2013年12月18日 星期三

亦醫亦友 中大西醫 A Friendly Doctor in CUHK- published in Chung Chi Campus Newsletter vol 49 No 16 Oct 2013

亦醫亦友 中大西醫
郭園醫生 - 香港中文大學保健處

每日一蘋果,醫生遠離我。對於看醫生,我們通常避之則吉。但中大保健處郭園醫生有獨特的行醫理念,能給予你溫暖而實在的建議,讓人頃刻分不清求診還是探望老朋友。診室匠心獨運,掛滿她那琳瑯滿目的畫作,充滿藝術氣息。訪問當天,記者甫步進門,身穿綠色凱蒂貓卡通旗袍的郭醫生熱情招待,中英夾雜的輕鬆傾談,人際間的距離拉近了。

郭園醫生早期在聯合醫院內科工作,後來轉至中大保健處。她憶述當年應徵時差些錯過限期,及後因有受聘者臨時放棄職位,讓郭醫生有機會在中大工作,彷彿命運中有所安排。

早年沙田幾乎為荒蕪之地,尚未建有威爾斯親王醫院,中大診所為師生提供的醫療服務因而相當重要。醫生需二十四小時應診,既要住校,亦要輪流候命。現時燈火通明的保健處與起初的截然不同,「以前黑漆漆、陰陰沉沉的。而當時需要醫生,增聘醫生後卻無安頓的房間,結果給了我store room當工作間,就在廁所隔鄰,哈哈!」郭醫生忍俊不禁,笑言位置遠離其他同事,「 山高皇帝遠」。

郭醫生性格樂天,態度專業,環境無礙她以病人為本的診療態度,總是抱著滿满的關懷去解決病人的問題。曾有中東學生「發瘋」,情緒失控,校方人員束手無策,轉介予郭醫生。該漢子身型高大力氣強,該如何應對?「跟他說:『你現在情況很危險,我們要保護你……』談了一會兒,他又願意合作。」難忘的經驗豈止一次,還有妄想症男學生以為自己是飛天超人並打算於校園高處跳崖,後送到診所跟郭醫生對談,幸化險為夷。「(近年)中大師生的暴力情況較少,但其他情緒問題如沮喪、焦慮、失眠,真比以往嚴重得多。」

郭醫生深明病人對醫者的信任,甚至一些對家人難以啟齒的事都會與醫生傾訴,所以認為醫者道德極之重要。此外郭醫生亦早已意識到家庭醫生的崗位舉足輕重。家庭醫生擔當統籌角色 :辨識病人全面情況、替其與專科醫生聯絡跟進,甚至引導他們改掉不良習慣以預防疾病,以體貼的關懷為病人提供整體性的照顧,不論是身體、心理、 感情、社交,甚至心靈的需要。

工餘時,郭醫生熱愛旅遊,足跡遍佈世界。「旅行有助學習,(從中你會發現)世界大部份人都是善良的,即使宗教信仰不同也可和平共處。」郭醫生喜歡感受同一時空下之多元文化,笑說會偶爾入住當地家庭,體驗入住酒店感受不到的local real life;享用道地飯菜,入鄉隨俗,又經常參觀當地學校、醫院。「打開心扉、打開眼睛,這個世界實在是豐盛、多采多姿!」返港後她喜用書信、電郵或網誌與當地人保持聯絡,但不會「 force friendship(強迫交友)」,一切隨緣。郭醫生待人以誠,自然得到正面回應,就如她的診療室內便擺放了不少友人送的禮物:德蘭修女畫像、觀音像等,與郭醫生色彩繽紛的畫作相映成趣。

