Dr. Cheah’s Pages

Sex sex sex…. too much or too little??

Looks like you can never have enough of sex. 918 men were selected in this study between 1979 and 1983. WOW! it has been more than 20 years…. and those men who were in the high orgasmic frequency group were having sex at least twice per week. I really wonder how they kept that up… They were 46-59 at the time of recruitment …. so now they should be around 66-80…. I find it hard to believe!!…. I guess in a small place like Caerphilly in the south of Wales, they have nothing else to do!!!

Also note that the test for trend between all cause mortality and frequency of orgasm were just marginally statistically significant with p values close to 0.05. In simple terms, it could be by chance that such a result is achieved.

There are more questions than answers. But it is a wonder how the media makes fallacies into facts. It is juicy for sure. Of course sex therapists will promote this…. you know even a dog does not have sex 2 or more times a week!!( I think lah.. just to stress a point for those vets who may be reading)… how many actually achieve this????? not many for sure…. business opportunity for sex therapists,perhaps….

and by the way, not many will say that marriage will be good for health.. ;-)

"Decrease waiting time" aspires Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek

Our new Health Minister started his job with the utterance of his first agenda. The waiting time. It has long been infamously known that waiting times in hospitals and clinics nationwide are way too long ranging from an hour till 4 hours at some places. His predecessor has worked to alleviate this problem to no avail. The increasing patient load does not commensurate with the workforce in healthcare. Increasing patient expectations does not go in tandem with progress in the healthcare sector. Mind you, the long waiting time is not confined to Government centers but private ones as well although the problem is more acute in public hospitals and clinics.Why? How can our Health Minister tackle this problem?

There are no easy answers but one glaring problem is manpower management. The management of human resource especially in the healthcare sector is appaling. Doctors remain overworked, underpaid and under- appreciated. Top management personnel are not in touch with the ground staff. The different categories of healthcare staff remain fragmented and totally unsynchronised. The bottomline, lack of corporate culture, profesionalism and disiplin of the top management themselves. The very thing that they propagate, they themselves lack.

We need a good management team. We should not harbour those that have proven to be fruitless. We need a total revamp of the system. One example of a poor system is that of hiring foreign doctors. These doctors are paid higher than their Malaysian counterparts. They get to choose where they wish to serve. This despite having similar qualifications and on top of that, poor command of Bahasa Melayu and even English!!! Where on earth are foreigners treated better than locals themselves. We have been suckers all this while to accept such behaviour.

The system in Malaysia is like a funnel… Pour all that water and it comes out through one hole.. Yes… top managers will individually come up with a bright idea of a programme and implementation will be by only a few groundstaff. Top managers do not familiarise themselves with the actual environment that layworkers have to endure. Their occasional meteoric rise is questionable and riddled with suspicion.

What has all this got to do with waiting time? Well , that is the least of our problems. If we want to increase productivity, we need to motivate our healthcare staff. We need a good management that can allocate human resource in needed areas and can identify problematic areas effectively. Then will waiting time decrease accordingly. We can no longer sweep dust under the carpet and assume everything is all and well. Wake up!!!

Movie Magic

Along Came Polly (eng)

Classification: 18SX

Genre:

Romantic comedy

Running Time:

1 Hour 30 Minutes

General Release:

25 March 2004

Distributed by:

United International Pictures

Starring:

Ben Stiller

Jennifer Aniston

Philip Seymour Hoffman

Debra Messing

Alec Baldwin

Hank Azaria

Bryan Brown

Director:

John Hamburg

Synopsis:

A man who’s afraid of risks (Stiller), but makes a living analysing risks, ends up getting involved in a risky romance (Aniston), cheating on his new wife (Messing), which turns his stable life upside-down.

cinemaonline

Overall a mediocre show. Ben Stiller portrays an all too familiar and monotonous character. The comedy is unimpressive and storyline uninteresting. I would give this show a 5 out of 10! Are there any good shows out there anymore??

ICQ addition

Added ICQ functionality to this website for a more instant and interactive experience!

