All Scrubbed Up

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to ALL! We're going on holiday... back in Jan!

And THIS?! Click the image to see it full size... Yowsers. Will have to wait for SA Doc's comment on this. She's still at work. I think this is two vagina lady's blog: I have two vaginas! A quote from the article, if you will... When I was dating, I'd just say, "So I have a little something to tell you." I never got any other reaction except, "Oh, my God, that's so cool," because they'd want to have sex in both sides and see what it felt like. Apparently, the right side is, well, more normal. The left side is a lot smaller. But they're both tight. That's a plus. I've got two G-spots, too, so I've always appreciated men who were extra dexterous with their fingers. I get to have two orgasms at the same time. So, who calls bullshit?

Not enough bloggers take the time to go back in the archives and rehash some of their best material... Egotistically speaking of course. But we're different. So, in case you didn't catch it the first time round - here's a quick series of posts with the REALLY funny stuff, the most viewed, the most commented, the dugg, the undugg... Welcome to Best of All Scrubbed Up! - - - - - Talkin' about foreskin More than a year ago, we started this blog with but two simple goals. Have some fun and make some statements about the South African (and international medical fraternity). What better way to start than an expose on what really matters to guys. Their... well, thingies and the end of their thingy. FORESKIN EXPOSE PART 1 - To chop or not to chop FORESKIN EXPOSE PART 2 - Revenge of the Sif. - - - - - TV Doctor Showdown... Doctors are all over the tube. They're in our face and up our proverbial skirts. And mostly... (well according to SA Doc at least)... they're a bunc...

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Welcome to the third, in an initial series of 3 guest posts by our Mpumalanga HeavyWeight... Bongi. He's witty, he's irreverant - he's a little whack. But it's all in the name of demystifying the doctor. Or not. Enjoy SUPERHERO SURGEONS - It ain't all Sex, Drugs & Rock 'n Roll! If you like Bongi's work - visit him here ! Wear a glove. Spread the love. - - - - - yes i have an alter ego. yes, i dress in funny clothes with a cap covering my head and a mask covering my face. and yes, dressed as such i try to fight the powers of evil (mainly sepsis and bleeding and cancer and the like). i am ... a superhero. but there is often little understanding for what goes on under the paper thin masks and baggy gowns we wear. certain …um…occurrences, well, occur with us just as much as with other people. a common cold behind a theatre mask is no small thing. remember you can’t blow your nose. sniffing loudly only works for a while and attracts all sorts of strange star...

What will they come up with next? I must say, I fear any surgeon more interested in the effect of his headgear than my gaping wound. Headgear #1 Headgear #2

Congratulations EmergencyEmm! Human Papilloma Virus is not rare. This guy had an immune deficiency which allowed a fairly common infection (warts) to get out of hand. An extract from the original article: After testing samples of the lesions and Dede's blood, Dr Anthony Gaspari of the University of Maryland concluded that his affliction is caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), a fairly common infection that usually causes small warts to develop on sufferers. Dede's problem is that he has a rare genetic fault that impedes his immune system, meaning his body is unable to contain the warts. The virus was therefore able to "hijack the cellular machinery of his skin cells", ordering them to produce massive amounts of the substance that caused the tree-like growths known as "cutaneous horns" on his hands and feet. Dede's counts of a key type of white blood cell are so low that Dr Gaspari initially suspected he may have the Aids virus. But tests showed he ...

