The new dawn of health care

by David Milne

When I think back on our five-year journey together, it stands out as the most significant experience of my life and the very thought of trying to write a speech that would somehow do that experience justice had me terrified. And like any good medical student I resorted to the time-tested studying technique of procrastination.

But eventually with the help of the best remedy for procrastination, a fast approaching deadline, I put pen to paper and began to write about our time together.

It was definitely an exciting time; a time in which we were allowed to do all sorts of ridiculous things, which then seemed a bit out of our range. For example the pharmacists being allowed to mix TPN for as Dr. Singh would say likkle ikkle neonates, the dents pulling teeth from screaming biting children, the medics being allowed to deliver babies or the best of them all the vets delivering horses.

We learnt, we laughed, we cried but most importantly we got through it. Even against, what at times appeared to be ridiculous odds we fought on. We are some of the crazy few who look at superhuman tasks as if they were a walk in the park.

Common sense dictates that it is impractical to attempt to read an 800-page book in one day, yet many of us succeeded in doing just that with the Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine. Or taking three years of material which you never understood in the first place and learning it by heart in two days seems an improbable thing to accomplish, but just ask the dent students how they prepared for prosthodontics.

We achieved what seemed as an impossible task the night before our exams. I have no doubt that all of our lives will lead us to greater challenges in the future. Always remember what you achieved here at St. Augustine. Never forget your summit over the impossible. For it is our ability to fight on in the face of impossible tasks that will allow us to push this university, this country and the health professions as a whole into the future.

We have learnt so much over the past five years and now that it is over it is difficult to say that I feel any specific way but if I had to say just one thing I would say that I feel thankful.

Thankful most importantly to God without whom none of this would have been possible. Especially since over the last two months of our careers as students, I am sure God heard more from us than He did in the last 20 years.

Thankful for family and friends who put up with our horrendous attendance at family functions, our demands for food and clean clothing, and with us rushing them off the phone with the standard line “oh gosh man ah studyin!” Thank you for all your love and support. We could not have done it without you.

I am also thankful for all of you, my colleagues, my friends, my new family. I feel as though after what we went through together the fellowship of the ring wants nothing with us. At times it seemed as though we went to Mordor and back over and over again with a horde of Smeagols to put up with along the way.

I know that we all will cherish the memories we forged together and I look forward to the new tales we shall write as leaders in the health professions. Together dentists, pharmacists, doctors, nurses and vets, let us write the story of the new dawn of health care in this country and the region.

I would also like to thank Trinidad and Tobago. The people of this great county have afforded us a wonderful opportunity to pursue a career in the health services without having to pay a cent towards our tuition. This is a privilege that few people in the world have been granted. We will always be indebted to this country. Trinidad and Tobago on behalf of the class of 2011, thank you.

We are also thankful to The University of the West Indies. To the pioneers who started this medical school like Professor Melville, may he rest in peace. And also to those who continue to hold the torch today. To every single person who works at the university, thank you for the role you played in getting us to where we are today. We will never be able to thank you enough.

It would be unfair to mention names of specific individuals who helped us along the way, as we were fortunate to have been exposed to so many wonderful persons. However I will mention two names in order to illustrate a point.

Dr. Nyak and Dr Harrinarayan have been named for the last two years by the Trinidad and Tobago Medical Students Association as teachers of the year as voted by the graduating class. Given that we had so many amazing teachers, I wondered what set these two apart. Many of our lecturers can deliver captivating classes, provide great studying aids and go above and beyond the call. The difference with these two individuals is that in spite of teaching well over a hundred students a year, they possess a unique ability to make each and every students feel as though they are important as a person. Together they could form a sort of dream team of parenting. One was always telling us “you are all my children and I want you all to do well” and the other was always saying, “ehh ehhh boy, go an study!” But they both achieved the same result. They let us know that they care about our futures and being around them always had a lasting positive influence. It is not to say that other lecturers don’t hold similar sentiments for us, but these two gentlemen had a knack for making sure we each knew it.

I challenge all of us to follow their great example. Let your patients know you care, let them understand that you value them as human beings, and that you want the best for them. Even in the midst of crowded wards and clinics, never fail to see persons as individuals. Do not waste the opportunity to make a lasting impression. For if we all do this, it is inevitable that our patients will receive the best standard of care, and their quality of life will improve.

Let us all together go out into the health care system as leaders, aiming to make the difference in our country. Not necessarily through sweeping changes, but by the way we deal with our patients. Through our dedicated service, unwavering patience and tolerance let us together make Trinidad and Tobago a better place one patient at a time.