"My Harvard sabbatical (2003)" by aukahkay

I went on a month-long sabbatical at the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston in October/November 2003 as a visiting scholar. Joslin Diabetes Center is the leading center for the treatment of and research in diabetes. It is affiliated to Harvard Medical School with many of the physicians on the Harvard teaching faculty.
I arrived in Boston on 19 October 2003 after a long 27-hour flight via New York and Frankfurt on Singapore Airlines and Continental Airlines. I checked into the Commonwealth Guest House, a lovely Victorian-style townhouse located in the fashionable Back Bay area of Boston facing a park. It was autumn during that time and the beautiful autumn foliage was in its full glorious colours. My room at the guest house was a small studio complete with kitchenette and bathroom.
On the following Monday, I reported to Joslin Diabetes Center and met my supervisor, Ms Joan Hill, Director of Clinical Education. She was a really nice and warm lady who introduced me to the various departments and key personnel at Joslin Clinic.

During my visit, I had the opportunity to attend the 4-day Advanced Clinical Education Course for Allied Health Professionals. I was the only medical practitioner amongst the participants, who comprised nurses, dieticians, exercise physiologists and counsellors. I also had the opportunity to sit in and observe the daily morning clinical case conference conducted by the physicians, nurses and educators in the diabetes team. During my interaction with the patients at Joslin Diabetes Center, I was really amazed at how much they knew about their clinical condition and the determination and diligence with which they coped with this chronic condition by controlling their diet and taking their medications regularly. This was a huge contrast to the diabetes patients whom I see in Singapore, many of whom are ignorant about their condition and unmotivated in controlling their diet. It was a huge eye opener seeing the confidence and professionalism with which the nurse educators taught their patients about diabetes, its complications and its control.

My short clinical attachment at Joslin Diabetes Center made me even more aware of the importance of a good network of well-trained professional support staff in the diabetes team. The physician is the coordinator of the diabetes team but the nurse educator, dietician, exercise physiologist and psychologist are equally important.

I met Edward and Philomena Campbell during a tour of Switzerland and Austria in 1999. They were such a sweet and wonderful couple who made me feel so much attached to them during our two-week tour. They live in the town of Dennis in Cape Cod. I took the opportunity to spend a weekend with them at their home in Cape Cod. A 1.5 hour bus ride from Boston took me to Hyannis, the main town in Cape Cod where Edward was waiting for me at the bus terminus. It was such a wonderful reunion after 4 years.

The Cambells drove me around the Cape all the way to Provincetown, a delightful seaside town at the tip of the Cape. This was followed by high tea at the luxurious Chatham Inn Hotel, a colonial style hotel overlooking the Atlantic Sea.

The Cambell home at Dennis was just a 100m walk to the beach. Even on a cold November day, I was surprised to see people sitting on deck chairs on the beach.

Dinner was with the Cambells' children and grandchildren. They were such a sweet bunch of children who were only too eager to ask me all about Singapore.

My friend from San Francisco, Chris, flew over to Boston to spend 5 days with me. Over the weekend, we decided to take a bus tour up to Maine. The most famous town in Maine is Kennebunkport, home to former US President George Bush. The tour bus drove past the heavily-fortified Bush residence and then proceeded to the town of Kennbunkport. No visit to Maine is complete without tasting the speciality of the region - Maine lobster. I had a lunch of baked Maine lobster at a cosy family-run restaurant frequented by George and Barbara Bush.

I had time during the weekends and in the evenings to take in the sights of Boston and to immerse in its diverse and intellectual atmosphere. There are more universities and colleges in Boston than any other American city. Of course the most famous universities in Boston are Harvard University and Massachussettes Institute of Technology, both across the Charles River in Cambridge. I loved walking in the tree-lined square at Harvard University - it was aglow with autumn hues of green, orange, yellow and crimson.

The Boston Symphony Orchestra performs regularly at the Symphony Hall. I managed to attend a concert by the BSO and another by the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, the latter playing an all-Beethoven programme.

Boston's Chinatown was small compared to that of New York and San Francisco. I went down to Chinatown to try Maine lobsters cooked Chinese style. The taste was unusual, but I would rather prefer the whole Maine lobster boiled and eaten in butter sauce.

Being so near Boston, I decided to make a day trip to Providence, Rhode Island to see the campus of Brown University. A one-hour train ride took me to the small city of Providence. A huge white building resembling the Capitol Building in Washington DC dominated the city - the Providence State Capitol Building. Brown University is situated on a hill overlooking the city. I went into the student's cafeteria for a cup of hot coffee while looking out at the main lawn of the campus. I had dinner in the main shopping mall in downtown Providence before taking the evening train back to Boston.

After my Boston sabbatical, I took the opportunity to drop by in the Big Apple before returning to Singapore. I flew into Newark Airport on 11 November and checked into the Pennsylvania Hotel, just opposite Penn Station.

It was my third visit to New York. I had the chance to meet up with my Japanese friend, Shinji over tea before attending a concert by pianist Mitsuko Uchida at Carnegie Hall. Being an amateur pianist myself, I made the pilgrimage to Steinway House just around the corner from Carnegie Hall and absorbed myself with the beautiful Steinways on display.

New York's Broadway musicals are a must see while in New York. During my stay, I watched two musicals - The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast.

My month-long soujourn in the eastern seaboard of the US ended on 18 November when I took a Singapore Airlines flight back home from JFK.