Category: ENT & Surgery

You are always running, probably. I know I used to. I used to always run between theatre, emergency, the ward, clinic, preoperative holding bay, recovery, etc. I need to run so I can pack more things into my day and spread myself thinly over many things.… Read more

Doctors never work alone. Patients are best served when doctors work well with allied health. I can easily list the allied health workers that ENTs work with very closely: nurses, pharmacists, audiologists, speech and language pathologists, physiotherapists, nutritionists, social workers. What about your specialty?… Read more

It takes an army of workers to make a hospital run. There are many, many unseen employees in every hospital working for the good of the patients. As doctors, we are often seen as the face of the hospital, but we know that we would not be able to work effectively without the help of so many others.… Read more

Do you have a dream? Have you got a picture of how your doctoring would look in the future? What kind of achievements? What superspecialty? What specific things you’d like to be remembered for? What your clinic would look like? What your hospital would look like?… Read more

In most of the hospitals I’ve worked in, there is often a big chasm between clinicians on the ground and hospital administration in their ivory towers. Doctors and nurses see patients. Administration see numbers. My goal is to get the patient well.… Read more

Doctors are busy, interruptible, distracted people. This weekend, go against your body rhythm. Spend 15 minutes (or longer) by yourself with no phones, internet, TV or radio. Leave the phone at home and go for a walk around the neighbourhood. Take a short train ride.… Read more

A good way to make your consulting life more interesting is to explore your patients in a different way. As doctors, we are not just students of diseases. We are students of life, for life. The more we learn about the habits and lifestyles of our patients, the more we will know how best to help them.… Read more

The modern world is a world full of distractions. Relentless TV ads, phone interruptions, mobile notifications, pagers, emails, etc all crowd our minds. Sometimes with good things, often times with unnecessary distractions. When you look through your day, are there distractions that take you away from the job at hand?… Read more

Remember that hospitals can’t function without secretaries, administration, clerks and many other desk warriors. These people hiding behind their desks and computers facilitate appointments, book operating cases, order equipments, and perform many other tasks that make our life easier. In patient care, they are an essential part of the team, but unfortunately they don’t often get a mention.… Read more

I confess this is not an easy one for me. I can go for a full day without any break, only on 3 cups of coffee and no other oral intake. Life is busy and I want to get my patients better sooner.… Read more