in the hospital comes and haunt you again...

The next posting will be surgical posting..it will be my 5th posting...2nd last posting until I would become a medical officer... and this 2 year stint as houseman would finally come to an end,..

But then again..there would be lots more responsibilities.. and you cannot run away from the dreaded oncalls...

Honestly, I am scared to face the next posting..The expectation would be higher when you are a 5th poster..You are expected to function as a mini MO..or junior MO..Whereas, in reality Junior MO starts during 4th posting, but nowadays, it's sort of different..

Well...that is part of the training programme, I guess...

Ya Allah, do help me throughout the next posting...

what the future will bring

2009-11-07T00:46:00.004+08:00

I do not know what will happen in the future

but I do know what has happened in the past..

I am not so proud of my past, to tell you the truth..

but I am thankful that Allah has lit me the way...

the only ones who i used to know are those who graced the hollywood and MTV

the only universe i surrounded me was the ones that only dimmed it further

words that enlighten me were the literatures of the yesteryears,

the fantasy of commercial interest

It was the 90's and the world was bedazzled with Mariah carey...the boybands and the girl bands

it was the era of backstreet boys, n sync and of course spice girls

Albeit the alternative rock music stood beside me, with the likes of Oasis, Blur, Nirvana ...

While not to forget the ever genius Sherlock Holmes, the writings of George Orwell,

the splendid trilogy by J.R. R. tolkien had kept me enthralled

lest not also to mention the fluffy Sweet valley high series, and the intriguing writer Frederick Forsythe

but Allah has guided me as I grew older...

no longer did I watch the artisttes in awe..

Now something else had replaced it...

Something much more meaningful to me...

It was the day that I discovered true meaning of life...

I finally had a sense of grip in this forsaken trip called life...

It starts with realizing that Allah is our god and we are slaves of Him

Rise upon the glorification are those who deserve its place

Then, the names such as Hassan Al Banna,

Yusuf Al Qaradawi..

Sheikh Bin Baz,uthaimin

Sheikh Ahmad Yassin...

then from the yesteryear,..

ibn taimiyyah

the muhaddith...

and the contemporary...

It was an enlightening journey during my student years...All was so perfectly in place..

Yet, it was all too theoretical and academic...

and I have gotten lost how to piece it together as I embrace the working environment..

what more since now it is in the hospital...

but what I am certain is that...
I am truly grateful for Allah's Grace

Ya Allah, Please Give me Guidance Always...

OUR COLORFUL WORLD

2009-11-07T00:10:00.003+08:00

what i dream of is a utopian society

2009-11-06T23:29:00.008+08:00

A UNIVERSE OF LOVE

HOPE...SILVER LINING...

PEACE: SALAM:ISLAM

PEACE...LOVE...HAPPINESS

A WORLD OF LAUGHTER

I HAVE A DREAM...

THAT SOMEDAY ..

WE WILL FIND IT IN OUR HEARTS

TO FIND THE LOVE THAT WE HAVE LOST

TO FIND THE COMPASSION THAT ONCE RESIDED WITHIN US

THE WORLD THAT WE SEE TODAY

HAS BEEN ELUDED

INTO SOMETHING THAT WE LOVE NOT

SOMEDAY..

THE WORLD WILL BE A BETTER PLACE TO LIVE IN

WHERE PEACE AND HAPPINESS PREVAIL

WHERE GOOD DEEDS ARE LOOKED UPON

WHEREAS THE EVILS ONES ARE SHUNNED

COURTESY AND GENTLENESS

PIOUS AND GENEROSITY

LOVE , NOT HATE

HAPPINESS WILL WIPE AWAY THE TEARS OF SADNESS

AND..

WILL I GET TO SEE IT DURING MY TIME?

WALLAHU'ALAM

IT STARTS WITH ME AND YOU...

BETTER YOURSELF

AND ASK OTHERS...

INSYA'ALLAH

A day to remember

2009-10-31T11:53:00.004+08:00

My heart was beating fast...

When I saw the maroon coloured vomitus from him, I knew instantly that this is something that is DEAD serious..

He continued to groan and vomitting out 2 kidney dish full ..splashing all over the floor

" Uncle...are you okay..can you hear me? !" I shouted out at him..

His expression reflected one in agony.

THis is definitely upper gastrointestinal bleeding...I immediately alerted my Medical Officer.

Unfortunately he was not convinced...

come on..i thought to myself..abdominal pain..maroon colored vomitus..what else do you want..i muttered...

Then he went away...

I stayed with the patient..and saw that the blood pressure was coming down..

he looked to be anemic..

saturation was 95%...but deteriorating 94 - 93%...

"Staff nurse!! patient is about to collapse! ..Get me the emergency trolley.. HIgh flow oxygen now.."

I immediately called out my m edical officer once again

This time around,..he heeded..

REsuscitation was under way..2 large bore branulas were set..airway was cleared..he was on high flow oxygen...but tachypenic..and tachycardic...

ryles tube were inserted...huge amount of maroon colored contents kept filling in ..

Pack cells/whole blood orderd..crossmatch taken..

surgical team was alerted...and they attended immediately...

But just across the room, another family was in a frantic mode...

What now? I thought to myself

OH my...i sighed..another patient..was gasping for air..her eyes staring wide...

lungs had reduced air entry bilaterally...

saturation dipping down...

In the midst of the Upper GI bleeding, another one was im pending respiratory collapse..

At that moment, I felt so nauseated..I did not think that i was able to handle any more of collapsed patient..

we had to work together with the anaest and surgical team in view of inavailablility to handle both situations at the same time..

My colleague and Medical offcier attended the impending respiratory case while I and the surgical/anaest team handled the UGIB...

Both teams worked simultaneously...just across the room from each other...

In the end , one of the patient succumbed to death..the patient with UGIB, had nonstop bleeding..and luckily the other one was electively intubated and subsequently transferred to ICU...

I was shaken at the end of the day.. It was too much for me to handle..

Truly, It was an ujian from Allah...

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE AN HO?

2009-10-31T11:03:00.004+08:00

TO SOME WHO ARE NOT SO FAMILIAR WITH THE TERM H.O. ..

Well, it means house officer

why is it called house officer?

try and guess...

your house if basically the hospital

you are to work 7 days a week, inclusive of on calls..

previously it used to be that you get up early in the morning, before the sun rises to get to the hospital, and you go back to the hospital when the sun dawns...

but nowadays, it's not that bad, I guess ( this is what I am told or brainwashed by the senior doctors who constantly remind us of the luxury that we have today...)

you are the lowest of the hierarchy in the hospital

you are below the staff nurse, MO's and of course the specialists

our duties:

1) clerk patient

2) endorse medications as prescribed

3) sign prescription forms

4) prefill in the forms which are supposed to be signed by the medical officers

5) vampires -- blood thirsty people who constantly in need to poke people's arms to get out the blood

6) consent takers

7) literally clerk - write down every single orders by the MO or specialists

8) write down the progress of the patients and the physical findings

9) basically , just make sure everything ordered during the morning rounds are to be done

10) referral tasks

11) letters...letter..letters

12) to speak to the radiologist/hematologist to get urgent investigations and suffer the consequences..as it is ordered by the specialists..

whatever we do..we never get credit..

whatever we fail, we get the scoldings

well H.O..is Hamba Orang..

INSIDE THE WHITE COAT'S POCKETS

2009-10-31T10:43:00.004+08:00

What is in your white coat's pocket?

( HOUSEMAN)
1) pens that seem to get easily lost somewhere...
2) gloves - i tend to forget whether it's used or not..
3) blood tubes that sometimes are filled with patient's blood
4) face masks that are half torn
5) COUPONS!! - the most important thing of all!!!

MEDICAL STUDENTS
1) pens of all colors
2) small notebooks
3) stetoscope
4) torchlight
5) snellen chart
6) tendon hammer
7) small pocketbooks
8) purse - with no money
9) candies
10) recorders
11) keys to the hostel
12) ..a cicak somewhere that got lost...

MEDICAL OFFICERS?
oh yeah..they dont' wear 'em anymore

End of medical posting

2009-10-29T14:41:00.004+08:00

Alhamdulillah, currently i'm in the middle of my end of posting holidays...

I've finally finished medical posting.. coming up..surgical and Accident and emergency..

I know it's something unbelievable, but, I did like medical posting, in a way...
It's definitely nonstop action..with the adrenaline rush whenever patients collapse simultaneously..

In the midst of the rush, we at time tend to forget the single most step..which is to ensure whatever happens, the patients need to end their lives..or continuing breathing, for that matter.. with the kalimah syahadah.

Since recently, I've been tested with so many patient suddenly collapse in the ward. Up to the extent that I had developed some sort of a trauma whenever i enter the ward.

The event had taught me a very important lesson, no doubt..Always be on your toes. never take granted of anything.

One of the most important lessons i've learned during my medical posting, is definitely, how to deal with emergency situation in terms of how to deal with collapsed patients, myocardial infarction, hypoglycemia and such...

First and foremost,....

#DO NOT PANIC

#BE IN CONTROL OF THE SITUATION

# KNOW WHAT YOU ARE TO DO

AND ALWAYS ..ALWAYS FOR ALLAH'S HELP..FOR HE IS THE CONTROLLER OF ALL THINGS...

2009-10-11T22:21:00.002+08:00

3 Saintis Berkongsi Hadiah Nobel Fizik 2009
October 7th 2009 Posted by editor
Oleh : Mohd Faizal Aziz

Setiap tahun, Royal Swedish of Science, Stockholm Sweden akan mengumumkan penerima-penerima Hadiah Nobel dalam bidang yang terpilih dalam Sains Tulen dan Sains Sosial. Masyarakat sains di seluruh dunia kebiasaannya tertunggu tunggu dengan pengumuman pemenang hadiah paling berprestij tersebut untuk mengetahui tokoh-tokoh penting yang tercatat dalam sejarah sains dan teknologi di atas sumbangan mereka terhadap ketamadunan manusia.

Tahun ini hadiah Nobel Fizik dikongsi bersama tiga saintis iaitu Charles Kuon Kao (warganegara China-England-Amerika), William Sterling Boyle (Kanada-Amerika) dan George Elwood Smooth (Amerika-Syarikat). Ketiga-ketiga mereka merupakan saintis yang bertanggungjawab dan berperanan penting dalam perkembangan teknologi maklumat moden. Media-media di seluruh dunia melaporkan bahawa ketiga-tiga ilmuan tersebut dikenali sebagai ‘pakar cahaya’ (Master of Light)

40 tahun dahulu, Kao membuat andaian bahawa gentian optik mampu menghantar maklumat dengan sangat pantas menghampiri kelajuan cahaya (halaju yang paling tinggi yang diketahui setakat ini). Banyak teknologi canggih yang kita nikmati di saat ini adalah hasil dari kemajuan yang datangnya dari teknologi gentian optik menggantikan logam kuprum yang digunakan meluas suatu masa dahulu. Peristiwa di seluruh dunia setiap hari dapat diketahui dalam masa yang singkat melalui internet merupakan nikmat yang diperolehi dari penemuan gentian optik.
Teknologi Gentian Optik

Boyle dan Smith menggunakan gentian optik dalam teknologi Charge-Couple Device (CCD). Teknologi CCD selalunya ditemui dalam kamera digital moden, di mana setiap gambar yang diambil dapat dilihat pada skrin kecil di bahagian kamera tersebut. Teknologi CCD ini juga kadang kala dikenali sebagi ‘mata elektronik’ (electronic eyes) yang membuka lembaran baru dunia fotografi dan perfileman. Bagi memudahkan pemahaman masyarakat umum, teknologi CCD ialah suatu cip semikonduktor yang boleh menyimpan cahaya sebagai data digital atau dikenali sebagai pixel untuk kegunaan digital kamera.

Boyle ketika ditemuramah oleh wartawan tentang perasaannya apabila mendapat khabar tentang penganugerahan tersebut menyatakan bahawa, beliau agak sangsi dengan panggilan telefon dari Sweden tersebut. “Saya belum minum kopi pagi ini, sebab itu saya agak sangsi ”. Ujar beliau yang telah berusia 85 tahun. Namun lama-kelamaan setelah diyakinkan tentang anugerah tersebut, beliau mula percaya yang ia merupakan satu kenyataan dan penghargaan atas sumbangan beliau.

Teknologi CCD
Bidang astronomi dan kosmologi juga dapat mengambil manfaat dari penemuan CCD ini. Teknologi CCD telah digunakan oleh teleskop angkasa Hubble untuk pemetaan dan pemahaman tentang alam semesta. Dengan penemuan teknologi CCD ini telesokop Hubble dapat mengambil gambar bintang-bintang, planet serta mencerap fenomena-fenomena astronomi di angkasa lepas. Kamera teleskop ini juga telah membuka jalan baru untuk manusia moden melihat peristiwa-peristiwa besar di sebalik kejadian alam semesta berjuta tahun yang lalu.
Tahniah dan terima kasih kita untuk ketiga-tiga saintis ini atas anugerah Hadiah Nobel Fizik 2009.