This one really got to me. I don't know what it is about us mere non-doctor mortals. SA Doc giggled and said "fascinating". I almost threw up. Anyhoo. Welcome to the WHAT IS THAT COMPETITION PART #3! Guess the medical thingy in the picture and you could win an AMAZING guest post on All Scrubbed Up valued at millions of emotional dollars! So... Here we go. What is THAT?! HINT: "I've never seen anything like this in my entire career." - Dr. Gaspari

Second post (in an initial public offering - har har - of 3) by our man with the plan - BONGI ! Enjoy... I didn't. This one was particularly gross for us "mere mortals". Read more of Bongi's stuff here . - - - - - A story that i thought quite funny at the time, illustrating us macho surgeons... sigmoid volvulus . a wonderful condition which is very common in africa. not the type the textbooks talk about found in institutionalised old folk, but the type found in young black adult males. prevalence highest in uganda, decreasing as one moves south, but still pretty common in south africa. so in my registrarship, i became quite good at detorting the volvulus which is the emergency treatment in casualties. if this doesn't work or on sigmoidoscopy (siggy as we called it) if you see any questionable bowel, immediate laparotomy is performed. anyway the patient came in and had a clear sigmoid volvulus on examination and x-rays. i got the siggy ready to detort and place a ...

Ladies and Germs ... Please give a hearty, clinically clean, surgically scrubbed welcome to our first guest poster - Bongi from Other Things Amanzi ! Welcome my man... This is part of a drive to get more contributions to All Scrubbed Up. We're about a year old now and readership is growing rapidly. More content for you, our medically minded audience. This is part 1 of a 3 post series. If you like Bongi's work - TELL US! It's a fascinating insight into Mpumalanga medicine (and this time, what they wear!) - - - - - Fashion Statements sometimes we as surgeons are restricted by the most mundane of things. back in my kalafong days, more often than my first world visitors could imagine, entire theater lists would get canceled because of lack of theater attire (scrubs). this gave rise to a funny story and, indirectly to a more recent and somewhat more serious story. story one. i arrived in theater one morning in kalafong, ready and eager to operate. there were no theater pants, on...

SA DOC: Easy one? Last time I saw one of these I was a student... They're nice and rare... but GREAT to look at! (Yech! - Andy) It's a teratoma! Great definition from Wikipedia.. A teratoma is a type of neoplasm (specifically, a tumor ). The word teratoma comes from Greek and means roughly "monstrous tumor". Definitive diagnosis of a teratoma is based on its histology : a teratoma is a tumor with tissue or organ components resembling normal derivatives of all three germ layers . Rarely, not all three germ layers are identifiable. The tissues of a teratoma, although normal in themselves, may be quite different from surrounding tissues, and may be highly inappropriate, even grotesque (hence the monstrous): teratomas have been reported to contain hair , teeth , bone and very rarely more complex organs such as eyeball , torso , and hand . Usually, however, a teratoma will contain no organs but rather one or more tissues normally found in organs such as the brain, thyr...

Right. Next one! THE CASE: 24 year old female presents with a lump in her right groin. Pain. HINT: This "thing" can also occur in males. Pretty, ain't it?

Spotted on Digg recently... A young father who drank up to 15 bottles of wine a day died of cirrhosis so bad his liver had split in half, his family revealed yesterday. Steven Massey, described as a 'Jack the lad', would drink his favourite Cassini sparkling perry 'just like he was drinking pop'. The 21-year-old's death has devastated his parents and four older siblings, who hope his story will send out a shocking message about the perils of boozing. I CANNOT believe that a 21-year-old could drink themselves to death!? Where the hell were the parents? Don't you think it's disgusting that you get first world countries where people are dying from social diseases. Then I read a little further on, and this kiddie, Steven Massey, already has THREE CHILDREN! I ask again, where were the parents with the sex education (or at least a fuckin condom!). Bloody hell. Split in half is fairly melo-dramatic. I guess it was so fragile, it just kinda fell apart. Lovely. SA D...

Ladies and Germs. I'm proud to announce the winner of the first World Famous "What is THAT?" Competition - ... BONGI ! Nice one gal! SA DOC says: It's a multifibroid uterus. And yip, the story is true (some details have been changed to protect the patient). I'm not so sure why SA Surgeon (his alias) was so keen to take it out - usually gynae territory apparently. Next competition coming soon! (PS. Bongi - if you want your picture on the blog - drop your email in the a comment. AND... as a BONUS PRIZE - you get to write a guest post on SA's biggest medical blog. Keen? Drop us a line!)

