Heinous as the the hot weather

I've been here in Qatar for more than a year but never have I encountered any heinous crime not until last week. It was reported that cannibalism happened here in Qatar. Apparently one worker was rushed to the Hamad Hospital for a severe reaction brought about by the cannibalism act. The doctors ordered examinations and on some x-rays they found out something which looked like a human finger inside the patient's stomach. The doctors took the initiative to endorse the matter to the police. When interrogated by the police, the patient has admitted that there were 3 more accomplices. Rumors has it that the victim is a from Nepal and the 4 cannibals are from Vietnam. It was also reported that the 4 have killed (not known if accidental or intentional) the Vietnamese first. Afterwhich they decided to eat the victim to conceal any trace of the crime. Reports says that the investigation is still going on.

Also there were several killings that happened. One occured within the premises of the Women's Hospital inside one of the lavatories. It was reported that one Qatari man brought his wife on one of the toilets and there he gunned her down. Some several days back the woman has just delivered a baby. Some say it was an honorable killing. The crime was left unnoticed until one of the cleaners has discovered that blood was coming from one of the booths. I wonder what would be the reason why did the man decided to kill his wife.

There was also a crime reported about a Filipina maid who died inside the house of her employer. Investigation showed that she suffered several bruises all over her body. The authorities are trying to find out if there was a foul play involved.

So much crimes lately for a generally "safe" state here in the middle east. Maybe we can blame it on the hot weather which is on its toil now.

Well Hooray!!! My cough has just receded a few days ago. Although a couple of coughs much caused now by allergic reactions to the weather is still lurking every now and then. I'm just happy that I am not a thunderous cougher anymore.

Well, another week has just passed and nothing much happened. We were supposed to start the MIMS this week. Apparently some gliches hasn't been worked out delaying the implementation. I hope this week all will be sorted out since the Labtrak manager will be staying just until Wednesday. I hope our machines will all be ready eventually which I think in order to happen we have to close the lab for a while, gather all the people concerned to facilitate the transition for a day or two, establish a trial period and finally the launch will follow afterwards. Wouldn't it be great to do that rather than sneaking in between operation the machine preps? Much time spent will be reduced as well as outcome exceeded if only my bosses will be doing the lab closure for a while. Sometimes a little sacrifice will go a long way.

I was doing the laundry last night while watching several episodes of Desperate Housewives. I finished all the laundry and tonight I plan to do the ironing while watching the American Idol. I'm watching the last season which has just ended in real time in the US.

A while ago, I was able to convince Mars to go with me to the Mega Mart. This was the grocery store in which I was able to buy some dried mushrooms. I haven't seen any dried mushroom elsewhere. I was supposed to cook mongo beans and add the mushroom to have a little texture on it. Unfortunately, there wasn't any at all at the moment. So Mars ended up buying his supply of snack foods which I think are just junk. No wonder they are called junk foods anyway.

Cough, cough go away....

For several days now, I've been nursing a terrible cough. The doctor I've seen in QP prescribed some cough expectorant, anti-allergy and some losenges since my throat seemed to be congested and sore. After 2 days of taking those medications my situation has worsen. I cough so hard that I turn so red and my eyes start to water as if I'm already crying. Sometimes I even hear myself sounding like a barking dog or s loud thunder. Coughing became a nuisance especially when I'm at work. I hid in the store room or in the toilet just to do some hard coughs and hoped that the stimulus will go away. And to make the situation worse, I was assigned to have the week training in Microbiology. I can't do anything to cough every now and then, even if I'm not supposed to in that room. And so I decided to see the doctor again and tell her that I might need some antibiotic to hasten my healing process. She then prescribed an antibiotic regimen which is 1000 mg each capsule to be taken every 12 hours for 5-7 days. Boy, it was indeed a whole lot of mediations in my system now. Somehow the color of my phlegm started to get back to normal after taking the first pill. I hoped and prayed that the next day I woke up, it will be all gone. But then, the morning I got up yesterday, I started coughing so hard again which gave me some headache. I'm so already anxious to get back to normal but I guess the changing temperatures coupled with the high humidity makes this sticky cough a hard to combat one. Then finally, I tried this folk medicine which I read in the internet this morning. The secret concoction was to mince some garlic and cover it with honey. After 2 hours, a spoonful can be taken without chewing the garlic. Just swallow all the way and gulp some water afterwards. If preferred, better have a toothbrush to freshen the breath. Boy I just know how terrible my breath might have been smelling. After 1 hour, I felt the sudden urge to cough and lo! The phlegm is less sticky and much much more colorless now. I just wander how often should I take a spoonful of this bad smelling garlic-honey mixture. Maybe as often as needed that is if I feel coughing again, or then again maybe as long as I am able to stand the smell.

