Tuesday, April 18, 2006


Extinction Viva

Allow me to provide you some highlights of the interview, where I fumbled, stumbled, and mumbled. (Even at very simple qns) The following are arranged in rough chronological order.

***

Prof: Tell me about the compensatory mechanisms during emphysema.
Me: Well firstly, there is the lung response to hypoxia, in contrast to the systemic response, there is vasodila-
Prof: (interrupts) Let's go to the basics. What happens to the electrolytes in the plasma?
Me: (realises that I've gone off in the wrong direction). Well there are central and peripheral chemoreceptors....

***

Prof: Do you know of any common medical procedure that reduces the anatomical dead space?
Me: (Tries hard to keep myself from saying: HARRRRRR?)
Prof: (gestures to the neck)
Me: Oh. Tracheostomy.

***

Prof: Tell me about the causes of hypokalemia.
Me: Well, there could be excess aldoster-
Prof: (interrupts) Let's go to the very basics. What are the basic reasons for low potassium?
Me: (realises I've gone off in the wrong direction again) Oh. Decreased input and increased output...

***

Prof: What happens when there is an obstruction, say in the duodenum?
Me: There will be vomitting.
Prof: And do you think that will affect the potassium levels?
Me: (sensing trick qn, but unable to do anything abt it) I would think that there would be more of a loss of H+ and Cl- instead of K+...
Prof: (goes into lengthy explanation of renal mechanisms that I din really catch)

***

Prof: How is iron absorbed?
Me: (mumbles something abt ferritin and apotransferin)
Prof: But that's transport and storage. What about the absorption at the GIT?
Me: (damn..I heard this b4, but can't remember) Sorry, I'm not sure...

***

Prof: How is B12 absorbed?
Me: (Rambles about intrinsic factor, the stomach and the terminal ileum)
Prof: What happens after that? How is it then transported to the liver?
Me: (damn. again.) Sorry, I'm not very sure about that...
Prof: Well, thank you for your time.
Me: (walks out thinking that I've earned the right to the title - COHC. Clown of Hwa Chong.)

posted by nwxiang at 11:35 AM |


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