Biografi Ringkas
Charles Kuon Kao dilahirkan di Shanghai, China pada tahun 1933. Beliau memperolehi PhD dalam bidang kejuruteraan Elektrik pada tahun 1965 dari Imperial College of London. Kao memiliki kewarganegaraan China, Amerika dan England. Sepanjang kerjayanya, Charles Kao pernah memegang jawatan sebagai Pengarah Engineering of Standard Telecommunication Laboratories, Harlow, United Kingdom dan wakil Canselor Chinese University of Hong Kong. Kao bersara sejak tahun 1996 dan menetap di Happy Valley Hongkong.

Williard Sterling Boyle dilahirkan di Amherst, Nova Scotia, Kanada pada tahun 1924. Beliau menuntut di Universiti McGill, Kanada sejak Ijazah Pertama sehingga Doktor Falsafah (1950) dalam bidang fizik dari universiti yang sama.Boyle memiliki kewarganegaraan Kanada dan Amerika Syarikat. Beliau pernah memgang jawatan sebagai Pengarah Eksekutif Communication Sciences Division di Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill New Jersey Amerika Syarikat. Boyle bersara dari kerjayanya sejak tahun 1979 dan menetap di Wallace, Nova Scotia, Kanada.

George Elwood Smith berasal dari White Plains, New York Amerika Syarikat. Beliau dilahirkan pada tahun 1930 dan menraih gelaran PhD dalam bidang fizik pda tahun 1959 dari Universiti Chicago, Illinois AMerika Syarikat. Smith pernah memegang jawatan sebagai ketua VLSI Device Department, Bell Labs, di Murray Hills, New Jersey Smith bersara pada tahun 1986 dan menetap di Bernegat, New Jersey Amerika Syarikat.

Nota Editor//: Penulis kini menetap di Kanada dan blog beliau boleh dikunjungi di http://www.mundarmandir2.blogspot.com/

MASJID UIA..AGAIN

2009-10-05T22:36:00.002+08:00

RINDU PADA - MU

2009-10-05T22:23:00.003+08:00

I MISS THE DAYS OF RAMADHAN...THIS YEAR ALHAMDULILLAH, ALLAH GRANTED THAT I WAS ABLE TO SPEND MOST OF THE 10 DAYS OF THE RAMADHAN AT THE UIA MOSQUE...

IT FELT SO DIFFERENT..IN THE MORNINGS, AFTER THE JAMAAH SUBUH, I QUICKLY RAN TO THE HOSPITAL..DOING THE ROUTINE DUTIES...( CURRENTLY, I'M TAKING CARE OF H1N1 WARD...ALHAMDULILLAH, THERE WERE NOT MANY PATIENTS, THUS I WAS ABLE TO GO BACK JUST IN TIME)..AND AFTER WORK..THEN RUSH BACK TO THE MOSQUE..IFTAR TOGETHER AND PERFORM THE TARAWIH..

THE FREE TIME WOULD BE SPENT RECITING THE QURAN, READING THE TARJAMAHAN..AND OF COURSE DUA..DUA AND DUA..

IT FELT SOMEWHAT DIFFERENT IN A WAY..AT THE HOSPITAL, YOU WOULD BE ABSORBED WITH THE WORK ENVIRONMENT..WITH THE PATIENTS, SPECIALISTS, STAFF NURSES AND MEDICAL OFFICERS...

AND THEN OFF THE MOSQUE..WHERE YOU WOULD INVOKE NONSTOP DUA'S AND PRAYERS TO THE ALMIGHTY...

...BUT NOW.. AS THE RAMADHAN HAS PASS AWAY..THERE IS NO MORE RUSHING TO THE MOSQUE..NO MORE SLEEPING AT THE MOSQUE, IFTAR TOGETHER..TARAWIH TOGETHER..... :<

Subhanallah

2009-09-02T21:45:00.001+08:00

Hajat yang tidak kesampaian

2009-09-02T20:55:00.005+08:00

Aku buntu..Diselubungi perasaan yang teramat sedih. Salah seorang pesakit ku akan bakal meninggalkan daku. Sudah hampir 2 minggu dia berada di katil itu, setia menunggu bila keputusan doktor pakar untuk mengatakan sudah tiba waktu dia untuk beredar dari hospital. Orangnya sopan santun. Warganegara Myanmar, tapi sudah fasih berbahasa melayu dek sudah lama berada di sini. Setiap pagi, wajahnya akan sentiasa memaparkan senyuman dan bertanyakan khabar ku. Walaupun, hakikatnya kesakitan yang dialaminya Allah sahaja yang tahu betapa perit yang terpaksa ditanggung, namun dia tidak pernah merungut.

Setiap beberapa hari 'branula" nya terpaksa ditukar dan darah terpaksa diambil. Dia masih senyum. namun dari riak wajahnya, terpancar kesakitan yang ditanggungnya. Terlihat pada lengannya beberapa tanda-tanda merah seperti diukir dengan dakwat.

Aku menoleh ke arahnya.

" Pakcik, tanda-tanda merah ni kenapa ye ?"

" Oh, ni disebabkan agama pakcik. Untuk sembahyang" Dia menjawab ringkas.

" Boleh saya tanya, pakcik menganut agama apa?"

"Saya menganut agama buddha. "

Perbualan terhenti setakat situ saja. Tatkala itu, tidak timbul idea untuk bertanya dengan lebih lanjut. Cuma terdetik di hati, alangkah bahagianya sekiranya dia mendapat hidayah.

Setiap hari pakcik itu menampakkan senyumannya di samping tangannya akan melambai ke arah aku. Di hadapannya pakcik yang menghidap ' chronic obstructive pulmonary disease' juga menghadiahkan sekuntum senyuman. Kurang rasa tekanan bila melihat pesakit-pesakit yang begitu sabar sekali.

Hari ini doktor pakar telah memutuskan bahawa pakcik tu sudah pun sihat dan boleh pulang kembali ke rumah. Aku gembira bagi pihaknya. Akan tetapi...sedih apabila mengenangkan bahawa aku belum lagi sempat untuk berkongsi tentang betapa indahnya agama islam.

Sebelum dia berangkat kembali, aku melawatnya..mukanya kegirangan menantikan saat untuk pulang. Mulutnya tidak putus-putus berterima kasih terhadap aku, walhal tiada apa pun yang telah ku lakukan terhadapnya.

Namun, lidahku kelu..aku tidak tahu bagaimanakah untuk memulakan diskusi ini. Aku hanya mampu menerangkan tentang kondisi penyakitnya dan keperluannya untuk menghabiskan antibiotic sewaktu di rumah kelak.

Akhirnya...aku meninggalkan pakcik itu begitu sahaja..Hajat ku tidak kesampaian...

Ya Allah, berikanlah kekuatan pada Hamba Mu yang lemah ini..

Antara 2 cinta

2009-09-01T20:50:00.004+08:00

Apa yang ada jarang disyukuri

Apa yang tiada sering dirisaukan

Nikmat yang dikecap barukan terasa

Bila hilang di dalam genggaman

Apa yang diburu timbul rasa jemu

Bila sudah di dalam genggaman

Dunia ibarat air laut

Diminum hanya menambah haus

Nafsu bagaikan fatamorgana

Indah di mata namun tiada

Panas yang membahang disangka air

Dunia dan nafsu bagai bayang-bayang

Dilihat ada ditangkap hilang

Tuhan leraikanlah dunia

Yang mendiam di dalam hatiku

Kerana di situ tidak ku mampu

Mengumpul dua cinta

Hanya cinta-Mu Ku harap tumbuh

Antara 2 cinta --> dari album Nazrey Johari/raihan

The path less traveled

2009-09-01T19:28:00.008+08:00

Lo and behold, it is already into the 2nd week of ramadhan. I do not know how my state of being is during this holy month. Much thought is pondering on the hospital and the stress involved, that lastly i am drowned by the subdued feeling of neverending torment of hospital life.

I miss the ramadhan days spent during the university years. There were plenty of tadarus, tadabbur and tazkirah. There was not any agonizing whether the tarawih is able to be performed or not.

Now, things have changed. A LOT ..the usual group that we used to hang out with, eat with, solat with...they have gone to their own direction.

Life has not been as easy as it has been.

the working life is certainly different from the protected and sheltered university life.

Now, there are questions of work and the responsibility it involves..and other aspects of life...such as house, car and of course the issue of marriage.

Those are important aspects that did not arise during which we were busy studying. Yet, those issues will become such important aspect in life and will somehow or other determine the course of life that one will take.

Then again, there will also be much discussions with parents. Previously, they just encourage you to study and leave all other matters to them..but now, it's different.

The university life was a sort of an utopian world. There were the protective lecturers, the best friends, and the supportive parents. The goal was to reach for the high grades. In medical student days, whereby we were cast off in the jungle with not so much of distraction, there wasn't much obstacles to surpass.

The usual week would include the endless lectures and studying. The weekly usrah with the beloved naqibah..the tazkirah, and such. The ultimate challenge was the end of posting exams..and not to forget the weekly case presentations...which would get us churning with fear.

But once you have graduated from the university life, you would embark on a journey which you are not familiar. With people you are not so accustomed with...on a path you do not recognize.

What more when you finally get to have your own income...and you realize that this is your own money...

With that comes more challenges...the shoppings, the eating outs..and the realization that you have much more responsibility now with the money, it is not really for you...you have your family, the relatives..and the people around you who are also in need of others...

And you realize that it is quite easy to be thrown into the whirlwind, and follow the crowd. The dreams that you once had, sometimes do not quite match the likings of others..

Ya Allah , do not stray us from the right path..Show us the path of those You Redha..the path of the syahid...the path of the Rasul ....

Amin...

stressful docs

2009-08-06T21:52:00.002+08:00

Doktor disaran jalani latihan urus tekanan
Oleh Sazarina Shahrimsazarina@bharian.com.my

Stres punca ramai mahu tinggalkan bidang perubatan

KUALA LUMPUR: Doktor perlu diberi latihan pengendalian stres secara berterusan kerana kerjaya itu adalah antara bidang yang mempunyai tekanan kerja paling tinggi. Presiden Persekutuan Psikiatri dan Kesihatan Mental Asean (AFPMH), Prof Dr Mohamad Hussain Habil, berkata jika golongan itu tidak diberikan rawatan segera, ia boleh memudaratkan bukan saja doktor terbabit malah pesakit yang dirawat mereka.

Beliau berkata, berdasarkan kajian antarabangsa, doktor adalah antara kerjaya yang mempunyai tekanan kerja tinggi selain juruterbang, Perdana Menteri dan Ketua Pegawai Eksekutif. Justeru, beliau mencadangkan Kementerian Kesihatan mengadakan program latihan pengendalian tekanan secara berterusan kepada golongan doktor ini supaya mereka dapat mengendalikan tekanan secara baik. "Tugas sebagai doktor memang memberi tekanan yang hebat dengan waktu kerja yang tidak menentu, ditambah dengan bebanan kerja sehingga mereka langsung tidak mempunyai masa untuk aktiviti peribadi.

"Program pengendalian tekanan selalunya dilakukan oleh syarikat besar untuk kakitangan mereka dan sudah tiba masanya doktor juga diberikan program seperti itu," katanya ketika dihubungi di sini, semalam. Kelmarin, Ketua Pengarah Kesihatan, Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican, mendedahkan 21.8 peratus doktor pelatih di seluruh negara memerlukan kaunseling dan 5.8 peratus pula memerlukan rawatan khusus.

Statistik itu berdasarkan satu kajian terbaru di 28 buah hospital besar yang menunjukkan 67.8 peratus doktor pelatih mendapati latihan mereka adalah terlalu stres dan 53 peratus kadang-kadang memikirkan untuk meninggalkan bidang itu kerana tidak tahan dengan tekanan.

Kajian itu juga menunjukkan stres paling tinggi ialah berkaitan dengan waktu kerja serta bebanan kerja dan 30 peratus hingga 40 peratus daripada mereka tidak mempunyai masa untuk aktiviti sosial dan rekreasi.

Acute respiratory distress

2009-08-06T20:54:00.009+08:00

Being in medical line can make you really lose your sense of compassion and sympathy towards others.

Especially when you are in posted in medical ward.

Sometimes we even get irritated with patients. what more if the patients are those who would not comply with the treatment and medications given. And they persistently ask to go to back home as soon as possible.

What more when those are the people who keep being admitted to the ward because of the same problems...

Currently there are a lot of chaos regarding the H1N1 thingy..or ILI or SARI..

There are a lot of changes in the ward because of the event.

