3-year compulsory public service

When i first saw the news on tele, i was relieved that I actually came back last year and don't have to go through this compulsory service. Having said that, I'm now working in public sector and compulsory or not, I'll be staying atleast for a while still!

Anyway, this piece of news is probably bad news for some; particularly if money is your top priority. But it is good news to me and those involved in clinical pharmacy. Just imagine... at the moment there are 7 clinical pharmacists at HUKM and we're only covering the medical wards. But with all the new pharmacists we'll be able to venture out into surgical, orthopedic, paeds and others. Then, the seniors can actually specialise in their field properly (ie with formal recognitions) and we can be on par with the developed world.

But that's only my vision. So far, I've been told that we're not taking these soon-to-be compulsory pharmacists since there's not enough budget for it. (Though I'm sure that the government have thought of increasing the budget when they come out with this idea!). So, now it's just wait-and-see since I'm not in the position to do anything :(

Oh, and there's another problem. To be recognised in clinical pharmacy it is preferable to have a postgrad qualification in the field. BUT, the rule here is a bit funny... if you leave the hospital/public sector you won't be able to come back in. Then how are people interested in clinical pharmacy going to get this qualification? The only way is by doing it part-time while working over two years (it's hard work, believe me!)but even that, you have to pay for yourself. I'm so grateful that I did my clinical in the UK where the hospital actually paid for me!! This is normal in the UK as it is part of professional development and they also see it as investment. How do we see it here??

http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v3/news.php?id=5494

Happy Birthday shuey!

I went to BSC for the first time today (since canny ong's case) for shue's birthday celebration. Since it was an all-girl party (oppss... plus a guy.. sorry mr dexter!), car-parking and safety were hot topics when somebody suggested for us to go to BSC. But since BSC's chili's is much better compared to those in KLCC or Megamall, we decided to just get on with it but promised to park our cars near to each other (although we didn't actually stick to the plan anyway).

Surprisingly, something actually change after the incident. First, the car park was actually brighter than before eventhough it was almost 10pm when we left. Then, there were more securities AND we figured out that the CCTVs were actually working. Not bad eh? But it is sad to know that somebody had to be sacrificed (raped and killed!) before they bothered to improve the security :(

time flies!

Wow...I've not written for a while already. So many things to write about...so little time... Am going to play badminton with my collegues now. Promise to write again soon!

how well is 'well'?

I was invited to a very interesting discussion group at Nikko today. It was actually a focus group to discuss about wellness and quality of life, a project carried out by UKM for the Ministry of Science. Technology and Environment. The purpose of this focus group is for them to know what is our ie 'the public' perception of the word 'wellness', what factors do we think important to achieve 'wellness' and how do we rate our 'wellness' now compared to 6 months ago ..(wow, so many 'wellness' in the sentence, i feel like a psychologist now!) The information gathered from these focus groups will be used to set up parameters in quantifying and subsequently improving quality of life for Malaysians. That actually reminds me of my pharmacoeconomics days at uni. (QALY = quality adjusted life year??)

Anyway, it was for group age 20-39 today and it was really a good mix of people with different and interesting (or shall i say controversial?)ideas. One person that need special mentioning here is a guy from PERKESO who spoke like a newsreader with perfect BM. He actually said 'menonton televisyen' ! What is wrong with 'tengok TV?' It is only a discussion group for god's sake! He really made me feel so BM-inadequent.. *sigh*

OK.. change topic. I just finished watching ALIAS...my favourite show for the time being. Although I already watched the show in the UK before, I still follow every episode here... how sad is that? Today was the last of the first season, I really hope TV3 will continue with the 2nd season next week... Can't get enough of michael vartan (eh, did he drowned and died just now??).

Thanks to blogspot

I've always wonder before what can i do to clear out the cluttered brain of mine. Writing a diary is now soo old-fashioned. Thanks to a friend, I now found this wonderful blog and it's all MINE!

Here we go...