Letter from Australia

摘要

As a child, I never wanted to be anything but a doctor. It has never occurred to me that I might have been happier doing something else. To have the privilege of helping other people has always been sufficient motivation for me and I count myself very lucky to have had work that held such great and lasting personal meaning. Of course, there have been times when it has been difficult to remain motivated. The internal politics of a large hospital can be fierce at times, when one's colleagues jostle for power, space or other scarce resources. Struggling for the sake of protecting your own department against a perceived threat is distracting. Some people seem to thrive on that, but I have never enjoyed any kind of conflict, even though I know that I have usually prevailed when action was required. I have been able to remain motivated by reminding myself why I became a doctor: not to build an empire or to- enrich myself, but to make the world a better place. What stronger motivation could there be?