So here's an idea for the medics and non-medics amoung you. Welcome to the first installation of the All Scrubbed Up "What is THAT" Competition. From time to time, we'll post something up that I've either removed during a surgery - or that we've happened on across the medical web. Your job? Tell us what it is! WARNING: The following images may not be suitable for children under the age of 16 - and squirmish males. CLUE: 42 year old woman presents with growing mass in her abdomen for three years. What is THAT? (Please post your answers as comments - winner gets... uh... their picture on the blog!) Update : ANSWER HERE !

Hell's teeth. And this!? This website, Giant Microbes . COM , is selling soft toy Microbes. Presumably either to scare the living daylights out of kids - or act as a nouveau Med Student bedroom decoration device. Freaky. But cool.

Some news! I've packed in the stethoscope & otoscope. Handed the snotty noses over to someone else. And have moved into managed healthcare . Hot damn! What a rush! It's sad to be leaving some of the patients - who I really liked. I realised the other day how much of an influence I had (all Doctors have) in some people's lives. I'll miss hearing about the progress. And when I say progress, I don't mean medical. Who got their drivers license, picked a school for their kids or got the job they'd been hunting for size months. You get close. But we must move on. Doing: A) What makes us happy B) What challenges us C) Something which allows us to make the most impact. Sometimes I felt like I was wheelspinning in General Practice. Now, I have a chance to affect the bigger picture. And that thrills me. More on the job later... Give me a while to settle in, and I'll have some controversial views as usual. I must say... It's interesting to be "on the other...

Salaam and good evenin'. We're back. All honeymooned. Fat. Tanned. Ain't it cool. Thailand was incredible... So rural - yet so connected. 20c per minute internet certainly beats a lot of SA joints. Anyway, it was great to get away and forget about high pressured Joburg life for a while. We see Manto's been busy getting editors arrested since we left? :) We're back. Post away. "Viewpoint" on Phi Phi Island... Divin'

Just. Can't. Get. Enough. PS Oh! Hello! We're back!

Hello lads and lasses! I'll be a little dormant for the next 3 weeks. SA DOC (aka Pharmy) and I are finally gettin' hitched. Holy Moly. I should be nervous right now eh? (T minus 6 hours). Anyhoo - off to Thailand for the honeymoon - and going to try and not concern myself with posting. Keep your subscriptions up - call it a wedding present! Later! (PREDICTION: SA to WIN WORLD CUP) (PROBLEM: How the HELL to watch it in Thailand!)

Here's a great story - a friend of ours is a cardiomyopathy patient. This is basically a illness of the muscular walls of the heart - you can't overstress yourself at all or your heart can give out! This chap, bless his brave soul, wants to run a half marathon in a years time or so. Some people would say WOMBAT. Others... brave lad. Some advice from SA Doc... 1. Take it easy. Small steps, slow training and build up over months, not weeks. 2. Frequent checks with your cardiologist to make sure your medication is optimal and the heart muscle training is coming along well. Your Echo needs to be "A" OK! 3. Don't run with scissors. Please go visit his site and drop the guy a comment or two as motivation. It's a great mission to have - and if patients from around the world can stumble upon this kind of positivity? Well, it just can't hurt. Visit Mark's site here ...

Sigh. What can you do but gigggle like a girl and book yourself into private. With leadership like this...

Yes!

And to top it off... some bloopers from Season #3. Everyone loves it. And no. I'm not just posting for the search engine traffic. Ok. Well. Maybe.

Ok. Headline is a tad sensationalist. But it's an interesting CNN news clip on just how real the medical mysteries of House MD are. My favourite bit... Chances are Gregory House wouldn't be employed for long. Damn straight. But I wouldn't mind dipping into his Vicodin bin from time to time :)

House Season 3 is in full swing in South Africa - and we're hooked. Cynical bastard. Loving it. Found his audition on YouTube. Enjoy!

It has just been announced that the name of the Johannesburg General Hospital will be changed. From 1 September 2007 it will officially be known as the Manto Tshabalala-Msimang Pub & Grill.