The ward which was previously saved for the dengue patients are now being filled up with patients suspected of respiratory problems

throughout my oncalls-- there have been quite a number of suspected cases

the things is..it's sort of cumbersome to actually have to don the spacesuit...

and the N95 mask...it's really hard to breathe in those stuff..

and then you have to do the throat swab..and the notification..

but the thing is..respiratory distress is a very life threatening event..and a very acute one , that is.

one of my patient had collapsed this morning just before the morning rounds. She had aspirated earlier after taking her breakfast.

Thus we had proceeded with Intubation in which i had failed for the first time. due to the difficult intubation, we had referred to anaest.

during the procedure, the pulse had become absent and quickly we commenced to CPR. alhamdulillah, she had revived and proceeded with bagging until further admission to ICU.

What a day to start with..

Then..in the afternoon, another unstable patient arrived. It was a life threatening asthma.. it had also threatened the staff as well,mind you..

She became unstable, and had progressed quickly to distress.

She was then electively intubated due to her worsening condition...

What a day...what a day...

I'm so stressed out...

2009-08-01T18:51:00.011+08:00

Tiredness can make you lose your balance..your control and ultimately the common sense..

For the past 3 weeks, I felt so much overworked...especially since having so many oncalls in such short duration...my oncalls have been every other day...which means that my life is solely confined to the hospital. it's either you're oncall or you're post calls. Alhamdulillah the specialist has been such wonderful sport about it..i mean in regards that i'm not performing that well currently.

What i'm worried is that the patients are at risk when we're not in our optimum shape..

This is all about taking care of patient..making sure that they get the best treatment that they should...

But the thing is..doctors are very much human and very gullible for errors. What more if they are under pressure and stress...

I personally do not mind getting up early for ward and preparing for the patients.. but i cannot perform my best when i have just finished my oncall that morning and directly start the next day of job..if the calls were in fact not so eventful, then it is understandable..

Working under enormous pressure and stress is daunting...especially when you are very much tired.

I had actually cracked during the ward round after so many Every other day calls..

Throughout this 2 weeks, there have been so many poisoning cases , whereby the patients had intentionally drank weedkillers, paracetamol overdose, and many more.

These patients are mostly under stress and many of them did take the medications intentionally with the intentions to either to relieve the stress or had suicidal ideation.

It worries me that what length that people are able to do to relieve their problems..this does not concern only the patients, mind you...

a whole lot of doctors are also under pressure and stress...and many of them manifest by way of quitting the job or not appearing for work.

And that does sit inside the minds of so many houseman...including myself...

sometimes, it feels that it is not worth it to suffer through all this whereby we have other choices..

****

Ya Allah, aku berlindung kepadaMu dari kebingunan dan kedukacitaan, Aku berlindung kepadaMu dari sifat lemah dan malas. Aku berlindung kepada Mu dari sifat penakut dan bakhil. Aku berlindung kepada Mu dari beban hutang dan penindasan orang....

********************************************************************************

Paracetamol poisoning ( Panadol)

- Paracetamol is converted to a toxic metabolite. N-acetyl-p - benzoquinonimmine, which is normally inactivated by conjugation with reduced gluthathione. After a large overdose, glutathione is depleted and the toxic metabolite bind to liver cell membranes causing necrosis.

What they present with:

symptoms over the first 24 hour include anorexia, vomiting, and diaphoresis, but the patient is fully conscious.

Hepatic enzymes begin to rise 48 hours after ingestion and peak at 72 - 96 hours. REcovery starts after approximately 4 days unless hepatic failure develops.

Symptoms at this stage : Right upper quadrant pain, jaundice, confusion,somnolence and coma.

Organophosphate poisoning;

organophosphosphorus insecticides include malathion, parathion, dichlorvos, and diazinon.

what they present with:

wide spread muscarinic and nicotinic effects:

- muscarinic: nausea, vomiting, miosis, abdominal cramps, urinary and fecal incontinence, bronchorrhea, diaphoresis, salivation, lacrimation, cough and dyspnea

nicotinic effects:

twitching, fasciculations, weakness, cramps, and hypoventilation with respiratory failure.

the dreaded medical posting

2009-07-23T18:13:00.008+08:00

it's been 2 weeks into my medical postings..

so many deaths i have encountered...

numerous procedures i have had to assist..

cvp's...LP's..CPR..intubation..all within these 2 weeks

i feel so exhausted..

blood takings...so many of them..

and not to forget also the radiological requests...to go down to the radiological department and request for the investigations..and sometimes only to get scolded by the radiologists..

not to mention, one of my colleague had recently quit his job as a doctor..which in a way fuels me to get away from here..

i dont know anymore..the feeling of depression always sinks in...the feeling to get away from the hospital always befell me...Ya Allah..do give me the strength..

With the shortage of houseman for my current posting, we would have to do quite a number of oncalls with short intervals in between in each calls...

How Allah Found Me inTexas

2009-07-13T23:35:00.004+08:00

Assalamualaikum dear brothers and sisters..May Allah guide you always ..

this is a very heartwarming story that I had found..and I would like to share with the rest of you

By Juan Galvan

Remembering My Shahadah

Before Maghrib Prayer, I told my friend Golam, "There's lots of peace in knowing that I only have to worship one God. I don't worship money, wealth, or any of that. I don't have to please the world." Golam nodded.

"Recently," he stated, "Look at the Americans. They have all kinds of freedom. You would think everyone should be happy, yet so many people are unhappy."

I simply believed that Islam was true and I wanted to become a Muslim. But would I be a good Muslim? Maybe! Maybe not! I was thinking about this until prayer time came. Afterwards, it would be time to say Shahadah, the declaration of faith. I would officially be a Muslim.

Golam stood up and faced the crowd and announced, "There's someone who will take Shahadah. He attends the University of Texas. He grew up in Texas. He's been coming to the mosque regularly."

Next thing I realized was that I was sitting in front of the people in the mosque. I was about to go through a "Muslim baptism" as a Christian friend once put it.

The imam said, "Brother, what is your name?"

"Juan Galvan," I responded.

I was handed a microphone. He told me to repeat what he said. The Arabic I said wasn't exactly as I had practiced. I had the paper I used to practice in front of me. I wish I could remember exactly what was said.

"I testify that there is no God but Allah. I also testify that Muhammad is His servant and messenger." Then he stated, "I also testify that Jesus is His servant and prophet. God has no son and no mother."

I recalled how adamant Muhammad was to never be worshiped as a God. Stating that Jesus was also God's prophet reminded me about the significance of Jesus within Islam.

After I said the Shahadah, the imam stated, "Congratulations. God forgives the sins of those who turn towards Him. And He can turn your previous bad deeds into good deeds."

Everyone clapped then stood up to shake my hand or hug me. I felt very much at home. I tried hard not to cry. All Muslim converts have had experiences that brought them to Islam.

I wish there were a way I could tell all the Muslims I've ever met that I've embraced Islam. I want them to know how much I appreciate them for telling me about Islam. Meeting all those Muslims was a part of a series of events that brought me to where I am today.

My Background

I am a Mexican-American who comes from a modest background. I was born in Lockney, Texas, in 1974. I spent my adolescent and teenage years in such small Texas Panhandle towns as Quitaque, Turkey, Lakeview, and Memphis. None of them has a mall, a movie theater, or a McDonald's.

In these small towns, if you hear a fire truck or police car, either your neighbor's house is on fire or your neighbor is being arrested. Memphis, Texas, population 2,300, proudly proclaims itself "The Cotton Capital of the World."

I spent over half my life in Turkey and Quitaque. Turkey was named after Turkey Creek. Quitaque was named after an Indian name, which means "horse manure." I sometimes joke that I am uncultured as a result.

The population of both towns is less than 600 and shrinking. In 1972, the Turkey and Quitaque schools consolidated creating Valley School halfway between the two towns. I attended Valley School and have fond memories of life as a Valley Patriot.

Of course, our school colors were red, white, and blue. Growing up in small communities gave me much appreciation for the simplicity in God's creations. A brother once chuckled after hearing me say, "If I can become Muslim, anyone can become Muslim."

My dad was a cotton ginner. Now, he is a custodian at a junior high school in Pampa, Texas. I had eight siblings, but in 2000 my 17-year old sister died in a car wreck.

I graduated from Memphis High School in Memphis, Texas, in 1994. I did well in high school and would attend Texas Tech University in Lubbock. In 1998 I began attending the University of Texas at Austin. I graduated with a bachelor's degree in management information systems in December 2001. Not bad for a kid who had to hoe cotton most of his junior high and high school summers to pay for his clothes and school supplies!

When Faith Is Shaken

In high school, I received a jolt to my long-held belief when a Christian friend told me that the Holy Trinity was not true and that Jesus was not God. "He was wrong," I told myself. Jesus had to be God.

God and humanity were disconnected by the sin committed by Adam and Eve. God sent His only "begotten" son to die because He loved us so much. Because only God forgives, Jesus had to be God. I even had the Bible quotes to prove it! Indeed, being a devout Roman Catholic Christian, I have read almost the entire Bible.

In high school, I was a lecturer, usher, Eucharistic minister, and religious education teacher. I was the godfather for a nephew and a niece. The idea that Jesus was God made much sense.

I have always had respect for other religions. I would often attend other Christian churches and join interfaith Bible study groups. While in one such group, I told my friend Chris that I was a Catholic. Chris blatantly told me that the Catholic Church was "a false doctrine."

As you can imagine, I defended my religion. Chris accused me of worshiping Mary, saints, and the Pope. I argued that we only revere them. Of course, I explained that the Virgin Mary should be revered for being the Mother of God. And everyone loved Pope John Paul II for his many contributions.

Islam vs. Christianity

Around this time, I happened to see a man praying. His knees, hands, and forehead were touching the ground, and he was barefoot. After he finished praying, I introduced myself to him. He said his name was Armando, and that he was a Muslim. I thought to myself, "OK, freaky, you're Muslim. You can't be Muslim. What's this Hispanic guy doing, praying to Allah?"

He later told me that Spain was Muslim for over 700 years and that thousands of Spanish words have Arabic roots. The ruins of mosques with Qur'anic writings have been found in Cuba, Mexico, Texas, and Nevada.

Most importantly, Armando spoke to me about Islam. I began to realize that my reverence for Mary and saints was much more than mere reverence. Chris was right. However, we were both worshiping Jesus! Armando said that Jesus was only a prophet and that nothing and no one is worthy of worship but Allah.

I asked an African American Muslim, "Why do you worship Allah? There's no Allah mentioned in the Bible." His response was very enlightening. Allah, God, and Dios mean "God" in different languages. Allah literally means "The God" in English and "El Dios" in Spanish.

As soon as I began to study Islam, many of my questions were answered. What is the purpose of life? How can the Father be the Son? Why can't God just forgive anyone He wants? What happens to babies who die before baptism?

In the Qur'an, Allah states what means [And when they (who call themselves Christian) listen to what has been sent down to the Messenger, you see their eyes overflowing with tears because of the truth they have recognized. They say: "Our Lord! We believe; so write us down among the witnesses"] (Al-Ma'idah 5:83). Indeed, my eyes overflowed with tears as I read that verse.

However, I would not embrace Islam until three years later because of fears common among many non-Muslims interested in Islam. I was afraid of possible rejection from family and friends. I was most afraid of changing.

The Decision

During these three years, I tried to live as ordinary a life as possible. I tried to convince myself of my happiness. Sometimes I convinced myself that I was an atheist, and other times I thought I was at least an agnostic. I had absolutely rejected my Christian beliefs as falsehoods. I would always return to believing completely in one God. I feared the existence of God and His prophets for what such faith might mean for my future.

As I was driving one Saturday morning, a red truck moved into my lane. I had no time to react; I found myself hitting it. I could have died. My left lung collapsed and I needed a chest tube to survive. I had broken ribs and a broken arm.

Under these circumstances, my priorities shifted from the worldly to the spiritual. Along with my greater appreciation for the Creator came an intense desire to embrace truth. Three years before my accident, I had been given several Islamic brochures with titles such as Concept of God in Islam, Concept of Worship in Islam, and Who was Jesus?". I revisited these brochures along with comments from a Qur'an that I had borrowed.

A few months later, I stepped into a mosque for the first time on a Friday afternoon. I was perplexed by the lack of shoes and chairs in the prayer area. I was very impressed with the unity as Muslims prayed together, side by side.

I visited this mosque regularly for about a month before embracing Islam during the summer of 2001. My faith and courage were increasing and, eventually, I didn't care what anyone thought. I only wanted to please my Creator. Islam ended my doubts about the existence of a Creator. Islam is the true, universal religion of God.

I fell in love with Islam while listening to talks about brotherhood, prayer, and charity. I found myself intrigued by these guys who found time to pray five times a day. Many were college students who had figured out ways to pray at the mosque two or three times a day.