Actually just for the fun of it!!!! :)

New Oral HIV test kits

This oral Kit tests for antibodies to HIV-1 by scraping the insides of one’s mouth. It is said to be 99.3%sensitive and 99.8% specific. This new test will omit the need for pricking one’s finger for a blood sample. It may make the test more acceptable as a screening tool. Nevertheless if the test is positive, other blood tests need to be performed to comfirm one’s HIV status.

It may be awhile before Malaysia gets its hands on this new kit. The Ministry of Health has an on going anonymous HIV screening programme aimed at encouraging the public, with risk factors, to test themselves. Unfortunately, this programme is still not well received. One possible cause is the reluctance of individuals to have contact with healthcare staff and their distrust with the system at hand. It is often seen especially by intravenous drug addicts as a “trap” set up by the Government. There also appears to be confusion among healthcare workers as to the procedure in the event one has a reactive test.

Indeed , anonymous means anonymous. One can come and go without the need to identify oneself whatever the result may be. It is hoped that by doing this, we can ascertain the severity of this HIV outbreak which is noticebly under-reported. There will be controversial opinions and conflicting ideas in this regard.

But to battle a formidable enemy, we need to size up its strengths in order to execute a successful assault. At this juncture, we appear to have lost some battles but the war is still ongoing and there is little choice but to fight till none is left standing.

New faces at the Health Ministry

At last, to our relief, Datuk Chua Jui Meng is out. We have new faces in the Health Ministry.

Minister: Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek

Deputy Minister: Datuk Dr Abdul Latiff Ahmad

Parliamentary Secretary: Lee Kah Choon

This is good news. As posted in the MMR, Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek is a medical doctor. I think this will augur well for healthcare workers. Datuk Chua Jui Meng was thinking too much as a lawyer when he was Health Minister. He even advocated the public to sue their doctors. I think this was unforgivable for a Health Minister. Datuk Chua Jui Meng’s latest obsession with traditional medicines was also mysterious and irrational.

As a doctor with the Ministry of Health, I welcome Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek. Hopefully there will be much progress under your tenureship as Health Minister. It is time that the healthcare workers work hand in hand with the Health Minister after a difficult relationship with your predecessor.

Update : Datuk Dr Chua Soi Lek is a psychiatrist by training!!… That is good isn’t it? I think we all need him badly!!

Laboratory Mix up : Is it acceptable?

Recently, a family member who is hypertensive went for a follow up visit in a private hospital in Petaling Jaya. At this visit, she was suddenly informed that she is Hepatitis B positive. She was shocked and quite speechless. The doctor then decided on a repeat test. Despite immunisation and the presence of sufficient antibodies, she was infected. She has no known risk factors. When another family member called the doctor, this doctor mentioned that it is quite unlikely to be a mistake.

This caused a lot of mental distress and sleepless nights wondering what went wrong and how to take things from here. Then the repeat result was announced today and the verdict…. a lab mixup! When the doctor was asked how such mix ups could occur? The doctor replied ” It happens!!!”.

I am very annoyed and angry. I can accept false positive results which do happen from time to time. But i cannot accept a laboratory mixup. It should not have occured. Who says such things only happen in a government hospital? The attitude of the staff in the hospital was that of complacency. It is like “what is the big deal?” kind of attitude.

An apology would suffice. But no, there was none offered. As a doctor myself, i am flabbergasted as to how a doctor could be so inhumane. Does the conferment of a specialist degree equate to an elevated status and thus the ensuing snobbish behavior? This specialist was even unhappy when I provided the same hypertensive medication to this family member for cost-saving purposes. Her attitude was, “if you think you are so smart then go see another doctor” attitude.

Nevertheless, I am relieved that the repeat HbsAg result was favorable.