Now I'm confused. Anonymous (WHY always anonymous!?) posted a link to an urban myth page - with this exact story on it. Extract from that site here: Claim : A man who has had an embryo implanted in his abdomen is engaged in the world's first human male pregnancy. Status : False. Origins : The possibility of a man's becoming pregnant has been the subject of more than a few works of speculative fiction and comedy, and the topic was given some sober consideration in the media after the British weekly New Society ran an article discussing specifics of the procedure in 1986. It could be done, New Society reasoned, if an egg were fertilized in vitro and implanted in a man's abdominal cavity. The embryo would have to attach itself to a major organ, the man would have to undergo hormone injections, and the child would have to be delivered by caesarian section, but it was possible, they speculated. (The child would have to be male, though, or else the necessary hormone injectio...

There have been a couple of comments over the last week on our male pregnancy post. Nooo. Can't be. Impossible. You're yanking our chain. La la la. Chaps. It's true. Check out the interview...

I didn't get it. But the Doc did...

OK. So this isn't new news... But I'm willing to bet there are a BUNCH of people out there who don't read Time Magazine. So here it is. And it's FASCINATING! This is why I became a doctor (for weird shit, of course!). My last post introduced the concept of extra-uterine pregnancy. So, is male pregnancy possible? Time magazine seems to think so... Now, my position on this first of all (scroll down if you really must see the picture). As a women's rights activist (mostly), I DON'T think that men should throw down the corporate life and take up the child bearing role. Firstly, as a Doctor, I believe that it is extemely dangerous and you risk the life of not only the fetus, but also of the father. Implantation has to be in a good place ( where the HELL might that be in a man?! - Andy ) giving a good supply of blood to the fetus... and at the same time not harming the father. Believe it or not, the liver is NOT a good place (when the placenta detaches, the liver coul...

When I was still in medical school we had a very unusual case come to Groote Schuur Hospital . A woman had an ectopic preganancy in her liver. Tasty. Now for those of you who don't know... or for some sicko Intern-like reason, are interested... An ectopic pregnancy simply means a pregnancy that occurs outside the uterus. Almost 100% of these will never survive as most ectopics implant into the tiny fallopian tube. At 8 weeks, the fallopian tube bursts as it cannot contain the growing fetus. Then, it's surgery and the usual save-her-life type stuff. Remove the tube, decrease fertility - but keep the patient. A delicate balancing act, no? But, there is an exception every rule - sometimes - very rarely, the egg retrogradely moves out the fallopian tube into the abdomen and implants itself onto the bowel or peritoneal lining or, in this case, the liver... This woman, with the help of some amazing Obstetricians and surgeons (to save her life and stuff) delivered a healthy baby girl...

GP's tend to deal with a lot of depression and anxiety (and I'm not talking about our own... who tends to us? Another question. Another post). Is there more depression and anxiety in the 21st century or are we just getting better at recognising it? The middle of the 20th century saw the rise in early recognition and treatment of psychiatric illnesses. In fact, most of the stigmas surrounding psychiatry, psychologists and psychological drugs were put to bed in the late 70's and early 80's. The rise of Freud and Mommy-consoling. They were heady days. Back to the present – something is definitely up. It feels like at least 1 out of every 3 patients I see is on some type of an antidepressant or mood stabiliser. I used to have a professor who joked that lithium should be put into the water. Quick, painless alleviation of most of our problems. Imagine a world where the traffic driver is too stoned to cut you off. Wait. They are stoned. And still cut us off? Well, I did say “m...

Here are some pics from the journey... All the equipment is attached to the back wall above the patient - very nice and compact. A tiny drawer stocked with more drugs than I've seen in a while! All the equipment fits into drawers the size of a food trolley! And everything packed into a small compartment, snug between all the passengers.