I was amazed by these people who could fast from sunrise til sunset for an entire month. I thought to myself, "Wow, that's faith!" I was impressed by the self-discipline and brotherhood among these Muslims.

They lived simple lives and were happy with what they had. They lived their lives around Islam. They were very much at peace. I wanted to be one of these Muslims.

More people would convert to Islam if we were better Muslims. If Armando had not been praying, I would not have known he was Muslim, and we would not have spoken.

My Family and Friends

After telling my dad that I had converted to Islam, he asked, "?Qué es éso?" (What is that?). I responded, "It's a religion." Then, after telling him a little about it, he replied, "?Como los Arabes?" (Like the Arabs?) I responded, "No, it's for everyone."

One of my sisters asked me once, "Don't you still love Jesus? How could you do this to the Virgin Mary?" I replied, "I still love Jesus. We believe he's a prophet. There's also a chapter called Mary in the Qur'an."

Unfortunately, there are many misconceptions among Americans, including Latinos. We have to educate everyone about Islam. Muslims and Christians both honor the Virgin Mary. God exists independent of reason, but the concept of God varies by religion. Many people think that Islam is a religion of Arabs. Yet, Arabs make up less than 25 percent of the entire Muslim population.

And, of course, I found myself defending my religious beliefs to my family after the attacks of 9/11. Soon after the attacks, one of my sisters said something like, "That leader of ya'lls, he's gonna call a holy war." CNN should take a poll to find out how many Americans believe bin Laden is the Muslim leader.

My dad asked my mom, "What'd he get himself into?" They hadn't heard from me in a while so they were a little concerned. When I talked to them, I reminded my parents that Muslims are not a gang of fifty members. There are over 1.2 billion Muslims in the world.

Some people act as if some Arab in Saudi Arabia has a long list of Muslims and can call anyone on the list when he wants to blow up a building. I have much sympathy for the families that were directly affected by the 9/11 tragedy. Muslims are imperfect; whereas Islam is perfect.

When I pray at a mosque, I get the opportunity to pray beside people of all races and nationalities. We don't distinguish each other by race, nationality, or social class, but only by piety. We're just Muslims. Together with a billion other Muslims, we form concentric circles around the Ka`bah in Makkah, Saudi Arabia.

I can't imagine never praying beside other Muslims again. When I pray, I know that brothers and sisters from around America are praying, too. When I embraced Islam, I joined the universal brotherhood of Islam transcends all other brotherhoods.

Muslims make up a global family that stems from unconditional love. Love towards your family is natural. A family's love is unconditional. Your true friends will also love you unconditionally.

Islam takes what's beautiful and makes it more beautiful. If you were a good son or daughter, you might be surprised when your parents say that you have become an even better son or daughter after your conversion.

I am often asked why I embraced Islam. "How does a Latino born in the middle of nowhere in Texas become a Muslim?" I am also asked about Latinos, in general. "Why are Latinos becoming Muslim?" I know that many people including my own family struggle to understand why I am now a Muslim, and I've come to better understand that coming to Islam is solely through God's guidance. His guidance is a mercy.

Only through God's mercy do Muslims appear at the right place at the right time in the lives of non-Muslims to introduce them to Islam. Only through His mercy does a non-Muslim become a Muslim.

A struggle occurs within everyone, every day, and everywhere. We struggle to attain what is most important for us. By embracing Islam, we tell Allah that He is the most important and that we are prepared to struggle to do what is right and to avoid what is wrong.

Have patience. You do not know the happiness that your Creator has in store for you. Today, I live in Central Florida with my wonderful wife and son. God willing, one day I will speak at the Valley School to tell them that I am now a Muslim and how Islam has made me a better person.

And every day I thank the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful for all His blessings. I am a Mexican-American Muslim. All praise and thanks to Allah.

Juan Galvan’s conversion story was initially published in the July/August 2002 issue of Islamic Horizons Magazine under the title “How Allah Found Me in Texas.” An updated version of his conversion story was published online at ReadingIslam.com in June 6, 2007.

Ending to a blissful moment

2009-07-07T15:58:00.003+08:00

THere will always be a time when you finally realize that the fun is over... And you feel at loss as to what to do next...
Today marks the end of my almost 2 weeks holiday...one of the longest holiday that i've had in recent years..or actually, for the past one year...

And unfortunately tomorrow i will begin my medical posting...my 4th posting..
It also marks my first anniversary since i've started working...which was 8.7.2008..exactly one year ago.

The feeling of disdain and morose befell me once more..actually, this kind of feeling has always enveloped me ever since I was a primary school.

I've never liked school..I always tend to find reason as to skip school..ever since kindergarten..and it had lasted until the end of secondary school.

The university years were not so bad, and I had actually liked going to university..with the more relaxed school and not so stringent rules. Even though during medical school, there were the frequent exams and all..but at the end of the day, what I can say is that I had enjoyed it very much and i've cherished every moment there.

And now come the working environment...The first posting was pure wreck for me..I had sort of enjoyed the paeds posting - especially the NICU part, but in general, since it was my first posting..there were so many adjustment for me..

And then the 2nd posting - which was O&G,-- oh my...That was a definite stress zone for me. None could have matched that.. With the ever pressing specialists and Medical officer - I had thought that I might have eventually had a breakdown.. but Alhamdulillah , I had actually survived..

3Rd posting was orthopaedics, which I had found to be quite enjoyful - there was both elements of surgical and medical based. The specialists were such wonderful bunch of people..what more with the ever cheerful yet sometimes moody MO;s , the posting was such an enjoyful posting...

and now...i'll be posted to MEdical...I don't know whether I can make it or not...I don't know whether I can survive the posting..what more with the upcoming Ramadhan...
YA Allah,..please give me the strength...

Pandemic..?Phase 6,...what's that?

2009-07-07T15:38:00.005+08:00

Current WHO phase of pandemic alert

Current phase of alert in the WHO global influenza preparedness plan

Pandemic preparedness

In the 2009 revision of the phase descriptions, WHO has retained the use of a six-phased approach for easy incorporation of new recommendations and approaches into existing national preparedness and response plans. The grouping and description of pandemic phases have been revised to make them easier to understand, more precise, and based upon observable phenomena. Phases 1–3 correlate with preparedness, including capacity development and response planning activities, while Phases 4–6 clearly signal the need for response and mitigation efforts. Furthermore, periods after the first pandemic wave are elaborated to facilitate post pandemic recovery activities.

The current WHO phase of pandemic alert is 6.

In nature, influenza viruses circulate continuously among animals, especially birds. Even though such viruses might theoretically develop into pandemic viruses, in Phase 1 no viruses circulating among animals have been reported to cause infections in humans.

In Phase 2 an animal influenza virus circulating among domesticated or wild animals is known to have caused infection in humans, and is therefore considered a potential pandemic threat.

In Phase 3, an animal or human-animal influenza reassortant virus has caused sporadic cases or small clusters of disease in people, but has not resulted in human-to-human transmission sufficient to sustain community-level outbreaks. Limited human-to-human transmission may occur under some circumstances, for example, when there is close contact between an infected person and an unprotected caregiver. However, limited transmission under such restricted circumstances does not indicate that the virus has gained the level of transmissibility among humans necessary to cause a pandemic.

Phase 4 is characterized by verified human-to-human transmission of an animal or human-animal influenza reassortant virus able to cause “community-level outbreaks.” The ability to cause sustained disease outbreaks in a community marks a significant upwards shift in the risk for a pandemic. Any country that suspects or has verified such an event should urgently consult with WHO so that the situation can be jointly assessed and a decision made by the affected country if implementation of a rapid pandemic containment operation is warranted. Phase 4 indicates a significant increase in risk of a pandemic but does not necessarily mean that a pandemic is a forgone conclusion.

Phase 5 is characterized by human-to-human spread of the virus into at least two countries in one WHO region. While most countries will not be affected at this stage, the declaration of Phase 5 is a strong signal that a pandemic is imminent and that the time to finalize the organization, communication, and implementation of the planned mitigation measures is short.

Phase 6, the pandemic phase, is characterized by community level outbreaks in at least one other country in a different WHO region in addition to the criteria defined in Phase 5. Designation of this phase will indicate that a global pandemic is under way.

During the post-peak period, pandemic disease levels in most countries with adequate surveillance will have dropped below peak observed levels. The post-peak period signifies that pandemic activity appears to be decreasing; however, it is uncertain if additional waves will occur and countries will need to be prepared for a second wave.

Previous pandemics have been characterized by waves of activity spread over months. Once the level of disease activity drops, a critical communications task will be to balance this information with the possibility of another wave. Pandemic waves can be separated by months and an immediate “at-ease” signal may be premature.

In the post-pandemic period, influenza disease activity will have returned to levels normally seen for seasonal influenza. It is expected that the pandemic virus will behave as a seasonal influenza A virus. At this stage, it is important to maintain surveillance and update pandemic preparedness and response plans accordingly. An intensive phase of recovery and evaluation may be required.

Oh no...It's another story of the dreaded H1N1...

2009-07-07T15:30:00.002+08:00

Novel H1N1 Flu (Swine Flu) and You

Novel H1N1 Flu

What is novel H1N1 (swine flu)?
Novel H1N1 (referred to as “swine flu” early on) is a new influenza virus causing illness in people. This new virus was first detected in people in the United States in April 2009. Other countries, including Mexico and Canada, have reported people sick with this new virus. This virus is spreading from person-to-person, probably in much the same way that regular seasonal influenza viruses spread.

Why is novel H1N1 virus sometimes called “swine flu”?
This virus was originally referred to as “swine flu” because laboratory testing showed that many of the genes in this new virus were very similar to influenza viruses that normally occur in pigs in North America. But further study has shown that this new virus is very different from what normally circulates in North American pigs. It has two genes from flu viruses that normally circulate in pigs in Europe and Asia and avian genes and human genes. Scientists call this a "quadruple reassortant" virus.

Novel H1N1 Flu in Humans

Are there human infections with novel H1N1 virus in the U.S.?
Yes. Cases of human infection with novel H1N1 influenza virus were first confirmed in the U.S. in Southern California and near Guadalupe County, Texas. The outbreak intensified rapidly from that time and more and more states have been reporting cases of illness from this virus. An updated case count of confirmed novel H1N1 flu infections in the United States is kept at http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/update.htm. CDC and local and state health agencies are working together to investigate this situation.

Is novel H1N1 virus contagious?
CDC has determined that novel H1N1 virus is contagious and is spreading from human to human. However, at this time, it is not known how easily the virus spreads between people.

What are the signs and symptoms of this virus in people?
The symptoms of novel H1N1 flu virus in people are similar to the symptoms of seasonal flu and include fever, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, headache, chills and fatigue. A significant number of people who have been infected with this virus also have reported diarrhea and vomiting. Also, like seasonal flu, severe illnesses and death has occurred as a result of illness associated with this virus.

How severe is illness associated with novel H1N1 flu virus?
It’s not known at this time how severe novel H1N1 flu virus will be in the general population. In seasonal flu, there are certain people that are at higher risk of serious flu-related complications. This includes people 65 years and older, children younger than five years old, pregnant women, and people of any age with certain chronic medical conditions. Early indications are that pregnancy and other previously recognized medical conditions that increase the risk of influenza-related complications, like asthma and diabetes, also appear to be associated with increased risk of complications from novel H1N1 virus infection as well.

One thing that appears to be different from seasonal influenza is that adults older than 64 years do not yet appear to be at increased risk of novel H1N1-related complications thus far in the outbreak. CDC is conducting laboratory studies to see if certain people might have natural immunity to this virus, depending on their age. Early reports indicate that no children and few adults younger than 60 years old have existing antibody to novel H1N1 flu virus; however, about one-third of adults older than 60 may have antibodies against this virus. It is unknown how much, if any, protection may be afforded against novel H1N1 flu by any existing antibody.

How does novel H1N1 flu compare to seasonal flu in terms of its severity and infection rates?
CDC is still learning about the severity of novel H1N1 flu virus. At this time, there is not enough information to predict how severe novel H1N1 flu outbreak will be in terms of illness and death or how it will compare with seasonal influenza.

With seasonal flu, we know that seasons vary in terms of timing, duration and severity. Seasonal influenza can cause mild to severe illness, and at times can lead to death. Each year, in the United States, on average 36,000 people die from flu-related complications and more than 200,000 people are hospitalized from flu-related causes. Of those hospitalized, 20,000 are children younger than 5 years old. Over 90% of deaths and about 60 percent of hospitalization occur in people older than 65.

So far, with novel H1N1 flu, the largest number of novel H1N1 flu confirmed and probable cases have occurred in people between the ages of 5 and 24-years-old. At this time, there are few cases and no deaths reported in people older than 64 years old, which is unusual when compared with seasonal flu. However, pregnancy and other previously recognized high risk medical conditions from seasonal influenza appear to be associated with increased risk of complications from this novel H1N1.

