Poster

My first "publication". I didn't manage to go to Gold Coast to the conference. Too costly, somebody else presented it. I have not heard from him how it went. The original looks better and had no watermark at the bottom left corner. The image above had quality reduced again and again as the original was in pdf format & I wanted the image size less than 1mb (a bit stingy I know). I'm a bit late to catch up on Maher Zain, considering he had the best selling album in Malaysia for 2010, but the flurry of facebook post on him from his recent concert back home made me check his music out, & alhmadulillah its quite good IMO. I totally relate to the lyrics and messages in his nasheeds. It's a good alternative to the music I usually listen, hopefully it helps me change my habits, and hopefully I would somehow return to dakwah & good deeds. I pray to Allah for guidance. Here is a sample (so far my fav):

Salam ramadhan

Jobs stuffs

1. From Medical Council of New Zealand:

Going overseas?

Your name will remain on the Medical Register unless: you ask for your registration to be cancelled, or you do not notify us of a reliable contact address we do not receive a response to mail sent to you from the Council office. No fee is payable to retain your name on the Register if you are not practising.

2. From Malaysian Medical Council:

Exemption from Internship

An application is accepted only if the graduate has completed internship in a foreign country to the satisfaction of the MMC Evaluation Committee. To that effect, candidates should submit relevant documents/testimonials from consultants where the rotations were done. The testimonials should state the date of commencement and completion of each posting and that the work and conduct was satisfactory.

3. and also from MMC:

Full Registration For Medical Practitioners Undergoing Housemanship Overseas:

For Malaysians - application can be submitted directly to the Council;
For Non-Malaysians - The application need to be submitted through prospective employer;
The Council’s Evaluation Committee which meets once a month will deliberate ALL application.

The application submitted need to be completed with the following documents (preferably type-written):

• Form 9 of the Medical Act for full registration application;
• Curriculum Vitae Form (CV);
• 2 passport sized photographs
• A Certified copy of Basic Medical Degree;
• A Certified copy of transcript encompassing the whole training period;
• A Certified copy of ‘Bonafide Student Certificate’ – Applicable only to graduates from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh;
• A Certified copy of Postgraduate Medical Degree, if applicable;
• A Certified copies of certificates/confirmation letters of housemanship
• A Certified certificates/letters from the hospital or respective Council which confirms the disciplines and the duration of each posting the applicant had undergone during the housemanship training;
• A Certified copy/ies of Letter/Testimonials of previous medical experience (For those who had practised overseas after completing housemanship);
• A Certified copy of Full Registration Certificate with the Medical Council he is currently registered;
• An Original Certificate or Letter of Good Standing from the Medical Council he is currently registered. (Note : Any ‘Letter of Good Standing’ obtained from an institution or an individual will not be entertained.)
• A Certified copy of Identity Card or passport;
• A RM100 processing fee by money/postal order payable to The Registrar Medical Practitioner;

From these, I have the impression that I could either cut my HO in Mesia to just 1 year or go straight to MO once I return to Mesia if I complete my HO in NZ. I need some real confirmation. Maybe tomorrow, will give MMC a ring.

Updates

Lots has happened since I climbed Mt Taranaki:

1) Got engaged.

2) abstract for the audit I did with the help of my reg for vascular surgery unit of CDHB got approved for publish in Vascular conference. Now I got 2 months to prep a poster of the audit to be presented in the conference. Should I go to Gold Coast to present?

3) Only 4 months to go in Christchurch

4) Passed my SPA interview

5) Currently waiting for 2nd match in ACE (job placement in NZ) which will happens at end of August.

6) Not sure whether I'll be staying in NZ actually. Starting to really miss home, & I dunno if I can take another year, especially if I get posted somewhere rural where I hardly know anyone.

7) Need to check whether NZMA registration will be legit after several years of non-practice in NZ

8) Alhamdulillah, Ramadhan is only 11-12 days away.

Conquered Mt Taranaki

I did it. The whole 2548m of Mt Taranaki climbed in 4 hours yesterday. I couldn't believe it. Half-an-hour into the climb I was already knackered and ready to ditch the hike. Somehow I persisted. Maybe because I saw people twice my age trying to climb which spurs me on. Also I spent $55 just to get to the foot of the mountain. Regardless, it wasn't plain sailing. Only half of the trail was formed, the other consisting of gravels and rocks. (see photo below). Those gravels were pretty annoying as they are slippery. Maybe I had improper shoe (my 5 years old Nike Cortez) but for every 2 steps up, I'll slide 1 step down. Very frustrating. And the slope is roughly 45 to 60 degrees. At the crater (Mt Taranaki is a dormant volcano), the temperature dropped dramatically. There was even snow/ice at the center of the crater. The crater lie just below the summit and at the summit, wind was blowing ice so I didn't stay long. 20 minutes most. After all that work, only 20 minutes to revel. And most of it was spent eating lunch. Getting down was also a challenge. Again the gravel proves to be an obstacle since the slipperiness can cause you to slide down uncontrollably. With sharp rocks and few hundred meters of downward slope, I took my time going down. Slow, steady but surely is the way to go. After 3.5 hours, I'm at the foot again. There were roughly 15 people who climbed the mountain that day. 2 needed rescuing. Apparently both had injured their ankle on the way down but fortunately rescue helicopter was there to pick those lucky people up. My shuttle driver said people use to die on this mountain even one of his close friend was killed there 8 years ago. Fortunately, the rescue helicopters had made a difference. According to him, to avoid mishap, always watch weather forecast and be prepared for the worst - carry warm clothing, food & water. Never delve into the mountain in treacherous weather. As you can see, it was generally fine (see bottom photo, foot of Mt Taranaki) & I didn't just go hike up the mountain nilly willy. I've googled about it, made my research and made my prep. Alhamdulillah everything went well. Will I do it again? No. Too much work :D I would rather spend my money on a helicopter ride up there. But I would climb another mountain if given another chance. It wont be long until I wont have time or energy to climb mountains anymore so take the opportunity when it comes.

Whack a kitty