My SEPeriance in Turkey ;)

In Malaysia, we always experience hot and rainy kind of weather. Personally, I have yet to step out of my comfort zone – home to any other further countries. As I am graduating soon, I thought of wanting to create lasting memories for a lifetime before I head off into the workforce so I mustered enough courage (and money of course) to apply for IPSF Summer SEP 2018!

I had a dream location to conduct my SEP but through many hills and waves, alas, I was given something even better! Hoşgeldiniz! Welcome to the land of Turkey and Merhaba! Joined together with a long-time friend from USM to travel this 11-hour flight far away from home, we want to learn, experience and most of all have fun!

On 15th of July 2018, I embarked on a journey for the first time that is furthest from my homeland. My friend and I were greeted by our host at the Adana International Airport. Adana Kebab was the first Turkish cuisine that we tried and it was absolutely delicious! Settled into a Teacher’s Home (similar to a hotel), we were also shown around the small town of Erdemli, Mersin where we will be attaching for the next two weeks.

Being attached to a community that only speaks Turkish is unbelievably challenging. There was not much we could do to help out in the pharmacy due to the language barrier. By the end of a few days, I was able to differentiate the different common drugs that are needed and could lend a hand by taking them off the shelves to the pharmacist assistant. The layout of the community pharmacy was somewhat similar to our community pharmacies back home. Drugs were arranged according to various drug classes and also following the alphabetical order. One more aspect that is similar to Malaysia is the concept of “First In, First Out” when it comes to dispensing. Small community pharmacies in Turkey mostly only sell medicines while the larger ones sell supplements and other products as well. On the other hand, there was something very interesting in their pharmacies! Customers can come in and order a cup of tea, soda or even just plain water and sit down comfortably while awaiting their turns! It was definitely something you would not see in Malaysian pharmacies! health medications with abuse potential), red (narcotic analgesics), purple (chronic diseases) and orange (cancer-related drugs). In my opinion, the integrated online system for e-prescriptions can be a policy adopted into our own health care system in Malaysia. It is individualised, technological, validated and can even minimise potential medication errors.

Being attached to a community that only speaks Turkish is unbelievably challenging. There was not much we could do to help out in the pharmacy due to the language barrier. By the end of a few days, I was able to differentiate the different common drugs that are needed and could lend a hand by taking them off the shelves to the pharmacist assistant. The layout of the community pharmacy was somewhat similar to our community pharmacies back home. Drugs were arranged according to various drug classes and also following the alphabetical order. One more aspect that is similar to Malaysia is the concept of “First In, First Out” when it comes to dispensing. Small community pharmacies in Turkey mostly only sell medicines while the larger ones sell supplements and other products as well. On the other hand, there was something very interesting in their pharmacies! Customers can come in and order a cup of tea, soda or even just plain water and sit down comfortably while awaiting their turns! It was definitely something you would not see in Malaysian pharmacies!

7708 kilometres away from home, a five-hour difference in time zone, it would have been such a shame without visiting Turkey that is çok güzel (very beautiful)! We picked up some common Turkish phrases while being attached to the pharmacy and embarked on a journey to five other different cities. It was totally eye-opening to experience a culture that is somewhat similar but yet so different. While travelling, we are immensely grateful to all the people we have met along our journey for helping us even though they barely understood English. Not to mention, we tried different food and drinks such as Turkish coffee, Turkish delights, kebab, gözleme, tantuni, sikma etc.. The stunning hot air balloons in Cappadocia, the magnificent white travertines in Denizli, the awe-inspiring cross religion mosque Hagia Sophia in Istanbul... these are some of the wonderful sights that had made a lasting impression in my mind for many years to come. I would say that I am beyond blessed to be born in Malaysia, to be trilingual, to be a Chinese but yet a Christian. All these facts amount to people being impressed with how Malaysia is a multiracial, multicultural and multireligious country. I am proud that through my journey, I have not only gained something from Turkey but in return introduced my own country to others.

It had been an amazing journey to me in that one month. We finally landed back home on the 11th of August. I hope to visit Turkey again someday in the future. The people, food, culture and memories are just unforgettable! Special thanks to Melis and İbrahim from TPA-YC for helping and hosting us! If you are hesitating on joining SEP, I strongly encourage you to submit the papers and just get on board the plane! This SEPerience is not something that you can create after you step into the workforce. This is a golden opportunity of a lifetime!

Written by:

Tan Xin Yi