How does novel H1N1 virus spread?
Spread of novel H1N1 virus is thought to be happening in the same way that seasonal flu spreads. Flu viruses are spread mainly from person to person through coughing or sneezing by people with influenza. Sometimes people may become infected by touching something with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose.

How long can an infected person spread this virus to others?
At the current time, CDC believes that this virus has the same properties in terms of spread as seasonal flu viruses. With seasonal flu, studies have shown that people may be contagious from one day before they develop symptoms to up to 7 days after they get sick. Children, especially younger children, might potentially be contagious for longer periods. CDC is studying the virus and its capabilities to try to learn more and will provide more information as it becomes available.

Exposures Not Thought to Spread Novel H1N1 Flu

Can I get infected with novel H1N1 virus from eating or preparing pork?
No. Novel H1N1 viruses are not spread by food. You cannot get infected with novel HIN1 virus from eating pork or pork products. Eating properly handled and cooked pork products is safe.

Is there a risk from drinking water?
Tap water that has been treated by conventional disinfection processes does not likely pose a risk for transmission of influenza viruses. Current drinking water treatment regulations provide a high degree of protection from viruses. No research has been completed on the susceptibility of novel H1N1 flu virus to conventional drinking water treatment processes. However, recent studies have demonstrated that free chlorine levels typically used in drinking water treatment are adequate to inactivate highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza. It is likely that other influenza viruses such as novel H1N1 would also be similarly inactivated by chlorination. To date, there have been no documented human cases of influenza caused by exposure to influenza-contaminated drinking water.

Can novel H1N1 flu virus be spread through water in swimming pools, spas, water parks, interactive fountains, and other treated recreational water venues?
Influenza viruses infect the human upper respiratory tract. There has never been a documented case of influenza virus infection associated with water exposure. Recreational water that has been treated at CDC recommended disinfectant levels does not likely pose a risk for transmission of influenza viruses. No research has been completed on the susceptibility of novel H1N1 influenza virus to chlorine and other disinfectants used in swimming pools, spas, water parks, interactive fountains, and other treated recreational venues. However, recent studies have demonstrated that free chlorine levels recommended by CDC (1–3 parts per million [ppm or mg/L] for pools and 2–5 ppm for spas) are adequate to disinfect avian influenza A (H5N1) virus. It is likely that other influenza viruses such as novel H1N1 virus would also be similarly disinfected by chlorine.

Can novel H1N1 influenza virus be spread at recreational water venues outside of the water?
Yes, recreational water venues are no different than any other group setting. The spread of this novel H1N1 flu is thought to be happening in the same way that seasonal flu spreads. Flu viruses are spread mainly from person to person through coughing or sneezing of people with influenza. Sometimes people may become infected by touching something with flu viruses on it and then touching their mouth or nose.

Prevention & Treatment

What can I do to protect myself from getting sick?
There is no vaccine available right now to protect against novel H1N1 virus. There are everyday actions that can help prevent the spread of germs that cause respiratory illnesses like influenza.

Take these everyday steps to protect your health:

Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread this way.
Try to avoid close contact with sick people.
Stay home if you are sick for 7 days after your symptoms begin or until you have been symptom-free for 24 hours, whichever is longer. This is to keep from infecting others and spreading the virus further.

Other important actions that you can take are:

Follow public health advice regarding school closures, avoiding crowds and other social distancing measures.
Be prepared in case you get sick and need to stay home for a week or so; a supply of over-the-counter medicines, alcohol-based hand rubs, tissues and other related items might could be useful and help avoid the need to make trips out in public while you are sick and contagious.

What is the best way to keep from spreading the virus through coughing or sneezing?
If you are sick, limit your contact with other people as much as possible. If you are sick, stay home for 7 days after your symptoms begin or until you have been symptom-free for 24 hours, whichever is longer. Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing. Put your used tissue in the waste basket. Then, clean your hands, and do so every time you cough or sneeze.

If I have a family member at home who is sick with novel H1N1 flu, should I go to work?
Employees who are well but who have an ill family member at home with novel H1N1 flu can go to work as usual. These employees should monitor their health every day, and take everyday precautions including washing their hands often with soap and water, especially after they cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hand cleaners are also effective. If they become ill, they should notify their supervisor and stay home. Employees who have an underlying medical condition or who are pregnant should call their health care provider for advice, because they might need to receive influenza antiviral drugs to prevent illness. For more information please see General Business and Workplace Guidance for the Prevention of Novel Influenza A (H1N1) Flu in Workers.

What is the best technique for washing my hands to avoid getting the flu?
Washing your hands often will help protect you from germs. Wash with soap and water or clean with alcohol-based hand cleaner. CDC recommends that when you wash your hands -- with soap and warm water -- that you wash for 15 to 20 seconds. When soap and water are not available, alcohol-based disposable hand wipes or gel sanitizers may be used. You can find them in most supermarkets and drugstores. If using gel, rub your hands until the gel is dry. The gel doesn't need water to work; the alcohol in it kills the germs on your hands.

What should I do if I get sick?
If you live in areas where people have been identified with novel H1N1 flu and become ill with influenza-like symptoms, including fever, body aches, runny or stuffy nose, sore throat, nausea, or vomiting or diarrhea, you should stay home and avoid contact with other people. Staying at home means that you should not leave your home except to seek medical care. This means avoiding normal activities, including work, school, travel, shopping, social events, and public gatherings

If you have severe illness or you are at high risk for flu complications, contact your health care provider or seek medical care. Your health care provider will determine whether flu testing or treatment is needed

If you become ill and experience any of the following warning signs, seek emergency medical care.

In children, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:

Fast breathing or trouble breathing
Bluish or gray skin color
Not drinking enough fluids
Severe or persistent vomiting
Not waking up or not interacting
Being so irritable that the child does not want to be held
Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough

In adults, emergency warning signs that need urgent medical attention include:

Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
Pain or pressure in the chest or abdomen
Sudden dizziness
Confusion
Severe or persistent vomiting
Flu-like symptoms improve but then return with fever and worse cough

Are there medicines to treat novel H1N1 infection?
Yes. CDC recommends the use of oseltamivir or zanamivir for the treatment and/or prevention of infection with novel H1N1 flu virus. Antiviral drugs are prescription medicines (pills, liquid or an inhaled powder) that fight against the flu by keeping flu viruses from reproducing in your body. If you get sick, antiviral drugs can make your illness milder and make you feel better faster. They may also prevent serious flu complications. During the current outbreak, the priority use for influenza antiviral drugs during is to treat severe influenza illness.

Contamination & Cleaning

How long can influenza virus remain viable on objects (such as books and doorknobs)?
Studies have shown that influenza virus can survive on environmental surfaces and can infect a person for up to 2-8 hours after being deposited on the surface.

What kills influenza virus?
Influenza virus is destroyed by heat (167-212°F [75-100°C]). In addition, several chemical germicides, including chlorine, hydrogen peroxide, detergents (soap), iodophors (iodine-based antiseptics), and alcohols are effective against human influenza viruses if used in proper concentration for a sufficient length of time. For example, wipes or gels with alcohol in them can be used to clean hands. The gels should be rubbed into hands until they are dry.

What surfaces are most likely to be sources of contamination?
Germs can be spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth. Droplets from a cough or sneeze of an infected person move through the air. Germs can be spread when a person touches respiratory droplets from another person on a surface like a desk, for example, and then touches their own eyes, mouth or nose before washing their hands.

How should waste disposal be handled to prevent the spread of influenza virus?
To prevent the spread of influenza virus, it is recommended that tissues and other disposable items used by an infected person be thrown in the trash. Additionally, persons should wash their hands with soap and water after touching used tissues and similar waste.

What household cleaning should be done to prevent the spread of influenza virus?
To prevent the spread of influenza virus it is important to keep surfaces (especially bedside tables, surfaces in the bathroom, kitchen counters and toys for children) clean by wiping them down with a household disinfectant according to directions on the product label.

How should linens, eating utensils and dishes of persons infected with influenza virus be handled?
Linens, eating utensils, and dishes belonging to those who are sick do not need to be cleaned separately, but importantly these items should not be shared without washing thoroughly first.
Linens (such as bed sheets and towels) should be washed by using household laundry soap and tumbled dry on a hot setting. Individuals should avoid “hugging” laundry prior to washing it to prevent contaminating themselves. Individuals should wash their hands with soap and water or alcohol-based hand rub immediately after handling dirty laundry.

Eating utensils should be washed either in a dishwasher or by hand with water and soap.

Response & Investigation

What is CDC doing in response to the outbreak?
The agency’s goals are to reduce transmission and illness severity, and provide information to help health care providers, public health officials and the public address the challenges posed by the new virus. CDC is working with state and local health departments to enhance surveillance in the United States and to collect and analyze data to assess the impact of the virus and determine the groups at increased risk of complications. In addition, CDC continues to issue new and updated interim guidance for clinicians, public health professionals and the public for the prevention and treatment of this new virus.

To expand the national and international laboratory capacity for detecting novel H1N1 influenza, CDC has developed and distributed new influenza diagnostic kits and reagents to more than 350 laboratories, including laboratories in 131 countries. CDC’s Division of the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) continues to send antiviral drugs, personal protective equipment, and respiratory protection devices to all 50 states and U.S. territories to help them respond to the outbreak.

The U.S. Government also is aggressively taking early steps in the process to manufacture a novel H1N1 influenza vaccine, working closely with manufacturing. CDC has isolated the new H1N1 virus, made a candidate vaccine virus that can be used to create vaccine, and has provided this virus to industry so they can begin scaling up for production of a vaccine, if necessary.

What epidemiological investigations are taking place in response to the recent outbreak?
CDC works very closely with state and local officials in areas where human cases of new H1N1 flu infections have been identified. CDC has deployed staff to several states to assist with the investigation of the impact of the novel H1N1 influenza, including the assessment of the severity of illness, how easily the virus spreads, and the amount of time people may be infectious. In states where EpiAid teams have been deployed, many epidemiological activities are taking place or planned including:

Active surveillance in the counties where infections in humans have been identified;
Studies of health care workers who were exposed to patients infected with the virus to see if they became infected;
Studies of households and other contacts of people who were confirmed to have been infected to see if they became infected; and
Study to see how long a person with the virus infection sheds the virus.

*Note: Much of the information in this document is based on studies and past experience with seasonal (human) influenza. CDC believes the information applies to novel H1N1 (swine) viruses as well, but studies on this virus are ongoing to learn more about its characteristics. This document will be updated as new information becomes available.

http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/qa.htm

Help...i'm feeling feverish...

2009-07-07T15:12:00.003+08:00

the virus...up close and personal

aedes albopictus

Chikungunya

Written by Dr. Kamarul Imran Musa

Wednesday, 31 December 2008

source (WHO)

Key facts

Chikungunya is a viral disease that is spread by mosquitoes. It causes fever and severe joint pain. Other symptoms include muscle pain, headache, nausea, fatigue and rash.
The disease shares some clinical signs with dengue, and can be misdiagnosed in areas where dengue is common.
There is no cure for the disease. Treatment is focused on relieving the symptoms.
The proximity of mosquito breeding sites to human habitation is a significant risk factor for chikungunya.
The disease occurs in Africa, Asia and the Indian subcontinent. In recent decades mosquito vectors of chikungunya have spread to Europe and the Americas. In 2007, disease transmission was reported for the first time in Europe, in a localized outbreak in north-eastern Italy.

Chikungunya is a mosquito-borne viral disease first described during an outbreak in southern Tanzania in 1952. It is an alphavirus of the family Togaviridae. The name ‘chikungunya’ derives from a root verb in the Kimakonde language, meaning "to become contorted" and describes the stooped appearance of sufferers with joint pain.

Signs and symptoms

Chikungunya is characterized by an abrupt onset of fever frequently accompanied by joint pain. Other common signs and symptoms include muscle pain, headache, nausea, fatigue and rash. The joint pain is often very debilitating, but usually ends within a few days or weeks. Most patients recover fully, but in some cases joint pain may persist for several months, or even years. Occasional cases of eye, neurological and heart complications have been reported, as well as gastrointestinal complaints. Serious complications are not common, but in older people, the disease can contribute to the cause of death. Often symptoms in infected individuals are mild and the infection may go unrecognized, or be misdiagnosed in areas where dengue occurs.

Transmission

The virus is transmitted from human to human by the bites of infected female mosquitoes. Most commonly, the mosquitoes involved are Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, two species which can also transmit other mosquito-borne viruses, including dengue. These mosquitoes can be found biting throughout daylight hours, although there may be peaks of activity in the early morning and late afternoon. Both species are found biting outdoors, but Ae. aegypti will also readily feed indoors.

After the bite of an infected mosquito, onset of illness occurs usually between four and eight days but can range from two to 12 days.

