What made you want to help people manage pain?
I used to have chronic shoulder pain, trapezius strain and migraine before I did my pain elective in SGH. The shoulder pain was a result of canoeing too much when I was in JC. During the elective, I thought I was able to empathise with patients in pain a lot better, and also manage my own pain better.
Pain management is a very holistic specialty where we look at patients and target treatment in many ways - including medications, procedures, counselling and physiotherapy. Having patients come back and tell me that their pain is better, their moods are better, their quality of life is better, is very satisfying. Of course we may not be able to take away all the pain, but the ability to build a meaningful doctor-patient relationship is something that is very rewarding to my practice.
If you could describe your patient care style in one word, what would it be?
Maybe 2 words - empathy, individualised
Coffee, tea, or something else to keep you going during a busy clinic day?
Coffee, definitely. And adrenaline most of the time.
What’s your favourite way to unwind after a long day in the clinic?
Sleep. Haha. Dinner with family, social media, non-medical dramas on Netflix (sometimes), music.
If you weren’t a doctor, what would you be doing instead?
Not too sure, as I have always wanted to be a doctor since 15. Never saw myself doing other stuff. But maybe I would have become a scientist.