Old Is Gold

People say I'm good with old people.




I'm more surprised than flattered. Who, me? I'm hopeless with old people. I can't remember the components of a mini mental state examination, and so I can't perform one without reference. I don't deal with age-related complaints very well - the aches and pains, constipation, poor vision, the forgetfulness. To make up for my lack of experience in geriatrics, I inject an extra dose of kindness in my approach.

How do you not feel compelled to be 10x nicer to the pakcik in shabby clothes with a backpack and an umbrella who had travelled in a bus from another district just to see you in the clinic? Or to a polite octogenarian with a walking stick who drove himself to the hospital but had to take a RM2 cab ride from the car park (about 2 hills and a mortuary away) because it was too far for him to walk? I think we owe it to these elderly folks to spend more than the customary 5 minutes to take a BP and ask close-ended questions. Find out how they came, who they live with, what they used to do, what they do now.

Have a heart, people. We'll all be droopy and saggy and wrinkled one day too.