Diagnosis

Several methods can be used for diagnosis. Serological tests, such as enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA), may confirm the presence of IgM and IgG anti-chikungunya antibodies. IgM antibody levels are highest three to five weeks after the onset of illness and persist for about two months. The virus may be isolated from the blood during the first few days of infection. Various reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction (RT–PCR) methods are available but are of variable sensitivity. Some are suited to clinical diagnosis. RT–PCR products from clinical samples may also be used for genotyping of the virus, allowing comparisons with virus samples from various geographical sources.

Mardhatillah....

2009-07-05T23:15:00.005+08:00

today i met someone who had touched my heart deeply. We have never met before...never once have i set my eyes on her...but Allah has granted me to encounter her today...

She is a quiet person...but from her face, you can tell that she holds one thousand and one stories. Her eyes, warm and round.

She had been involved in a tragic accident a few weeks ago..Alhamdulillah she was unhurt, lest for a few cuts. She saw a white light at the time, as her vehicle had flipped over. The quran which was sitting on the glove comparment, was unscathed.

That incident had changed her a lot. She has been a very religious person before this, but this time around, it had caused her to change much more.

Since then, she became much more quieter. Much more to think about and ponder..

Her words touched me..as i sat next to her, listeing to her advice.
She had asked me..."what is your matlamat in life?"

I became quiet..and responded to her after much pause...

My quest in life is to seek for Allah's pleasure. To follow the footsteps of the beloved Prophet. To make sure that each second, each breath that I take is to fulfill this honored quest...

I cried softly..as I realized that this is not so...My life right now does not reflect of which I seek..May Allah show me the way...

2009-07-01T16:33:00.007+08:00

the recent death of fellow brother michael jackson actually affected me in a way. I know it sounds absolutely silly..but the thing is, before this, i was very much infatuated with music before i came to know of a thing called " tarbiyyah"..

When the stories of michael jackson became a neverending saga and constantly bombard the ever hungry media..i was also strewn into the story.

Alas, I was reminded of the yesteryear where music and entertainment was an integral part of my life.

I was very much alert in the music scene as I was an adamant listener to the HItz.fm and an avid reader of Galaxie.
There were humongous collections of posters of which we would get when you buy the entertainment magazines.
My hobbies also include visiting the bookstore whereby I would be surrounded the few inches thick novels..my taste of books were of various genres. From mystery, adventure, epic novels and also high school stories. Mind you, i was only in secondary school at the time. The prolific authors of which I was sought after were Frederic Forsythe, JOhn Grisham,and of course J.R.R Tolkien...
My ultimate favorite book of all time, ( in terms of fiction, that is) is the Lord of the Rings.

At school also, there were endless of discussions regarding artistes and their music -- most notably at the time, the Spice girls,backstreet boys and Oasis.

And I was..a very huge fan of oasis, whom I considered at the time to be one of the greatest band.

..............Yet, Allah has it planned that I soon discovered something much more meaning in my life...Something that became the reason for living...

I discovered Allah...I discovered that loving Allah is something that surpass all in this world. There is no greather nikmah in this world than having to know Islam...and I praise Allah that He has chosen me to this path...And I Pray to Allah that He would always guide me to be in the straight path so that I may be placed in Jannatul Firdaus

Popular culture

2009-07-01T11:22:00.007+08:00

We are at the age where the pop culture dominates..as a youth living in today's generation, we are constantly being bombarded with neverending interjections by the mass media propogating this kind of lifestyle....

Popular culture (commonly abbreviated as pop culture) is the totality of distinct memes, ideas, perspectives, and attitudes that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture. Heavily influenced by mass media (at least from the early 20th century onward) and perpetuated by that culture's vernacular language, this collection of ideas permeates the everyday lives of the society. Popular culture is often viewed as being trivial and "dumbed-down" in order to find consensual acceptance throughout the mainstream. As a result of this perception, it comes under heavy criticism from various scientific and non-mainstream sources (most notably religious groups and countercultural groups) which deem it superficial, consumerist, sensationalist and corrupted.^[1]^[2]^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]^[7]^[8]^[9]

It is manifest in preferences and acceptance or rejection of features in such various subjects as cooking, clothing, consumption, and the many facets of entertainment such as sports, music, film, and literature. Popular culture often contrasts with the more exclusive, even elitist "high culture",^[10] that is, the culture of ruling social groups, and the low or folk culture of the lower classes.^[11] The earliest use of "popular" in English was during the fifteenth century in law and politics, meaning "low", "base", "vulgar", and "of the common people"; from the late eighteenth century it began to mean "widespread" and gain in positive connotation. (Williams 1985). "Culture" has been used since the 1950s to refer to various subgroups of society, with emphasis on cultural differences.^[12]

Definitions

Defining 'popular' and 'culture', which are essentially contested concepts, is complicated with multiple competing definitions of popular culture. John Storey, in Cultural Theory and Popular Culture, discusses six definitions. The quantitative definition, of culture has the problem that much "high" culture (e.g. television dramatisations of Jane Austen) is widely favoured. "Pop culture" is also defined as the culture that is "left over" when we have decided what "high culture" is. However, many works straddle or cross the boundaries e.g. Shakespeare, Dickens, Puccini-Verdi-Pavarotti- Nessun Dorma. Storey draws attention to the forces and relations which sustain this difference such as the educational system.

A third definition equates pop culture with Mass Culture. This is seen as a commercial culture, mass produced for mass consumption. From a Western European perspective, this may be compared to American culture. Alternatively, "pop culture" can be defined as an "authentic" culture of the people, but this can be problematic because there are many ways of defining the "people." Storey argues that there is a political dimension to popular culture; neo-Gramscian hegemony theory "... sees popular culture as a site of struggle between the 'resistance' of subordinate groups in society and the forces of 'incorporation' operating in the interests of dominant groups in society." A postmodernism approach to popular culture would "no longer recognise the distinction between high and popular culture'

Storey emphasises that popular culture emerges from the urbanisation of the industrial revolution, which identifies the term with the usual definitions of 'mass culture'. Studies of Shakespeare (by Weimann, Barber or Bristol, for example) locate much of the characteristic vitality of his drama in its participation in Renaissance popular culture, while contemporary practitioners like Dario Fo and John McGrath use popular culture in its Gramscian sense that includes ancient folk traditions (the commedia dell'arte for example).

Popular culture changes constantly and occurs uniquely in place and time. It forms currents and eddies, and represents a complex of mutually-interdependent perspectives and values that influence society and its institutions in various ways. For example, certain currents of pop culture may originate from, (or diverge into) a subculture, representing perspectives with which the mainstream popular culture has only limited familiarity. Items of popular culture most typically appeal to a broad spectrum of the public.

Institutional propagation

Popular culture and the mass media have a symbiotic relationship: each depends on the other in an intimate collaboration."

—K. Turner (1984), p.4^[13]

The news media mines the work of scientists and scholars and conveys it to the general public, often emphasizing elements that have inherent appeal or the power to amaze. For instance, giant pandas (a species in remote Chinese woodlands) have become well-known items of popular culture; parasitic worms, though of greater practical importance, have not. Both scholarly facts and news stories get modified through popular transmission, often to the point of outright falsehoods.

Hannah Arendt's 1961 essay "The Crisis in Culture" suggested that a "market-driven media would lead to the displacement of culture by the dictates of entertainment."^[14] Susan Sontag argues that in our culture, the most "...intelligible, persuasive values are [increasingly] drawn from the entertainment industries", which is "undermining of standards of seriousness." As a result, "tepid, the glib, and the senselessly cruel" topics are becoming the norm.^[14] Some critics argue that popular culture is “dumbing down”: "...newspapers that once ran foreign news now feature celebrity gossip, pictures of scantily dressed young ladies...television has replaced high-quality drama with gardening, cookery, and other “lifestyle” programmes...[and] reality TV and asinine soaps," to the point that people are constantly immersed in trivia about celebrity culture.^[14]

In Rosenberg and White's book Mass Culture, MacDonald argues that "Popular culture is a debased, trivial culture that voids both the deep realities (sex, death, failure, tragedy) and also the simple spontaneous pleasures. . . . The masses, debauched by several generations of this sort of thing, in turn come to demand trivial and comfortable cultural products."^[14] Van den Haag argues that "...all mass media in the end alienate people from personal experience and though appearing to offset it, intensify their moral isolation from each other, from reality and from themselves."^[15]^[14]

Critics have lamented the "... replacement of high art and authentic folk culture by tasteless industrialised artefacts produced on a mass scale in order to satisfy the lowest common denominator."^[14] This "mass culture emerged after the Second World War and have led to the concentration of mass-culture power in ever larger global media conglomerates." The popular press decreased the amount of news or information that and replaced it with entertainment or titillation that reinforces "... fears, prejudice, scapegoating processes, paranoia, and aggression."^[14]

Critics of television and film have argued that the quality of TV output has been diluted as stations relentlessly pursue "populism and ratings" by focusing on the "glitzy, the superficial, and the popular." In film, "Hollywood culture and values" are increasingly dominating film production in other countries. Hollywood films have changed from focusing on scriptwriting and dialogue to creating formulaic films which emphasize "...shock-value and superficial thrill[s]" and special effects, with themes that focus on the "...basic instincts of aggression, revenge, violence, [and] greed." The plots "...often seem simplistic, a standardised template taken from the shelf, and dialogue is minimal." The "characters are shallow and unconvincing, the dialogue is also simple, unreal, and badly constructed."^[14]

Folklore

Folklore provides a second and very different source of popular culture.^[16] In pre-industrial times, mass culture equaled folk culture. This earlier layer of culture still persists today, sometimes in the form of jokes or slang, which spread through the population by word of mouth and via the Internet. By providing a new channel for transmission, cyberspace has renewed the strength of this element of popular culture.

Although the folkloric element of popular culture engages heavily with the commercial element, the public has its own tastes and it may not embrace every cultural item sold. Moreover, beliefs and opinions about the products of commercial culture (for example: "My favorite character is SpongeBob SquarePants") spread by word-of-mouth, and become modified in the process in the same manner that folklore evolves.

Self-referentiality

Owing to the pervasive and increasingly interconnected nature of popular culture, especially its intermingling of complementary distribution sources, some cultural anthropologists literary and cultural critics have identified a large amount of intertextuality in popular culture's portrayals of itself. One commentator has suggested this self-referentiality reflects the advancing encroachment of popular culture into every realm of collective experience. "Instead of referring to the real world, much media output devotes itself to referring to other images, other narratives; self-referentiality is all-embracing, although it is rarely taken account of."^[17]

Many cultural critics have dismissed this as merely a symptom or side-effect of mass consumerism, however alternate explanations and critique have also been offered. One critic asserts that it reflects a fundamental paradox: the increase in technological and cultural sophistication, combined with an increase in superficiality and dehumanization.^[18]

Examples from American television

According to television studies scholars specializing in quality television, such as Kristin Thompson, self-referentiality in mainstream American television (especially comedy) reflects and exemplifies the type of progression characterized previously. Thompson^[19] argues shows such as The Simpsons use a "...flurry of cultural references, intentionally inconsistent characterization, and considerable self-reflexivity about television conventions and the status of the programme as a television show."^[20] Extreme examples approach a kind of thematic infinite regress wherein distinctions between art and life, commerce and critique, ridicule and homage become intractably blurred.^[18]

Long-running television series The Simpsons routinely alludes to mainstream media properties, as well as the commercial content of the show itself. In one episode, Bart complains about the crass commercialism of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade while watching television. When he turns his head away from the television, he is shown floating by as an oversized inflatable balloon. The show also invokes liberal reference to contemporary issues as depicted in the mainstream, and often merges such references with unconventional and even esoteric associations to classical and postmodernist works of literature, entertainment and art.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] See also

References

Bakhtin, M. M. and Michael Holquist, Vadim Liapunov, Kenneth Brostrom. (1981) The Dialogic Imagination: Four Essays (University of Texas Press Slavic Series). Ed. Michael Holquist. Trans. Caryl Emerson and Michael Holquist. Austin and London: University of Texas Press.
Storey, John (2006). Cultural theory and popular culture. Pearson Education. ISBN 978-0-13-197068-7
Hassabian, Anahid (1999). "Popular", Key Terms in Popular Music and Culture, eds.: Horner, Bruce and Swiss, Thomas. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishers. ISBN 0-631-21263-9.
Seabrook, John. NoBrow : the culture of marketing the marketing of culture, New York: A.A. Knopf, 2000. ISBN 0-375-40504-6
Williams, Raymond (1985). Keywords: a Vocabulary of Culture and Society. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-520469-7. Cited in Hassabian (1999).

