Doc Ahmad Hajiri

"How do I prepare myself for Internship year?" I once asked my senior interns during the last few days of my clerkship (4th yr) in UP-PGH.  "Haha! You don't! And you can't! You only have what, 2 or 3 weeks of 'vacation' after your exams and tadaa! Internship comes without you having enough time to prepare for it!" one of them said. "Just go and attend. That's all." another intern told me matter-of-factly, followed by a solemn tap on my shoulder and a 'you-just-have-to-do-it' look into my eyes before she left.  But one of my good friends and now a full-pledged physician working in Zamboanga perhaps got the best answer to this question:  "Internship is just like Clerkship all over again. Maybe twice the length for some major departments, but it's less the stress than what you had last year in clerkship. It will be easier than you think because you have already done this before...What makes it harder is th...

Two years ago, I posted this in my FB wall: Every single day I spend in the community, I hear various cases of health problems suffered by me fellow men. Simple problems that could have been solved long time ago. And they all have the common answers when asked "why": "Wayruun siyn" (We had no money) "Way hipagsukay" (We had no means to pay for the expenses/fares) "Way Duktur " (There are no doctors) And yet, every single time I tell them that they don't have to worry for so long, for someday, some doctors would come and stay in sha Allah... they would only sadly reply: "Hisiyu ba utu' in mariy? Magluug hadja sila sin baran nila pasal wayruun mausaha diy. Misan in katan maguy magpalayu' dayn diy, hati' awn mariy?" (Who would even come here, son? They will only make themselves suffer coz they will never earn here. Even people here would want to go out and escape, so who would come here to serve?) W...