On very short notice, I was asked to transport a quadraplegic patient to Miami for medical treatment. This might seem like a small task, but you've got to remember that a quadraplegic patient cannot sit in a normal chair unassisted - plus they have a higher rate of complication (basically anything going wrong). Hence the need for dedicated medical staff. And a some pretty funky medical technology... Introducing the Lufthansa PTC (Patient Transport Compartment). This is an amazing self-contained unit that fits into the middle of the plane to transport all ICU and critically ill patients. The patient is placed on the bed in the unit and the Lufthansa nurses and a doctor (me, in this case) stay with them in the unit. What made this PTC so amazing was how well equipped it was. There were ventilators, all kinds of monitors, IV injection pumps and the largest stock of ICU / anaesthetic meds and equipment that I've ever seen. It was definitely better than the ICU I worked in at Helen ...

We'd just like to say... if you're getting this kind of advice from your health professional?! CHANGE! Har. Har. Anyway... Round is a shape. Pah. Q: I've heard that cardiovascular exercise can prolong life; is this true? A: Your heart is only good for so many beats, and that's it... don't waste them on exercise. Everything wears out eventually. Speeding up your heart will not make you live longer; that's like saying you can extend the life of your car by driving it faster. Want to live longer? Take a nap. Q: Should I cut down on meat and eat more fruits and vegetables? A: You must grasp logistical efficiencies. What does a Goat eat? Hay and corn. And what are these? Vegetables. So a steak is nothing more than an efficient mechanism of delivering vegetables to your system. Need grain? Eat chicken. Mutton is also a food source of field grass (green leafy vegetable). And a pork chop can give you 100% of your recommended daily allowance of vegetable products. Q: Sh...

I’m back! Article about flying patients around soon. With photographic evidence… But first. Helping with the Whipples the other day got me thinking. The patient in question has a really bad Pancreatic Carcinoma and has quite severe abdominal pain. The prognosis is poor. Probably 3 months. By doing this palliative whipples (you can do the op for other reasons) - she will first need to recover, but then should have less pain. The catch is - she is still going to die. We have not solved her cancer problem. We have probably extended her life by 9 months. Here’s the second catch. She has no medical aid. All the theatre costs, ICU, ward stay, doctor and anaethetist will be paid out of her pocket! It could come to a quiet R100k. Now is that worth it? Many would say yes. You can’t put a price on life can you? But I’m skeptical. If I had pancreatic cancer, and I had 3 months to live, I wouldn’t want to spend my money having a huge operation, whiling away the time, drugged up in hos...

I am left utterly uninspired and will wait to see what Lufthansa's onboard medical was like...

Medicines have always inherited the somewhat unfair rep of being so vile tasting, that not even hungry dogs would go close. Why? Safety? Maybe I am a doctor that likes to taste things before I prescribe them to kids (need to know if there’s a chance they’lll take it - or I’ve lost the battle before it has even begun – and Mom has gotta force feed). I’m here to reassure you. They’re not all that bad. Kerry, a previous commentor on the nose suction wonderment is right is right though, pharmaceutical companies really need to think about the taste of syrups before they make them for kids. If it’s going to taste KAK - make them in suppositories! And deal with the consequences. But since we won’t be getting a horde of bum tablets from the pharmaceutical companies any time soon, here are examples of winners and losers in the taste category: Winners: Stopyne (berry flavour, yummy!) Erythromycin (always my favourite) Original Augmentin (bubblegum flavoured) Prozef (strawberry flavoured – a cl...

Hehe. Just phoned SA Doc, only to have a scrub sister (I think they're called that) answer the phone. SA Doc, apparently, has her hands so deep inside someone the phone would surely get lost. It's a whipple... that's been going on for 8 hours. I don't even know what a whipple is! Sounds dangerous. When in doubt, Google it. As long as its not a symptom, remember... The Whipple operation was first described in the 1930’s by Allan Whipple. In the 1960’s and 1970’s the mortality rate for the Whipple operation was very high. Up to 25% of patients died from the surgery. This experience of the 1970’s is still remembered by some physicians who are reluctant to recommend the Whipple operation. Today the Whipple operation has become an extremely safe operation in the USA. At tertiary care centers where a large numbers of these procedures are performed by a selected few surgeons, the mortality rate from the operation is less than 4%. Studies have shown that for good outcomes from...