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popular_culture"

waterdrop

2009-07-01T07:46:00.004+08:00

Subhanallah...i don't know why...but i'm very much drawn to this picture..it is just so interesting...

a day of mourning

2009-06-29T10:45:00.005+08:00

I have ended my orthopaedic posting after a 3 1/2 month stint. It was a very interesting posting, to say the least. for this posting, it was my first encounter since i've worked to deal with so many elderlies as well as to deal with many chronic illness.

I had enjoyed very much during the initial period of the posting, however, it turned a bit wayward towards the end. As you can see, it has been quite an absence since my last entry. Towards the end of my posting, I was bombarded with so many unexpected and tragic incidents, that I was left breathless.

The last of my first call oncall was horrible..but it had served a lesson to remember since it had caught me off guard.

--------------------------------------------

"Hani, are you still following the rounds up there?" called Dr Saidon, the MO first call that day.

"Yes..is there a case at ED right now?" I asked

"YUP...when you're done, go to ED okay.." and abruptly ended the conversation.

I haven't done first calls for quite some time and the thought of having to rush down to ED after the rounds did not bode well with me.

.." Oh hani, there you are...This is a 76 year old chinese lady, who came with...." Dr saidon expained the case to me and subsequently asked me to administer the sedation.

The procedure was uneventful and successful. But before long, the oxygen saturation dropped suddenly. She was also unarousable.

The medical officer was alerted and soon the ED medical officer got involved. We rushed the patient to the Rhesus room and prepared for intubation.

ECG was done stat and it showed that there was ischemic changes.
She became asystole and we proceeded with CPR. Initially , the pulse was palpable, but before long, her BP crashed down once more. Inotropes were given, but it was to no avail.

The specialist also rushed to the scene. We proceeded with resuscitation until at last , we were ordered to stop the CPR. She was then pronounced dead secondary to cardiac arrest --> heart attack

I was numb. Speechless.. I could not comprehend what was happening. It was all so sudden. So fast.

How was the family going to take this? This morning she was still alive and well. She was breathing. She was walking and talking. and now..she is so still..

Verily, to Allah we will return

The specialist broke the news to the children. They were distraught but able to accept the fact. Yet, it was not so with me.. Since I was there throughout the whole predicament, until the very last breath, I was left weary and depressed.

Allah has it planned that I was so busy that day. Cases were pouring in. One after another, to the extent that I was unable to have any time to myself to think about what had happened.

The next day after the officer hours, I finally had the think to muhasabah back regarding what had happened the previous day.

I cried that night. I cried hard. I could not fathom why it had happened to me. I felt that I could not bring myself to go to work the next morning, but I could not do that to my colleague. It would be unfair.

This profession deals with lives. There cannot be a mistake, or else people will suffer. Many a times I feel that I could not cope with the kind of stress that surrounds me.

Verily, everything that happens has been planned by Allah. Prayers are very important to deal with the unexpected outcomes and circumstances that we have to deal with. Ya Allah, please forgive us in time of err ...

Me and my left hand!!

2009-06-29T01:15:00.004+08:00

What Does Left Hand Know That Right Hand Doesn't?

Joan Arehart-Treichel

Many accomplished people have been, or are, left-handed. But left-handednessalso has another side, psychiatric research suggests.

On January 20, Barack Obama was sworn in as president of theUnited States. It was a triumphant day not just for Democrats,African Americans, and Americans who wanted a leadership change,but for left-handed Americans. The reason? Only 10 percent ofthe American population is left-handed, and Obama is one ofthis minority group.

In fact, four of the past six presidents—Gerald Ford,Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and Bill Clinton—werealso left-handed, demonstrating that in spite of the age-oldprejudice and discrimination against left-handed individuals,"lefties may have the right cerebral stuff." Moreover, manyother famous people have been, or are, left-handed—the Romangeneral Julius Caesar, the Renaissance painter Michelangelo,American novelist Mark Twain, Beatle Paul McCartney, televisionmogul Oprah Winfrey, and Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg.

Some scientific studies also attest to the positive mental aspectsof being left-handed or ambidextrous.

Two Pakistani researchers explored the effect of handednesson the intelligence level of students. The sample included anequal number of left-handed and right-handed students drawnfrom various universities in Pakistan, altogether 150 subjects.Subjects were assessed for both handedness and intelligence.The researchers found no significant difference in intelligencebetween subjects from various educational levels, but they did findthat left-handed subjects were significantly more intelligentthan right-handed subjects. Results were published in the January2007 Journal of the Indian Academy of Applied Psychology.

In a study of 250 healthy undergraduate students, ambidextrousindividuals were found to engage in more magical ideation thaneither left-handed or right-handed persons were. Such ideation,the researchers proposed, may reflect heightened creativity.Study results appeared in the January 2002 Laterality: Asymmetriesof Body, Brain, and Cognition.

Then Johns Hopkins economists determined, in a nationally representative sampleof 5,000 men and women, that left-handed college-educated menearned 15 percent more than right-handed college-educated mendid, even after possibly confounding factors such as age, race,IQ, level of education, and marital status were considered.

"Our findings are quite contrary to expectations," they acknowledgedin their study report, which was published by the National Bureau ofEconomic Research in 2006. However, they did not find the samewage differential for women in the sample.

Nonetheless, some studies reported in the psychiatric researchliterature suggest that being left-handed or ambidextrous hasanother side—that left-handed or ambidextrous personsare more likely to have certain mental disorders than right-handedpersons are. Moreover, the number of these studies, as wellas their quality, intimate that the links they have made betweenleft-handedness or ambidexterity and mental disorders are notsimply related to chance.

During the 1970s and 1980s, for instance, some studies notedwhat appeared to be an unusually large percentage of left-handedor ambidextrous people among those with autism, dyslexia, stuttering,or neurodevelopmental disorders. Much more recently, DSM-IVdevelopmental coordinational disorder (DCD), which can impairboth large and fine motor skills and make everyday activitiessuch as getting dressed, writing by hand, and participatingin sports difficult, has also been coupled with left-handedness. Inthe February 2008 Journal of Child Neurology, two Israeli scientistsreported that out of 98 children with DCD, 31 percent were left-handed,and 13 percent were ambidextrous. In the October 2008 CanadianJournal of Psychiatry, Canadian researchers reported that outof 19 children with DCD, 37 percent were left-handed.

An unusually large number of persons with schizophrenia alsoappear to be left-handed. In one study, some 400 subjects withschizophrenia, major depression with psychosis, bipolar psychosis,or no psychiatric illness were evaluated on handedness. Theschizophrenia subjects were left-handed significantly more oftenthan the other groups were, the researchers reported in theMay 1994 Journal of Abnormal Psychology.

Tyrone Cannon, Ph.D., a professor of psychiatry at the Universityof California at Los Angeles, and coworkers have since discovered,while comparing the childhood neurocognitive test results ofindividuals with schizophrenia with those of their siblingsor controls—altogether 258 subjects—that 32 percentof those with schizophrenia were left-handed, compared withonly 12 percent of their siblings and only 9 percent of the controls.These results were published in the November 2003 American Journalof Psychiatry.

Further, Clyde Francks, Ph.D., of the University of Oxford inEngland, and his team reported something intriguing in the July31, 2007, Molecular Psychiatry—that they had found a genethat increases the odds of being left-handed. The gene, dubbedLRRTMI, appears to be the first gene discovered that has aneffect on handedness. They also found that the gene might slightlyincrease the risk of developing schizophrenia.

PTSD: A View From the Left

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), too, has been coupledwith left-handedness. Two Scottish researchers—CarolynChoudhary, Ph.D., and Ronan O'Carroll, Ph.D., of the Universityof Stirling—screened a general population sample of some600 people for handedness and PTSD. They found that 11 percentof the sample was left-handed, that 9 percent of the samplemet all DSM-IV criteria for PTSD, and that significantly moreleft-handers than right-handers comprised the PTSD group. Resultswere reported in the June 2007 Journal of Traumatic Stress.

PTSD has likewise been associated with ambidexterity. A studyof some 2,500 U.S. Army veterans found that veterans who wereextremely ambidextrous (about 3 percent of the study sample)were twice as likely to have developed PTSD after combat aswere veterans who were not extremely ambidextrous. Veterans whowere extremely ambidextrous and who experienced especially highcombat exposure were nearly five times as likely to have developedPTSD after combat as were those who were not extremely ambidextrousand who experienced especially high combat exposure. Study results,published in the May 17, 2007, Psychosomatic Medicine, heldfirm even when some possibly confounding factors such as age,race, intelligence, and age at entry into the Army were considered.

But perhaps the greatest surprise is that left-handedness hasbeen linked with a mental disorder considered more psychosocialthan biological in origin—pedophilia. James Cantor, Ph.D.,an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Torontoin Canada, and colleagues found, in a study of some 400 sexualoffenders, that the odds of being left-handed were about twotimes greater among pedophiles than among sexual offenders targeting adultsas their victims. In fact, more than 30 percent of the pedophileswere left-handed, that is, three times the rate in the generalpopulation. Results were published in the August 2005 Archivesof Sexual Behavior.

Researchers Offer Theories

So, since left-handedness and ambidexterity have been linkedwith certain neurodevelopmental disorders, schizophrenia, PTSD,and pedophilia, what might that link be?

Left-handedness and ambidexterity may share some underlyingbiological origins with them, some researchers contend.

For example, Choudhary and O'Carroll do not believe that thereason why left-handed persons are more likely to develop PTSDis because they are more at risk of trauma in a right-handedworld than are right-handed people. The reason why is becausethey found no significant difference between the number of traumasexperienced by left-handed subjects and by right-handed ones. However,the researchers do suspect that the reason that left-handed individualsmay be more likely to develop PTSD is because their brains are respondingto, or processing, emotional events differently from the brainsof right-handers.

Francks suspects that the gene LRRTMI might set the stage forboth left-handedness and schizophrenia by influencing the developmentof brain asymmetry. Asymmetry is an important feature of thehuman brain, with the left side usually controlling speech andthe right side controlling emotion. In left-handers, this patternis usually reversed. Iris Sommer, M.D., Ph.D., of the Universityof Utrecht in the Netherlands, agreed with Francks. In fact, shehas found that, just as speech often originates in the rightside of the brain in left-handed persons, it is also the casefor persons with schizophrenia.

And as for why left-handed persons may be disproportionatelyrepresented among known pedophiles, Cantor believes that theanswer may lie in brain characteristics common to both conditions.

In any event, even if left-handedness and ambidexterity sharecommon biological pathways with some mental disorders, left-handedindividuals should not conclude that they will necessarily developthese mental disorders, authorities on the subject stress.

For example, regarding the finding that Francks and his colleagueshave made—that the gene that predisposes to left-handednessmay also increase the risk of schizophrenia—"People reallyshould not be concerned by this result," he said. "There aremany factors which make individuals more likely to develop schizophrenia,and the vast majority of left-handers will never develop theproblem."

As for Choudary and O'Carroll's finding that left-handers aresignificantly more at risk of PTSD, Choudhary said, "The developmentof PTSD is multi-factorially determined and incompletely understood.In this context, left-handedness seems to be an important partof the jigsaw and one previously neglected, but though apparentlyimportant, is only one determinant of who might develop PTSDfollowing trauma."

All in all, Choudhary stressed, "The majority of left-handersare not going to develop mental health problems because of their left-handedness."

Cantor agreed: "The association between left-handedness anddisease is very complex.... Being left-handed does not makea person appreciably more likely to have any given disease."

So being left-handed or ambidextrous, like virtually everythingin life, has both its pluses and minuses. And if you are left-handedor ambidextrous, why not try to capitalize on your mental strengths—say,exceptional intelligence, economic shrewdness, or creativity?Who knows, you might even become president!

Footnotes

Joan Arehart-Treichel is left-handed.

When East Meets West

2009-06-04T00:13:00.003+08:00

as a concerned malaysian, i am very much appalled by the recent trend set by our local artistes in regards to apparell.I was astonished to see that our locals have donned apparrels that have striking resemblance to the audacious Hollywood counterpart.It would not have mattered that much if not for the fact that they are dressed as scantily clad as the Westeners.There must be some sort of a guide that they must follow and we as the population must condone their actions. If it is not curbed immediately, the probabilities that it will transform into a much more serious matter is high indeed. These artistes are looked up by our impressionable youths and they should be a potrayal of a morale figure.It is not enough that many youngsters nowadays have placed high ambitions in being a performer, but to sway our future generations to (imitate them) dress and be like them is just absurd. Thus,i urge that the higher authorities should take proper incentives as to set a guideline that the artistes should beckon to ensure our Eastern values are still respected. Furthermore, the medias should not highlight these kind of behavior as to be accepted.This is not meant to be as a lashout to the fellow artistes,but just a reminder to all, that we have to be responsible for our actions and the complications that may arise from those actions.thank you.

ENVIRONMENTALIST PRODUCTS!!