MIMS training

MIMS, as they call it in here but as the instructor, Mr. Andy Love told us that it is more common to call it Labtrak and Trakhealth, or LIS. Today is our first day of actual training. We expected to have a pre-assessment exam but luckily there was none, although I know if there was indeed, it wouldn't be so hard since maybe the only thing the trainers would like to know is that we have a basic idea of the whole concept of the new laboratory information system.

The training started with the Labtrak, some basic principles and basic commands were taught. It is easy but since it is just a new system, we might need time to familiarize ourselves. The technique in using the program is to visualize the process in the mind thinking just like a flowchart. One must think and have a clear picture of the process intended while manipulating the system otherwise one might get loss in the flow of the process. To benefit using the system one must always have a trouble-shooting process done in a systematic way. For instance, there are a number of ways to do a simple end result. The user should master the shortcut commands, the options and choices in order to maximize and utilize the whole scheme.

Tomorrow, Trakhealth will then be discussed with some additional parts of Labtrak. I also enjoyed the breakfast and the lunch. Rarely that we get to eat free after a training so me, Ate Mercy and Fritzie went to Al Ghazal to eat. The food was tasty, although we didn't stay for too long since everyone is anxious to go.

A day in Mesaieed

Mesaieed (Arabic: مسيعيد, also transliterated as Musay'id and Umm Sa'id) is a municipality of Qatar. Its capital is also called Messaieed. To the east and south, Mesaieed borders the Persian Gulf. On land, to the north and west, Mesaieed borders Al Wakrah Municipality.

Mesaieed Industrial City is located approximately 40 km south of Doha. I went there yesterday to familiarize myself with the MIMS which is the new medical record system we will be having soon in Ras Abu Abboud. Other locations such as Messaieed, Dukhan and Ras Laffan have already gone live with it. At last, our clinic's turn to go on training and implement immediately as soon as all the prepartions are set up.

The Messaieed Medical Center is the best QP clinic which I have seen so far. Although I still haven't seen Dukhan clinic, just allow me then to express my praises for the MMC. As compared to Doha and Ras Laffan the MMC is designed to function for its purpose. Comparatively speaking, Ras Laffan is a make shift medical center which is built from port-a-cabins. The corridors are narrow, rooms are small and the ceiling is low. But even if RL is a make shift medical center, much praises for their effort to give the best medical services they ought to give. On the other hand, the RAA clinic was also designed to be a modern clinic but due to the rapid increase in the number of patients, it has become a little crowded for the people seeking medical attention. The general atmosphere has become old as compared to the much more modern design of MMC. The MMC has been strategically designed to separate the male and female areas of the clinic. The support services such as the laboratory, pharmacy, x-ray and dental areas were set up on the middle block of the clinic. Each unit has 2 entrances, one serving as the female patients' entrance and the other door for the male patients. Each door or service window is directly opposite of the other giving ease for the medical personnel to attend alternately to patients on the each side of the clinic. The laboratory set up is also designed to maximize the space by having top of the line laboratory work benches, the kind which I have seen in some US laboratories. It has built in lightings and cupboards as well as sink and water supply nearby. I wish that same kind of space-saving, effort-friendly work benches should also be acquired in RAA. Inshaallah.

I learned so much from the MIMS familiarization which will help me a lot in the training. Somehow I have seen the screen, menus and a number of processess done through this new medical records system. I am much thankful to Girlie for having been so patient with me, teaching all the things she know about the MIMS. I'm greatfully thankful for her time and effort considering that they are under staffed yesterday. I hope I will remember during the training and eventually during the ON LIVE stage all the things taught.

We left MMC around 3pm riding on the same bus which brought us there in the morning. I was just very thankful that I didn't experience any migraine attack yesterday. The new environment, learning the whole day, plus the heat outside the clinic are all stressors which can initiate an attack.