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May 22, 2025- Arrival in Kuala Lumpur!
The first thing I noticed upon arrival was the architecture. I drove past houses with red-brick roofs, skyscrapers, and tall, colorful religious structures.
KL also has so much greenery! From the plane, I saw so much vacant land, and on the way to KL, tropical trees flanked both sides of the road. KL's landscape is varied, encompassing everything from hills to mountains to flat grasslands.
view of skyscrapers in the city
houses near KL
so many palm (?) trees!!
May 26, 2025- Tour of the Hospital (UMMC)
Today, I met with my PI, Dr. Tan, who gave me a tour of University of Malaysia/Universiti Malaya Medical Center. The hospital is primarily made of long corridors connected to the school/faculty departments. She took me to different floors/clinics, including the geriatric clinic, falls clinic, and memory clinic. I was able to meet the current doctors, nurses, and ward sisters! Everyone was so kind and welcoming. The geriatric ward also has a room where healthcare providers conduct virtual geriatric visits for patients who are stable but may need further monitoring.
After the tour, Dr. Tan and I found an office space, where we then reviewed the retrospective data I'll be analyzing. I then stopped by the dean's office to receive my ID, met with my other supervisor (Professor Wong), and visited the UMMC's famous medical museum! The museum had a variety of displays---I was able to see everything from real brain slices to preserved reproductive organs to conjoined twin babies that died at birth. As I floated from display to display, I was filled with a haunting sense of grief but also awe/appreciation for the complexities of the human body. It felt so intimate looking at the open tendons and tissues belonging to people that were once alive and loved. I wondered what kind of lives they led and what stories they had that the world may never know. Photos and videos are prohibited, so you'll just have to trust me that it was an out-of-body experience. To all future students, this is definitely a place you should stop by!
Tan Sri Dr. Lim Wee Chai Medical Museum
UMMC Hospital Sign
view during walk to hospital
May 27, 2025- CGA and Frailty Lecture
This morning, I attended a lecture covered by Dr. Tan about frailty/sarcopenia tools and identifiers and the Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment.
view in the lecture theatre
CGA Diagram
key lecture takeaways
key lecture takeaways
Healthcare system in Malaysia
Access to health services in Malaysia is more immediate compared to America
Social norm: older people are more likely to live w/ younger family members in Malaysia
iPesakit is the EHR system used by UMMC, but the general practitioner would not be familiar with it; there is no shared health record system outside the hospital
Frailty is a growing interest; it's slowly getting integrated into common medical practice
the purpose of assessing frailty is to improve quality of life (QOL) and reduce hospital admissions for older people
Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA) is an interdisciplinary process to manage frail and vulnerable older populations
Evidence shows that people that have been assessed w/ CGA are less likely to be institutionalized and more likely to experience improved cognition
Future considerations
The UMMC geriatric ward is one of first wards in the country to have a virtual ward
Telemedicine and tele-rehabilitation are rising in use
Continued curriculum development in care for older ppl across relevant specialties
May 28, 2025- Geriatric Ward Orientation/Shadowing
This morning, I received official orientation of the geriatric ward from Nurse Goh. I was also able to shadow a few doctors and observe their case briefings/discussions with the patients. Here at the geriatric ward, nurses and doctors take care of elderly patients with pressure injuries, trauma, dementia, and delirium. Healthcare providers administer mini mental examinations and physical therapy games/exercises to monitor patients' mental statuses and improve their physical functionality. The ward also has a rehabilitation gym with a bunch of equipment that the patients can use to improve their strength and quicken recovery!
While shadowing Prof. Tan, she mentioned to me that one of the major barriers was finding a common ground between what the doctors want and what the families want. She also explained that the geriatric ward strives to deliver comprehensive care by conducting virtual follow-ups w/ their patients.
May 29, 2025- Visiting the Malaysian Parkinson's Disease Association (MPDA)
Today, I paid a visit to the Malaysian Parkinson's Disease Association for their weekly social dance practice session! I connected with a few of the elderly visitors and was able to get some dance steps in. One of the visitors I spoke with told me this was her first time visiting the center---she doesn't go out often anymore due to weakness in her legs/feet tremors, but she wanted to make an effort today because she has felt very isolated at home. I learned that she used to do line dancing, and she surprised me with how much she knew about America. I was a bit nervous to be the youngest among the group, but I found out through conversation that she and I actually had a lot in common! And the others were so welcoming when they heard I was a student.
I also met the granddaughter of one of the visitors, who was sweet enough to keep her nǎinai company (the lively 8-year-old was very adamant about showing off her Chinese vocabulary, which I was actually very impressed with!). She told me her favorite kind of toy was a Labubu, and although I think those little things are kind of scary with their angry faces and sharp teeth, I thought her excitement over them was so cute!
The head of the organization, Ms. Sara Lew, was kind enough to provide us all with pizza and ice cream afterwards. I had a great time getting to know everybody, and I hope to come back next week :)
May 29, 2025- Visiting the Alzheimer's Disease Foundation
Today, I visited the Alzheimer's Disease Foundation. Upon arrival, I was briefed on the different types of dementia and how Alzheimer's can affect a person's behavior. I learned that this center acts like a daycare for many elderly individuals that cannot afford MRIs or frequent check-ups at the hospital. The staff at this center also personalize their care since every person has different needs/weaknesses. We started the day with some tea and exercise, then had a coloring workshop.
It was very interesting to see each person's thinking process and preferences during the coloring workshop. Joe (named "Joe" for the sake of keeping their real name confidential), for example, liked to color everything black. Some could not understand simple instructions, such as Jill, who didn't realize she had to color the wings and dots different colors. Jill also colored very lightly and had to be constantly reminded to press down on the paper. Very few of them also engaged in conversation, but the elderly woman I helped had a strong sense of humor, as she would occasionally laugh at jokes.
Special thanks to nurse Matron Cheng for letting me observe and interact with the elderly community there!
morning tea and exercise
coloring workshop
displays of all previous artwork
June 1, 2025- Silent Mentor Program Home Visit
Today, I was able to do a home visit with other medical students as a part of the Silent Mentor Program. The Silent Mentor Program is a program that educates medical students and doctors using bodies that have been voluntarily donated---these bodies belong to individuals named "Silent Mentors." The program begins with a visit at the family's home, followed by an initiation ceremony where students present the individual's life history, followed by surgical workshops, and finally, a cremation/farewell ceremony. At the home visit, I was able to personally hear from the husband and daughter of our newest Silent Mentor about the life that she led and the impact she created not only on their lives, but on the lives of everyone else in the community. She was described as a very hard-working and selfless woman---"the first to enter the kitchen and the last to eat," according to her husband. Not only that, but she was also rich in character; she was an avid stamp collector, liked to garden, and had a soft spot for cats. While listening to their descriptions of her, I couldn't help but tear up myself, especially since this Silent Mentor reminded me so much of my own mother. This intimate experience reminded me of how precious and short life is, which is why we should never take a single day or loved one for granted.
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