2009-05-30T22:31:00.005+08:00

About Conserve

It’s not paper. It’s not cloth. Neither is it some new fancy DuPont material.
It’s recycled polyethylene bags!
CONSERVE, a non-profit organisation, using a blend of creativity, design & innovation has turned, what was once a dull environmental hazard, into a clean, funky, and fashionable material, from which have been crafted a range of appealing handbags and fashion accessories.
We don’t just stop there! With the support of the Asian Development Bank, we are currently working on a project to generate income, through the production of this material, for the less advantaged communities in Delhi.
We’re sure you and your customers are going to love this exciting new product. We hope that you, like our many other buyers, will also support our efforts to help save the environment while providing a source of income to the urban poor.

- Let us be real muslims and take care of our god given environment

Lets recycle

2009-05-28T21:33:00.002+08:00

Arts & Crafts

2009-05-28T20:52:00.005+08:00

These baskets are just too cute..

I just absolutely adore colors papers!!
currently, i'm gaga over ribbons -- the decorative types!!

mind you, most of my money are spent on craft products...

The Hijab Monologue

2009-05-24T13:38:00.002+08:00

And say to the believing women that they cast down their looks and guard their private parts and do not display their ornaments except what appears thereof, and let them wear their head-coverings over their bosoms, and not display their ornaments except to their husbands or their fathers, or the fathers of their husbands, or their sons, or the sons of their husbands, or their brothers, or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons, or their women, or those whom their right hands possess, or the male servants not having need (of women), or the children who have not attained knowledge of what is hidden of women; and let them not strike their feet so that what they hide of their ornaments may be known; and turn to Allah all of you, O believers! so that you may be successful. . (Qur'an 24:31)

******************************************************************
During my childhood years, I had spent 3 years living in the United States. Yes, I know it’s a mere speck from my already 25 years of life. Yet, that 3 years of my life was during my early teens, when I had turned from someone unaccountable to that threreof.

My family background was a simple one, to say the least. Especially in the aspect of religion. We were the average Malaysian, kelantanese family, leading the traditional – culturally influenced islam.

I myself, am a quiet person, with a heavy mouth to open , much more try to befriend others. However, Allah grants it I have had to move numerous times and had to change to many different schools. And, I have hated going to school ever since kindergarten. I have even skipped going to kindergarten for one month straight and almost everyday I would have 1001 reasons of not being able to make it to school.

But that move the United States had a great impact on me – both unwelcoming and vice versa.

When I was told the news that we had to stay to another country for years, i was too young too comprehend at the time. I was 10 years old at the time and was living in Kelantan. However, prior to moving to US, I would have to stay in Kuala Lumpur first for 6 months. That was my first move to the big city.

Coming from a small place in Kelantan, I was a bit apprehensive and reluctant to start afresh to someplace so foreign and bustling.

I have been introduced to the hijab eversince kindergarten. I was enrolled in an Islamic kindergarten, whereby it was compulsory for the students to wear one. Being still a child, I was not so compliant to it, having taking it off after school and all. But somehow, the road of hijab for me is not altogether straightforward. There are many challenges for a person to wear a hijab…

There are many reasons as to why a woman is resisting to wear a hijab..

“Saya belum sampai seru lagi lah..bila dah sampai seru, nanti saya pakai”

”Yang pentingnya hati...kadang-kadang tu yang pakai tudung tu lah yang banyak mengumpat.”

Those are some of the answers that I have encountered in regards to the hijab..There are many different more answers…but these are the most common ones
......to be continued

2009-05-20T23:56:00.002+08:00

Apakah yang dimaksudkan dengan kebahagiaan?
Mengejar cita-cita?

Ever since I was little, ambition has always been an integral part of my life. I remember that it was once a big deal to have an ambition. By the time that you were in primary school, the adults at the time would already by then instill you with having an ambition, particularly regarding occupation.

If I’m not mistaken, the most common answer at the time would be either engineer or a doctor. If you would fast forward to this time, I have not the slightest idea what it would be, even though I myself have many more siblings that are in primary school.

Our definition of an ambition is primarily targeted toward our financial security, or perhaps, security as in general. At the time, doctors and engineers ranked first as in the blue collar hierarchy. In simple words, they are equal to being rich. I really don’t know how much truth in it, since if you work in government sector, the basic salary would be pretty much the same as other government officers. The only perks for the doctors, would be the allowances, perhaps. However, do keep in your mind that the allowances, the oncalls in particular, are not worth the pounding headache that comes with it.

For an oncall, doctors are entitled to ( I’m referring to House officers only), rm 100 per call, in which you have to work from 5pm until 8 am onward plus the working hours. Imagine working from 8am until 5pm the next day without stop. In other words, you are working from (24 hours + 8 hours )  a total of 32 hours nonstop for rm 100. or rm 110 for 24 hours (weekend calls ) ..try dividing 110/24 = rm 4.50 an hour. I don’t know whether that counts as expensive labor. Once, I’ve heard a “penceramah” lamented how lowly he was paid, in which rm 50 an hour. Here, us doctors work for rm 4.50 an hour, working in stressful environment, in which in certain circumstances would have to decide a matter of life and death. Pardon me, for my uncouth remarks.

Anyway, back to my original topic, which is ambition. So, many of us would strive hard to reach these ambition of ours. Thus, we toil ourselves in order to achieve our highly esteemed endeavours. But through our journey, some of us may discover that the ambition that we set is not really the one we should be seeking for. The ambition that we have toiled for, is in fact have been a fallacy. Life’s security, is not the end of the life’s journey. Seeking happiness for our own selves by reaping in the dunya’s pleasures is not the ultimate dream.

Our ambition is much more higher than that. Our ambition is set by the All Powerful Creator.

We have to be aware of this and make this to be realized by other people. Or else, those who do not strive in this path, will continue to be deluded by the dunya’s mirage. Inadvertently, this would lead to an unpleasant end.

If we analyze our world today, or even long time ago, for that matter, the hustle bustle of our everyday life would beckon us to indulge in the day to day matter relentlessly, not letting us to engage in a deeper thought of what is really important in our life. What more if we entice ourselves in our nafs desire? Then we would definitely be strayed from the path that has been set to us by the Almighty. Our life would be reduced to making ourselves be constantly in a state of endorphin stimulated.

However, the real world is really the Hereafter…this is only a place where we toil for the sake of the Hereafter.

“Dan orang – orang kafir dan yang mendustakan ayat – ayat Kami, maka mereka akan merasakan azab yang menghinakan.

“ dan orang – orang yang berhijrah di jalan Allah, kemudian mereka terbunuh atau mati, sungguh, Allah akan memberikan kepada mereka rezeki yang baik (syurga). Dan sesungguhnya Allah adalah pemberi rezeki yang terbaik.”

In the end, it’s either syurga or the Hellfire. There is no in between.
We may know this theoretically..but is it felt by us? Do we REALIZE it? If we ask people, I would think that almost everybody would agree to this fact. Yet the problem is, the realization or the feeling is nevertheless low among us.

Many a times, we fail to inculcate this feeling towards our youths today. The system does not allow us to spend time to instill the value. The system today would only allow us to KNOW but not to FEEL. To be EDUCATED but not to be TARBIYYAH”ed or TRAINED. To be AMBITIOUS but only for certain aspect..

Wallahu’alam…

2009-05-20T23:41:00.002+08:00

Time sure flies by …

It seems like it has been just recently that I first entered the university days, upon my first footsteps to the Matrics. Yet, it has been almost 8 years ago since those memorable years of my life.

Do you still remember when you first entered the university? At the time, we were all full of dreams and high hopes. Idealistic. Full of expectations and anticipation.

I’ll be turning 26 this year. I don’t know whether I can say that I have fulfilled my expectations that I had previously emancipated before.

But youth is really one of the most productive years in our life. In a mere 4 years, I’ll be turning the big 3-0..What have I done so far that can be brought back to the Almighty as that I am able to enter the Jannah?

Sometimes, as I look around me..there are so many things going on..so many people..with so many different stories to tell..

But inreality..there is only one outcome – one golden dream à To seek out Allah’s redha and subsequently enter the heaven.

Yet, these surrounding of ours are a delusion, a mirage of hedonistic’s pleasure.

Many a time, our life is not driven by the wants and feeling of needing to seek out Allah’s pleasure.

What is our motive in deciding our decision everyday? What is our guiding principles in foretelling our happiness?

Is it enough that at the end of the day, we are able to go back early from work and able to see our family?

Is it enough that we are able to eat our meals, without going hungry? Or able to go out to watch the movies and hang out with our friends? Or spend the day at a nice cozy place so that our minds would be relaxed?

However, there are some people with a vision , who intends to seek out a higher place, to constantly improve their position – interms of their role – in can either be the formal postion in the workplace, or simply the society. Some of these people, do not need a special recognizition for their work.

Many of us would like to seek out a higher position, because of the monetary benefits that one is entitled to. It can also be due to the extra time that one is able to spend once they go to the next level. Reduced in working hours, yet there is increment of pay. But with higher level, comes higher responsibility.

Despite all this, there exists some individuals who work without the reason of monetary benefits or the extra allowance. They work because of their belief.

These individuals are a godsend for us actually. Many of us fall prey to the neverending propagandas of a few enemies that have certain agendas.

It is saddening to see the current phenomenon that is invading our youths. So much emphasis is being put on to become a highly commercial individual.

One needs to be able to sing,dance, physically attractive, socialize, cool and what not. They also put a prize on how much grade A’s that you are able to score. Yet, the portrayal of good morale is beckoned, pushed further out from the limelight.

Morality, visionaries, iman, hardwork, belief ..all these are not enforced and inculcated into our current trend. Lest, we are left with the feeling of self worthy , wearily dissolving ourself into self absorbed individuals who are unable to empathize with others, except for our own self and our own family.

We are living our lives as if we are not dying. We are being deluded that since we are still young , we are to live our life as we want. Slowly, we are crossing away from the path of Rasulullah and the sahabah..from the guiding principles of the Quran.

Al Lail

Demi Malam apabila menutupi (cahaya siang)

Demi siang apabila terang –benderang

Demi penciptaan laki-laki dan perempuan

Sungguh, usahamu memang beraneka macam

Maka barangsiapa memberikan (hartanya di jalan Allah) dan bertakwa

Dan membenarkan (adanya pahala) yang terbaik (syurga)

Maka akan Kami mudahkan baginya jalan menuju kemudahan ( kebahagiaan)

Dan adapun orang yang kikir dan merasa dirinya cukup (tidak perlu pertolongan Allah)

Serta mendustakan (pahala) yang terbaik

Maka akan Kami mudahkan baginya jalan menuju kesukaran ( kesengsaraan)

Dan hartanya tidak bermanfaat baginya apabila dia telah binasa

Sesungguhnya Kamilah yang memberi petunjuk

Dan sesungguhnya milik Kamilah akhirat dan dunia itu

Maka Aku memperingatkan kamu dengan neraka yang menyala –nyala….(1 – 14)

Dan akan dijauhkan darinhya (neraka) orang yang paling bertakwa

Yang menginfakkan hartanya ( di jalan Allah) untuk membersihkan dirinya

Dan tidak ada seorang pun memberikan suatu nikmat padanya yang harus dibalasnya

Tetapi (dia memberikan) itu semata-mata) kerana mencari keredaan Tuhannya Yang Maha Tinggi

Dan nescaya kelak dia akan mendapat kesenangan ( yang sempurna) ( 26 – 21)

Drill it to the bone..

2009-05-19T18:59:00.005+08:00

There's always a first time for everything. I had just finished my oncall today. As i was 2nd call, my calls were that of being involved in the operating room. The last case finished at 4.30 am today. Finallly, I had managed to actually insert a tibial pin for a patient with a closed fracture of right femur. My medical officer was patient enough as to stoodby and observe the procedure even though she was unquestionably exhausted.
I had feared for this moment, to tell you the truth. The thought of drilling a pin through someone's bone is not something that is enjoyable to do, to say the least. What more if i have not even observed this kind of procedure.
previously, during medical school, it was such a horrible thought to even do a venepuncture to a person, what more to insert a branula. But ever since working as a house officer, there are so many unimaginable things that we are expected to do. Even more so when you are posted to a posting that is surgical based - namely in orthopaedics, wehreby you have to do all the invasive procedures - incision and drainage, amputations and all the screw fixationan and plating.

But one thing that i realized about the human body, is that it has so many similarities to that of a machine. The only thing is that 'we are a living' machine, with the ability to think and feel.
I mean, like a machine, when we have a broken bone, there are many instances that it is still fixable, such as manipulating the fracture or inserting a wire, or fixing with a screw and plate. It is quite amazing to actually know that our bones can be fixed with a screw or a plate.

With that in mind, it just makes you realize that we are actually a living machine --> and machines are built with a purpose...for the creator..
And what about us? THat means that we are in fact built for a reason and we have a higher subordinate to follow to...