DOC'S LIFE
HEALTH CARE IN THE FIFTIES: PART 2
Reminscences from our Veteran Colleagues
The Expatriate Doctor
Dr S Sundaram, a native of Madras, India, was recruited to work in Malaya in 1953 but it did not work out. However, a chance meeting with Dr Doraisamy, an established GP in KL and a retired superintendent of General Hospital Kuala Lumpur, led to an offer to do locum work in Dr Doraisamy’s clinic in Malacca Street, Kuala Lumpur.
Figure 2 Dr S Sundaram then and now
He noted many of his Chinese patients came from the nearby Petaling Street. Through his house calls, he realised overcrowding of the households there – up to 10 families could be staying in one shop lot. The sight of little children in rags huddled together on the bare floor tugged at his heart. He would return to these homes with clothing, blankets and mattresses. Fortunately, textile merchants nearby were also his patients and a casual conversation led to regular donations of materials to his less fortunate patients. The charitable activities were later continued by the Petaling Jaya Lions Club which he formed with about thirty members in 1962.
In the fifties, Kuala Lumpur was equipped with pipe water, telephone (4 digit telephone number) and electricity. Sanitation was still poorly developed – night soils were collected at dawn as there were few flushing toilets then. There were two main government hospitals; Kuala Lumpur General Hospital which catered for the locals and Bangsar Hospital which catered for the Europeans (later opened to government servants and private patients). He occasionally volunteered his service at Tung Shin Hospital, a charity hospital that offered free delivery. Tuberculosis was very common then necessitating two separate hospitals, one at Jalan Pahang and another in Cheras (Lady Templar Hospital).
In 1958, he opened his own practice at Lebuh Ampang. Although rental was $150 per month, he had to pay $5000 tea money to the main tenant to secure the lot. He hired a Chinese clinic assistant for $150 per month and a Eurasian retired army dresser as a dispenser for $200 per month. His reputation as a humble and kind doctor who never refuses a house call spread and he attracted many Indian and Malay patients from nearby Kampung Baru. He also attracted the lower and middle income group with his lower consultation fees of $5-$10 per house call. Before the introduction of syrup cough mixtures by drug companies, he prepared his own cough mixture using a formula he learnt from Madras General Hospital. He joined the Selangor Indian Football Association and was one of the medical officers in charge during the Merdeka Football Tournaments which started in 1957.
Although he could not achieve his ambition to be a surgeon, Dr Sundaram continued learning and was among the first batch to sit for the MCGP in 1964. He remains an active GP at his clinic in Lebuh Ampang.
The Social Activist
The death of his mother at a young age spurred Chen Man Hin to pursue a life dedicated to healing. Coming from a poor family, he was fortunate that an uncle agreed to finance his studies which cost $500 per term at the King Edward VII Medical College in Singapore. He was among the first batch of 90 medical students when the college resumed in 1946, the year after the Japanese surrendered. Most lecturers were from England and New Zealand, but the notable local staff included Prof. Sandosham and Prof. TJ Danaraj.
Figure 3. Dr Chen Man Hin in his clinic (insert: when he was a medical student).
Student life was fun despite ragging from the seniors. He remembered young Mahathir Mohamad was also student at the same college and he stayed at an adjoining hostel. He and other senior students would have ragged him more if they knew he would become so famous later in life. Dr Chen’s compassion for the unfortunate was sparked when a group of fellow students were detained for being communist sympathisers. As Vice-President of the Student’s Union, he organised charity funds and helped to send food parcels to the detainees.
Upon completing the housemanship in Singapore, he returned to work in Seremban General Hospital in 1953. There was no elective caesarean section and family planning services were rudimentary. As a consequence, septic abortions due to botched attempts by illegal abortionists were common. Infections were common cause of admissions; he saw tetanus and diphtheria practically every week. Other infections such as tuberculosis, typhoid, and typhus were also common. In his third year of working there, he developed pleurisy and was treated for several months.
After getting married in 1956 to a Kirby trained teacher, he decided to open his own private practice. He managed to rent a shop lot from a Chinese recreation club for $50 per month and his brother-in-law made the furniture. With the prevailing spirit of goodwill among businessmen in those days, the landlord and his brother-in-law were very lenient with payments and allowed him to ‘pay as he can’. At that time, Seremban had only two main roads and ten private clinics. Many of his patients were from the surrounding slums. Their hardship and poor living conditions plus their complaints regarding the local authorities grabbed his attention and sympathy. He felt he should do more to help his patients. So, on the invitation of several Seremban GPs, he joined the People’s Action Party (PAP) in 1964 (PAP is the governing political party in Singapore now). Just before Singapore separated from the then Malaya, he co-founded the Democratic Action Party, a leading opposition party.
Dr Chen still practises his first love, i.e. medicine, in Seremban today. He finds the art of medicine fun and stimulating, keeps his mind alert and makes his life much more interesting.
