Sunday Morning Talk

My colleague, Dr Yap giving his talk

Once a year, the hospital, as part of their marketing program as well as their responsibility for CME, would ask my colleagues and me to give a talk. The program runs monthly, and the speakers would be asked to contribute depending on the theme of the program. It would also help to put across the available services of the hospital so that the referring GP would be able to utilise what is available.

A couple of Sundays ago, I had the chance to talk about the new innovations in Haematological malignancy to the local GP at a hotel nearby. It was an all-morning affair, with myself and five other colleagues contributing to various aspects of current cancer care.

Started the morning early

Such nice weather

The turn-out was excellent, with some familiar faces of colleagues and nurses, but the bulk of the listeners were local GPs. I also met colleagues from UM in the audience.

The talks went well, but I was struck by the questions being asked during the exchanges. There was plenty of curiosity about alternative treatment for cancer, even among our GP colleagues. Some of the questions revolved around using turmeric and other traditional remedies, not only to supplement but to replace the modern modalities.

Leaving after my brunch with Anita

I was caught off Gard. On the one hand, I do not want to upset these senior members of the fraternity, but on the other, it is my responsibility to set the record straight. Quite an unexpected exchange in the end. A few raised eyebrows, even among my nurses.

Luckily, my talk was before the morning break, so I could leave early. I got a message from Anita, who was already at the hotel mall, asking me to join her for brunch, which I duly obliged. Good morning all around, since I started early to finish my ward round first thing ...