Thank you, LKY

If you have followed my blog (and if you allow me to be narcissistic enough to think that I have fans who do), you would know that I am not the die-die-must-be-doctor type of doctor. Nor do I think that being a doctor is prestigious. There is also nothing elitist about being a doctor and you know that when those property agents don't really give two hoots about you when you go kay poh at launches.

Nevertheless, I have to acknowledge that doctoring does bring to the table a stable and good paying job. Many people still think that being a doctor is a big deal and many doctors still want their children to become doctors. I have many classmates who studied medicine because their doctor parents wanted them to. There are plenty of Dr families out there where the whole clan is in the medical field one way or the other.

Unfortunately, Dr Og is the low EQ and blur like sotong (that's why I hide in my clinic write blog) type and I am totally unaware of who is who and whose lao pek is who in medicine. For some strange reasons, I have no inclination towards 关系 building. I had zero connection when applying to get into medical school. I went through medical school without ever trying to network or rub shoulders with the who and who because I was totally blur about these things. As a junior doctor, I shied away from even going for department gatherings and if I had to, I cringed every time I see junior drs try and angkat the senior doctors and HODs. When I became more senior, I often find out too late that that junior dr I just gave an earful is the son or daughter of so and so (not that it would have made a difference).

Despite my limited EQ, I think I managed ok in my career. I was judged or at least I felt I was judged by my work, and not by my background (I had none) or by who I associated with. There are of course the typical stories of how so and so got into medical school because of a certain connection and how some cannot-make-it HOs / MOs got their traineeship in those prestigious specialties because their fathers and mothers were so and so. I would be a fool to think that favourtism or cronyism do not exist in some form or another in Singapore, but at least where I have worked, it is as minimal as it can get anywhere in the world. Despite all these, there was more than enough meritocracy for us, the unconnected sons and daughters of unconnected people, to get by.

We have our founding Prime Minister, Mr Lee Kuan Yew, to thank for a system based on meritocracy. I don't think I need to belabour the points given that there have been ample broadcasts about Mr Lee's ethos in nation building. Much have been said about him. Nothing more for me to say except... Thank you!