Don't force your kids to become doctor

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious and Merciful

Few weeks back I posted one of my concerns regarding modern parents in my twitter account, and looking at the comments, I can see mixed response concerning the issue that I posted.

“Modern parents please tell this to your kids. Doctor is not a secure job anymore in Malaysia. Tak ada lagi istilah, lepas habis medical school terus start kerja jadi doktor. The trend now is ada yang menganggur almost a year after getting the MBBS. -Dr Ahmad Khairul-

Some of the comments, accused me of trying to demotivate our students from pursuing degree in medicine, some accused me of talking b***s***. Nevertheless, there are others who agreed and understand the message I’m trying to say to current day parents and students.

First of all, I just want to clarify that I have no intention to discourage anyone from pursuing their dream to become a doctor. If you really have the strong desire to become a doctor and ready to face all the challenges during the journey, you are more than welcome to join the healthcare profession. However, if you feel ‘goyang’ after read my statement, I pray hard that God will guide you my friend.

During my childhood time about 20 years ago (I’m 30 years old this year BTW), we always get this kind of advice from our parents, teachers, aunties and uncles in the family, “jadilah doktor, lepas habis belajar senang terus dapat kerja kerajaan, gaji pun boleh tahan” or “ambillah Engineering, senang cari kerja, gaji besar” . Doctor was considered as one of the glamorous professions during that time (and today also I think?).  Those advices might be relevant during that time, but I don’t think it is equally relevant in our current day setting. This is the reality in our country nowadays either you like it or not.

P2S1: Medical Competency Exam (2)

For PS21 the college gave us one week study break before the exam, but depends on your last postings if the faculty in charge conducts the end posting exam earlier, you can get extra one week of study break. For the P2S1 exam there are 2 components, theory part which comprises the 120 MCQ questions and 5 Modified Essay Questions, and for the clinical part it comprises 10 OSCE stations and 1 long case.

Day 1, we sat for the MEQ papers which cover 5 subjects, Medicine, Surgery, OBG, Pediatric, and Community Medicine. For each subject there are 5 parts and the format is, they will project the questions using PowerPoint slide on the white screen in the hall and you have to answer the questions within the time limit of 5-7 minutes. When the time is up, the slide will change automatically and you have to put your answer paper for that part in a box and use a new paper for the second part of the question, in other words you cannot change your answer once the slide has changed.

Day 2, we had the 120 MCQ questions. We have to sit for a period of 2 hours answering 120 MCQ questions that cover all subjects from medicine, surgery, OBG, pediatric, orthopedic, psychiatry, ENT, ophthalmology and also community medicine, not to mention we were not allowed to go out from the hall during that 2 hours period. It was mentally and physically exhausting.

Day 3, first day of the clinical part of the exam. We start with OSCE stations. For OSCE usually it comprises either active station or passive station or it can be a combination of both active and passive. For active station, you have to perform a clinical examination skill to a patient or mannequin, and for the passive station you have to write the answer on the paper. They can give you an X-ray, ECG, a picture, partogram or even a video and you have to write down your findings and answer few questions related to the item being given. During the OSCE we probably didn’t do well in one of the stations and it is important for us not to be carried away with that and continue fresh for the next station. That is why we have to be mentally prepared for that.

The last day was our long case. Before the day of exam, I believe most of us cannot sleep well that night. So many things to cover for the long case, so many things to memorize, you will feel anxious, nauseated, palpitation and everything that will make you feel uncomfortable. At one time, I said this to myself “that’s enough, I have do my part and now I leave everything to Allah.” I went into my room took wudhu,  pray for 2 rakaats and pull myself to bed and hope when I woke up the next day, I’ll be in a positive mind and attitude. Alhamdulillah, I got a pediatric case even though I was not confident enough with the case, but the patient and his mother was very cooperative providing me with all the information that I need. When I presented the case, I tried to do it as calm as possible like I was presenting a case during our regular day, and personally I think that is the key to present a good long case for exam. I did learnt a lot from this exam, and will continue to learn more and do well in the future.

A.Khairul