旅遊除了可以放鬆繁重的工作壓力,也是開拓視野的好機會。人生需要不斷追求知識,不能故步自封,坐井觀天。對於學習,郭醫生一口說:「Enjoy,活在世上的唯一目的正是學習」。對郭醫生來說,經過學習而來的是「悟」,是思想的啟發、啟悟,一種看事物更深更透的眼光。「悟」使人「通往天堂」,得到心靈上的自由與快樂,相反,思想狹窄與無知會導致驚慌恐懼,這便是「地獄」。郭醫生認為做錯事是可以接受的,但不能重蹈覆轍,方能從新的挫折中學習。雖然我們未必可一一掌握運氣與財富,但學到什麼、「悟」到多少,卻人人可為之努力,使人生更充實圓滿。她說:「福祿難以共有,總應感恩自己現在所有。」共勉之。      

A Friendly Doctor in CUHK
Dr. Memie Kwok – University Health Service, CUHK

Most of us are reluctant or even afraid to see a doctor. But it was like seeing a friend when we met Dr. Memie Kwok, physician of the University Health Service. In her snug consulting room filled with her colourful paintings , Dr. Kwok, in a green cheongsam with 'Hello Kitty' pattern prints, and conversing in Cantonese mixed with English, greeted us warmly. Her affable personality was evident in the interview.

Before joining CUHK, Dr. Memie Kwok worked at the United Christian Hospital. She recalled that her application for this clinic post almost missed the deadline and she only got the job because an approved candidate dropped out at the last minute. It seemed that Fate had a hand in leading her to CUHK. 

Those were the days when the Prince of Wales Hospital was not yet built, and the school clinic had to stay open 24 hours a day. Physicians were required to live on campus and took turns to be on call. Compared with the renovated bright new clinic today, “the former clinic was dark. The clinic needed more doctors but there was no more room. In the end I was put in a former storeroom next to the toilet. Hah!” Dr. Kwok laughed. She loved it though, as the physical distance from the boss made her feel more relaxed ..

In whatever situation, Dr. Kwok tries to adopt a patient-oriented approach. She was once sent a Middle East student with mental illness. He was big and potentially violent. How to handle the case? “Talk to him patiently and let him know that his behaviour is dangerous to himself. After a while, he was willing to cooperate.” Another time Dr. Kwok managed to calm a delusional student who thought he was Superman and attempted to fly from a cliff on campus . “ In recent years there are fewer cases of violent outbursts, but emotional problems such as depression, anxiety and insomnia are much worse.”

Personal integrity is highly valued by Dr. Kwok as she knows how patients rely on doctors. They might even tell secrets to doctors they trust over their families. Dr. Kwok realizes long ago the importance of “family medicine”, which provides continuing and holistic health care to individuals and families, catering for their physical, psychological, emotional, social and sometimes even spiritual needs. Far from just dishing out tablets, family physicians co-ordinate with different specialists, and are the only ones who command comprehensive knowledge of the patient's overall status. Inducing patients to adopt a healthy life-style in order to prevent illness is another important function of family physicians.

Dr. Kwok loves travel and has been to many countries. "You can discover a lot through travel. You will find most people are good, and people of different religious beliefs can live together in harmony." She said with a smile. She adores mingling with the locals and also studies their culture. Through home stay, partaking of local cuisines and following their custom, “you can experience how the locals live,” Dr. Kwok said. "Open your heart and your eyes, you will see the world is full of colours!" She cherishes and maintains friendship with people met during the trips through letters, emails and blogs. Gifts from friends, such as portraits of Mother Teresa and wood carving of Avalokitesvara, are scattered about in her consulting room.

Travel is not only a way to relieve work stress, but also a chance to broaden one's horizon. Learning and acquiring wisdom throughout life is crucial to all. As Dr. Kwok said, “enjoy (learning). Learn and savour the process of learning is what life is all about.” She believes that through learning comes enlightenment, and life is simply a voyage of discovery. Enlightenment leads people to “Heaven”, a liberation and elevation of mind and soul, while ignorance leads to panic and fear, the equivalent  of “Hell”.If we have to make mistakes, it's preferable that we make new ones, so we can gain new knowledge,” she said. As we can take nothing with us when we leave this earth, her friendly advice is to focus on the pursuit of fulfillment: a meaningful life that we can look back on with pride.

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