YOU'VE GOT TIME

Thinking out loud:
I don't believe that giving a child double(or single) promotion in school is in his/her best interest.
Getting an education is not just about making good grades, I wish some people would understand that.
A child can be intellectually dominant yet still be emotionally and psychologically deficient.
Imagine a 14 year old within the four walls of a university. Outside academics he cannot socially mingle with his "peers" for obvious reasons.
Smart as he may be, has to work twice as hard to prove that he deserves to be there.
His character flaws might be overlooked because afterall he's smart enough to handle himself.
So there's the danger of "passing through the school but the school did not pass through you"
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This morning Isabella stuck out her tongue for me to wash her teeth. This was a first.
I usually have to burst into song to coax her to even open her mouth to let me brush it. On a very good day, I just hold her down and have my way with her.

She's just 2 years old but she inspires me so.
There was a time you could barely get her to sit still during morning devotion, but now it's just fascinating watching her sit in her position without any prompting, singing with gusto and paying rapt attention to what is being said. She's even coveted the responsibility of sharing the hymn books.
Sometimes I catch her talking to herself and when I get closer I can hear her reciting what she learnt in school during the day. She'd even go as far as interjecting the part where her teacher told her to keep quiet and pay attention😄 She's smart like that.

She's a constant reminder that growth is a process, a time bound process. Whenever I start to fidget and worry over stuff like career , health or marriage, I have to constantly remind myself to "GIVE IT TIME"

Bisi Adewale writes:
Time tests Love and proves it.
Time tests businesses and authenticates it. Time tests spirituality and reveals it.
Time, a good tester.
Don’t say that NEPA in your area is now the best
until you have GIVEN IT TIME.
Your Uncle or Father told You that you are useless and worthless and can’t amount to
anything, just laugh it away and ask them to
GIVE YOU TIME.
Quote me… Consistency with time is the true
test of Efficiency.
Time is a tester.
Time is an AUTHENTICATOR
Time is a REVEALER
TIME IS STILL A MATTER.
Thanks for giving this long piece your TIME.

My name is Oyibo Pepper and I write to inspire learning.

The Young Physician and Social Media

On today's episode of "Study medicine they said, it'd be fun they said...."
The Young Physician and Social Media.

1630 Hours.
Children Emergency Unit.

"Good evening Dr Esther"
The confusion is apparent on my face as I struggle to put a name to the face of the beautiful woman who seemed to know me well enough to call me by my name.
"I know you don't know me", she says smiling, "I'm your friend on Facebook and I used to read your write ups even before you became Oyibo Pepper"
And on and on she went; introducing me to her family members present.

There I was smiling from ear to ear.
All of a sudden I didn't feel so tired anymore. It was going to be a good call.

I don't know about people who claim that Facebook isn't real life but I know it has its bearings there.
As a health professional one has to be mindful of the image one projects on social media. Your patients(or future boss for that matter) just might be watching.

If the world was a global village before, the advent of social media has turned it into your backyard..

BE MINDFUL OF WHAT YOU  SAY/DO ON SOCIAL MEDIA
 ** If you've had a really bad day at work, say maybe a difficult patient or your senior talked down at you, don't come straightaway and rant about it on social media. Blow off steam elsewhere.

** Speaking of patients, do not use your patients to preach/rant online. If you really must use an experience with a patient to pass across valuable information then be discreet about it.

** When passing across medical information online, try not to sound like a high handed condescending know it all. Your patient may not know that pavor noctornus is the technical term for what he believes to be witches from his village pressing him at night and it's your duty to inform/educate him.

** Ensure that any info you share online is accurate, up to date and relevant to your clime.

** If you must take selfies or pictures at work, try and keep your patients(or anything that can identify them) out of the frame.

** Don't go about undermining or  bringing down the reputation of your professional colleagues. Sometimes the diagnosis is really just malaria/typhoid.

Thinking Out Loud

Disclaimer: "You're an extremely beautiful girl with extremely ugly diagrams.
        - my histology lecturer in 2010

 I apologize in advance for the sweeping generalization(s) in this post.

"Let's have a staff meeting and discuss the things that must happen but never actually happen."
          - as seen on Facebook.
Or like my colleagues at work will say; "too much activity, no productivity".
That's Nigeria for you

The average Nigerian is an intellectual. He has brilliant and lofty ideas on how to move the country foward and can even produce a lengthy Facebook post/rant to elucidate his well thought out opinions and possible resolutions to the country's problems. À la Facebook pundit.

The average Nigerian loves the sound of his own voice. Or in common parlance, he's a wailer a.k.a "I told you so". He loves to point out how corrupt the current government is yet he hasn't paid workers in his employ for months, evades paying taxes and still pays bribe to import frozen chicken.
The corruption of need versus the corruption of greed.

The average Nigerian is a dreamer.
He is a proponent of Change.
No, he doesn't own a voters card.

The average Nigerian is a comedian. His ability to turn practically anything into a running joke/meme is but one of his many survival mechanisms in a country that is determined to break his spirit.

The average Nigerian is very religious, low key tribalistic too. Yet the roads are littered with pockets of refuse, potholes, and officers of the law who have long lost touch with what it means to serve and protect.

To be honest I've forgotten where I was going with all of this...