Floating head doctor at Baragwanath has a slightly different meaning. Rolling head doctor. Nah, I'm joking. That's just the political side of it. Enjoy some Scrubs - and the Floating Head Doctor scenes...

They just look so... professional. Har. Har.

Again, I am obviously going through an ignorant phase. I saw this pop up on one of the comments and immediately ran off to the resident doc, citing possible child abuse, sex toy alert or crazy kid shoving tube up nose. Once again, I was met with staid response: "Uh, Andy, that's a pretty common medical tool". Ja. Like Freddy Kruger's playkit . So, for the people out there like me - presenting the nose aspirator . Nosefrida is a doctor recommended nasal aspirator that removes mucous from your child’s nose. It was invented in Sweden by Ear, Nose and Throat Specialists, and has been used by Swedish Moms and Dads for years. When your child has a cold with a runny stuffed nose, it can be frustrating when they can not blow their own nose. Congestion interferes with sleep, feeding and makes for an overall cranky child, and parent too. Nosefrida is a plastic tube with a filter that the parent uses with their own mouths to get the mucous out of their children’s noses. WITH THE...

I'll never understand these bloody med students. They're quite serious about selling you the following piece of hardware. And I say hardware because, well, you kind of expect this to come out in a movie like SAW . Feast your eyes on the cold steel available for just under $30! AMA-approved anatomy dissection kit for first year medical students! The American Medical Association (AMA), America�s most prestigious medical organization, worked in conjunction with DR Instruments, professors, and medical students to design this kit for first year medical students. The 10GSM kit contains the most widely used dissection tools for first year anatomy classes. DR Instruments offers over 125 dissection tools including a wide range of dissection kits for medical school anatomy classes. To purchase additional or replacement tools, please click on the part number for more information and to place your order!! 10GSM kit contains following tools: - Teasing needle bent with metal chuck | Part # 3...

Isn't it good to know that in a country ravaged by HIV - the spread of other nasties hasn't abated. What the hell kind of advertising is this (on William Nichol nogal)!? "Finally a place where gentlemen can relax, knowing that every treatment has a happy ending." What makes it even funnier for any local followers of billboards - is that this one is a direct adaption of the "Little Holland Escort Club". Same pic. Same sultry white panties. Tut tut.

Hey Doc. Har Har.

Now here's a scary story... The world's major drug companies have been accused of turning a blind eye to the multibillion-dollar trade in fake medicine that has resulted in an explosion of child malaria deaths in developing countries. According to the British Independent newspaper, the problem has been particularly acute in Africa, with anti-malarial drugs faked on an industrial scale. One of the world's leading experts on malaria, Prof Nick White of Oxford University, estimates that malaria causes more than one million deaths each year of which 90% are children. He said that counterfeit medicine was a major reason why malaria had become, over the past 30 years, Africa's biggest child killer, 'from an illness that used to be easily treated with medicines'. Some of the fake drugs contain no medicine at all, but others have tiny traces of the real ingredients - which leads to another, potentially bigger problem as it allows the malaria parasite to build up resist...

Recently I read an article in the medical chronicals that blew me away. It was about a Doctor in New York (oh praise his alpha malesness) that is doing some experimental surgery... Wait for it... Trans-vaginal cholecystectomy! Oh my. Maybe it is because I have a vagina that this shocks me, but can you really imagine having your gallbladder (which lies up under your right ribs) removed through your vagina. THAT'S A DISTANCE OF AT LEAST 25CM! And exactly what our trans-vaginal cholecystectomy pioneer dude is attempting. The article claims that it will cause less pain, less scarring and quicker recovery! As it is, the conventional way to remove a gallbladder is via laproscope. So... you choose: 5 small (1-2cm) cuts in your abdomen or getting the think yanked through your love hole? This just proves the point that male doctors have no absolutely no cooking clue about female systems. Let's see how much he would like the surgery if we did it trans-urethrally (that's up the ja...

