The Heavy White Coat

"Everyone of us has a cemetery in his name. Where he buries the patient he has killed either by ignorance or negligence. So if you don't know, say "I don't know" and don't kill patients. Because you are going to be asked one day about each patient we lay our hands on. This is the first thing we'll be asked about. Because we are responsible for them. So please, I hope everyone of us will have a very few number, or not at all, in his cemetery.


The other thing, always remember that this white coat is a very heavy coat. Full of responsibilities, full of duties. So I hope that everyone of us who has this white coat will deserve to have it. Thank you."

Dr. Sherif Soubhy Fam
Consultant paediatrician
Vice director of Imbaba Fever Hospital, Cairo

Sharp points for a reality-infused day at the Fever Hospital. We went there for our fourth visit in Community Medicine round and I suppose it was the best visit so far, the most informative with Dr. Sherif showing us the ropes around the uniquely designed hospital.

I can vouch that paediatricians are gentle people with soft-spoken words with students, patients and staffs alike. One of my favourite traits about him is that he walks long paced and real fast, unlike the lagging Malaysians behind him. I hope that taught us a lesson to value time more and stop wasting time drawling on the road, duh.

Oh oh, spot Roy!

The Fever Hospital is actually a compound of houses horizontally spread out to minimize cross-infection. The departments are allocated by diseases and not by surgical or medical means.

"Our average number of outpatients is 1500 patients per day. But it depends on the season. On 2nd October 1982, we had 5000 patients. It was hectic and terrible, I can't forget."

Respect and Insubordination

Earlier on, Dr. Sherif told us about the problem with implementing some of the crucial policies for infection control is because of insubordination.

"Yet doctors are the worst people to obey rules. They think they are superbionic. They think they know everything. They are fighters, opposers of everything. And by knowledge, they can fight everything."

Which I believe applies to every rule-breaking occasions in this world. When you think you're on top of the world, you'll disregard whatever God is saying. When you think you know everything, you'll look down on everyone else hence the lack of respect in this world and what more tolerance to other people.

There were times when we respectfully disagree with a senior or an elder (what more among us peers?), where no childish name-callings involved. Times when we agree to disagree. I have always been the person to defy people older than me, but we still live happily because we value the relationship and respect we have for each other. I'm seeing less of that nowadays and daily prayed I'm not one of the contributors for the flaws I see.

I am not against ego, but I believe we should all have an accurately sized one.