Picnic at the Park
I saw Mr Lee. Oops, PM Lee. Or BG (NS) Lee. At the above event, as described by mrbrown.
This is him conducting the ceremonial opening tip for the friendly between a local club and the Malaysian youth team. My brother doesn't have steady hands. Maybe Olympus is lousy. But my mama would never agree with the latter because of the fortune she invested.
The day ended with yours truly exhausted from being baked in the sun the whole afternoon watching game after game of grouchy people scrambling after an orange ball.
My mama wasn't very happy that there was no free food, no goodie bag and no prize money for the tournament she was stupid enough to be enticed into taking part by the promise of free ice cream, 800 sticks of it.
Speaking of PM Lee, his sister A/P Lee contributed a very interesting piece to the forum pages today. Since it is general consensus that nobody should pay for ST Interactive, I shall reproduce it here.
April 13, 2005
PLIGHT OF NEPALESE TWINS
'Successful' operation was a mistake
THE sad predicament of the Nepalese twins 'successfully' operated on in Singapore General Hospital (SGH) in 2001 could be predicted even before the operation.
They would have died soon if the operation was not carried out, and the young parents, after a period of grieving, could have carried on with life and probably would have more children who are normal.
Instead, the family is now broken up, and the mother, as is usually the case, is left with two lifelong burdens.
My neurosurgeon in the National Neuroscience Institute (NNI) was approached to assist in that operation. (At that time, the neurosurgery departments of NNI and SGH had not merged.)
I advised him against it on the basis that even if the operation were a technical success and he gained worldwide fame, his responsibility was the ultimate welfare of the patients.
As a neurologist, I knew that both twins would be significantly disabled. I was told by the SGH doctors that the parents were informed of this but still insisted that everything possible be done.
As a paediatric neurologist with more than 20 years' experience, I know that no parent can ever give a truly informed consent when first confronted with the news that their child, if he or she survives, will be disabled.
A handicapped baby is 'cute'. A handicapped adult is a burden. The Nepalese twins' family has discovered this even now when the twins are only five years old. The mother's statement, 'Many times I think I want to die with Ganga', says it all.
The situation can only get worse as they grow bigger and become more difficult to feed, bathe and carry.
The operation put Singapore on the world map, and the members of the surgical team were hailed as heroes. But at the end of the day, to me and to the family, the operation was a mistake.
Associate Professor Lee Wei Ling
Senior Consultant
Paediatric Neurology
National Neuroscience Institute
So, what do you think?
This is him conducting the ceremonial opening tip for the friendly between a local club and the Malaysian youth team. My brother doesn't have steady hands. Maybe Olympus is lousy. But my mama would never agree with the latter because of the fortune she invested.
The day ended with yours truly exhausted from being baked in the sun the whole afternoon watching game after game of grouchy people scrambling after an orange ball.
My mama wasn't very happy that there was no free food, no goodie bag and no prize money for the tournament she was stupid enough to be enticed into taking part by the promise of free ice cream, 800 sticks of it.
Speaking of PM Lee, his sister A/P Lee contributed a very interesting piece to the forum pages today. Since it is general consensus that nobody should pay for ST Interactive, I shall reproduce it here.
April 13, 2005
PLIGHT OF NEPALESE TWINS
'Successful' operation was a mistake
THE sad predicament of the Nepalese twins 'successfully' operated on in Singapore General Hospital (SGH) in 2001 could be predicted even before the operation.
They would have died soon if the operation was not carried out, and the young parents, after a period of grieving, could have carried on with life and probably would have more children who are normal.
Instead, the family is now broken up, and the mother, as is usually the case, is left with two lifelong burdens.
My neurosurgeon in the National Neuroscience Institute (NNI) was approached to assist in that operation. (At that time, the neurosurgery departments of NNI and SGH had not merged.)
I advised him against it on the basis that even if the operation were a technical success and he gained worldwide fame, his responsibility was the ultimate welfare of the patients.
As a neurologist, I knew that both twins would be significantly disabled. I was told by the SGH doctors that the parents were informed of this but still insisted that everything possible be done.
As a paediatric neurologist with more than 20 years' experience, I know that no parent can ever give a truly informed consent when first confronted with the news that their child, if he or she survives, will be disabled.
A handicapped baby is 'cute'. A handicapped adult is a burden. The Nepalese twins' family has discovered this even now when the twins are only five years old. The mother's statement, 'Many times I think I want to die with Ganga', says it all.
The situation can only get worse as they grow bigger and become more difficult to feed, bathe and carry.
The operation put Singapore on the world map, and the members of the surgical team were hailed as heroes. But at the end of the day, to me and to the family, the operation was a mistake.
Associate Professor Lee Wei Ling
Senior Consultant
Paediatric Neurology
National Neuroscience Institute
So, what do you think?
posted by :O at 10:31 AM
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