Accountablility : SPR scrutinised

In the star today,

EC chief takes blame for Selangor confusion BY SIM LEOI LEOI PUTRAJAYA: Election Commission chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman has accepted responsibility for the fiasco in Selangor on polling day which prevented many from casting their votes. However, he refused to accede to demands by opposition parties, particularly the DAP, Parti Keadilan Nasional and Parti Rakyat Malaysia, that he resign. Abdul Rashid said the confusion came about because changes were made to the format of the electoral roll in Selangor and more than one polling station was set up in 56 polling districts in 16 parliamentary constituencies. ……………………

An internal investigation has been ordered by Tan Sri Rashid. Does this equate to “taking the blame”? “Taking the blame” means that something was wrong be it the SPR’s fault or otherwise. Tan Sri Rashid has mentioned that he will take responsibility for the fiasco but his subsequent actions do not reflect one that has “taken the blame”. An internal investigation as we know it, will hardly be transparent and I can bet you that it will turn out to be nothing. The proper response to ” taking the blame ” is resigning!. He made a grave error and that deprived many voters of their rights to vote. I agree with the Opposition that due to Tan Sri Rashid’s confession at this own accord, he should resign. If not many other politicians will use the term “take the blame” loosely.

For example, Kerk Kim Hock “took the blame” for losing at DAP’s stronghold in Kota Melaka. He resigned. This is taking the blame! What if the SPR’s investigations proved nothing wrong on the part of SPR?? What is the point of taking the blame?? Something obviously went wrong! What will happen then? Who will then be accountable and ensure that this will not recur!?

The SPR officials are too much like our politicians. All talk and no action. I am deeply disappointed at the conduct of SPR in this fiasco. They are ultimately responsible to ensure the voting process goes on smoothly and should not divert blame to local municipalities. They should have cleared it up before the elections began. Rather I saw Tan Sri Rashid busy with interviews in the media as if he himself was running in the election.

Read this letter sent in by a polling agent published in Malaysiakini which describes disturbing truths about the entire election process!

Landslide victory to BN… better showing for DAP

Looks like a landslide victory for Barisan Nasional. Taking back Kelantan and Terengganu must be a welcomed bonus. This sends a clear message to PAS that its Islamist policies do not go down well with voters. Both its leaders have lost including its president. Proud statements by PAS leaders that DAP is obsolete is laughable. Even “troublesome” areas eg in Perlis and Kedah, was a stroll in the park.

Nevertheless, DAP has performed extremely well as compared to the elections in 1999. They look set to be the main opposition party. All its top leaders have won except for its secretary general Kerk Kim Hock, who was surprisingly beaten in Kota Melaka. But the emergence of Lim Kit Siang and Karpal Singh unscathed is probably the gem for DAP.

A holiday perhaps???

ps… BN failed to recapture Kelantan after the recount. But by a slim margin. Perhaps in the next election!

After the vote…..

Like Penang Food? I tried Penang Village in Taman Tun Dr Ismail. Had their Nasi Lemak. Nothing great although the effort of decorating the food was evident. There was also good ambience as well. Probably worth a try!

Penang Village

No 1, Ground Floor, Jalan Rahim Kajai 13 , 60000 Taman Tun Dr. Ismail, Federal Territory

Phone: 03-7722 4288 / 03-7726 0118

Fax: 03-7725 6223 / 03-7726 0119

Email: connie@penangvillage.com.my

Opening Hours: 11.30am to 10.30am

Lunch: 11.30am to 3.00pm

Dinner: 6.00pm to 10.30pm

House Specialties:

1.Ju-Hu Caar, 2.Crispy Tofu, 3.Otak-Otak

4.Kerabu Mango,5.Nyonya Fish, 6.Curry Chicken Kapitan

7.Char Koay Teow, 8.Assam Laksa, 9.Rainbow Ice Kacang

10.Durian Chendol

Halal

Cards Accepted: • Visa • MasterCard

Being a movie buff, watched another movie. Oh man! another long movie.

Synopsis:

In Ron Howard’s latest offering, set during classic 1880s Western, Samuel Jones (Tommy Lee Jones) returns to his family after adopting a Native American identity. His daughter Maggie Gilkeson (Cate Blanchett) sends him away but is forced to seek his help when her eldest daughter is kidnapped by a group of Apache warriors.

It starred Tommy Lee Jones ( i still cannot shake the Men In Black image of him!!) and Cate Blanchett. I would not classify it Drama/Western but Suspence/Horror. There were some gory scenes here and some were “snipped off” to my relief!! The story developed slowly thus the 2 over hours long movie!!. I would rate this 6 out of 10.