Har. Har. I don't get it.

Har. Har. That's actually possible you know. Take a pill with non-dissolving plastic stuff. It would have to be pliable, but not create blockages. It could even have a pleasent wood fire odour. Bloody science eh? (Yes, this is medicine if you thought the post was off topic!)

What the HELL is this!? Do they mean the cow? The sandwich spread? If its the cow, what must you DO to the cow? A little piece of "Bovril" keeps the ticker ticking? Gross.

Attended a discussion group (as we all have to in the annual quest for CPD points) and the topic came up about generics. The good, the bad and the simply ineffective... An article published in Clinical Drug Investigations was very interesting. It showed that even though generic companies claim to have the exact same drug, only cheaper - this is not entirely true. The study showed that many of the generics companies were producing inferior products with many impurities, differing concentrations of the actual compound drug and differnt bio-availabilities. Does that therefore taint the broad spectrum of "generic" medicine? After much discussion, we believed not. Most of us were of the opinion that some generic companies are good - they control the amount of impurities and produce good quality medicine. In South Africa, there's a lack of study or legislation enforcing clinical trials on generics, so most of the time GP's have to go on experience. I have my own list of ge...

Had to drain a perianal abscess. Standard stuff in a government hospital, but in private practice, it's a rarity. I had forgotten how ABSOLUTELY awful they are. Imagine the smell of a rotten goose egg, mixed with 2 day old vomit, mixed with baby poo... That's about the introduction. AND I kept a straight face and held down the gag reflex. I am a GOD.

Another one... This is more of a demo reel - I gather showing off 3D skills. I wonder where stuff like this would be used in the industry?

Wow. This is impressive. I wonder what it means. SA Doc is asleep. Preparing for her birthday tomorrow. So I'm at a loss. But it looks cool :)

Shoe. It's been a while! Back from Sodwana. Diving was great. I'm still wondering why they say diving is not an "exact science". At 20m. You kinda want to be as exact as possible. Anyhoo, didn't die. Some feesh.

Both SA Doc and I are hot-tailin' it to Sodwana tomorrow... No posts for 5 days - but if we get eaten by a shark - you can have the blog!

Yikes. SA Doc reckons this just can't be. The Eastern Cape, maybe? Or... maybe this is just generic and some horrible South African has unfairly slapped Mpumalanga into the mud :) Funny though. 1. The patient refused autopsy. 2. The patient has no previous history of suicides. 3. Patient has left white blood cells at another hospital. 4. Patient's medical history has been remarkably insignificant with B only a 40 pound weight gain in the past three days. 5. She has no rigors or shaking chills, but her husband states she was very hot in bed last night. 6. Patient has chest pain if she lies on her left side for over a year. 7. On the second day the knee was better, and on the third day it disappeared. 8. The patient is tearful and crying constantly. She also appears to be depressed. 9. The patient has been depressed since she began seeing me in 1993. 10. Discharge status: Alive but without my permission. 11. Healthy appearing decrepit 69-year old male, mentally alert but forgetfu...

His little pellets, nay, pearls of wisdom keep us amused every Tuesday, nay, We-eh-eh-ednesday night. I though we should all learn from them :) More here . [to an annoying patient] Dr. Cox : Okay, think of what little patience I have as, oh, I don't know, your virginity. You always thought it would be there, until that night Junior Year when you were feeling a little down about yourself and your pal Kevin, who just wanted to be friends, well, he dropped by and he brought a copy of About Last Night and a four-pack of Bartels & James and woo hoo hoo, it was gone forever - just like my patience is now. Jill Tracy : So you do scary little speeches. How adorable. Dr. Cox : ...And bam! The shine's off the apple. And that's when you find out that that pretty little girl you married isn't a pretty little girl at all. No, she's a man-eater. And I'm not talking about the "whoa-whoa, here she comes" kind of man-eater. I'm talking about the kind that uses ...