This video is about my mother who is born with knee problems. She kept on surgery one after another, but were all failed. She told me a story of which I recorded for my school project about how the society of Singapore discriminating the disabled groups in another way.
Here is the translation of what my mother is talking about:
I was born 1953, Sep 29.
I was born with both of my knees were bend in an abnormal form, which the physician at that time would not be able to figure why.
When I started to grow up and started my 1st primary school one day, my dancing teacher wanted to learn dancing because girls were supposed to learn basic dancing at that time. However, no matter how my teacher forced me to learn, I just can't learn properly and at the same time, I also don't know how to speak up with my teacher about my physical condition. I always scored "zero" for this subject and the unpleasing teacher was not able to understand my situation, and used cane to beat me instead. After that, I told my mother that I wanted to quit school because of this incident.
Later, my mother was called up to school as to why I didn't listen to the teacher for the lessons. Then, my mother scolded the teacher for not understanding my problems ("my daughter only have 1 leg, how to dance?"). Then, the teacher apologized to me and my mother after knowing the truth.
When I married at the age of 18, I accompanied my husband to a construction workplace. He was the owner of a company managing building construction. I quarreled with him over a money matter, in which, it caused him to be furious and he dumped to the ground where my crippled leg was injured at that time. I was unable to walk and I looked for a Chinese physician to adjust the knee, which took me 1 and a half years later for me to walk again.
At 2001, when I was cooking, the fuel in the gas can burned both of my legs. But after that it was recovered, and I picked a job in Conrad Hotel (work for 1 year). Becos of the working, my knee went to become a "hump" and that was the time, my organisation's doctor referred me to SGH specialist on knee problems, Dr Wong Meng Hoon. He then led me to my first surgery (with 18 pins on my bone and a metal supporting it) but it made me unable to walk.
At 2003, I told my daughter about it. She helped me to refer back to this surgery doctor but he refused to see me. Thereafter, my daughter wrote a letter to the head of department, Professor Tay Boon Keng. He then wrote a letter to my surgery doctor to take out the things, which he did accordingly.
At 2004, my knee was unable to bend.
Then at 2006, I went for the knee replacement surgery again. The surgery doctor was trying to put a joint plastic to replace it, but it failed.
At 2009, I went the surgery yet again. This time, the surgery doctor was Dr Chia Shi Ru (PAP members in charge of Tanaka area); he helped me on the surgery. After that, when I was in the market buying things, I fell becos of the uneven road. My teeth were been thrown out and my body were bruised all over. Left with little choice, I went back to visit Dr. Chia again. He told me that my knee cap has no muscle to support for the joint, but I disbelieved it. I went and visited Prof Tay again. He then personally surged my two injured knees back to its original position, but I do not have the strength to walk every time.
Whenever I asked Professor Tay about the methods of easing my knees' pain such as medication and injections, he kept on speak out on comments, as if he refused to answer my questions due to my other long-term illness may affect it. Other than knee replacement matters, I also have only 1 kidney (cannot inject) and major skin problems (some medicine cannot eat).
For my daily lives, I woke up at 5am every morning as to wake my son up for school. After my son has gone to school, I went to the market to buy the basic necessities. Plus, I need to take care of my elder daughter as she has a cancer, need me to take care of her.
Yes, and that's all I have to say.
Oh yea, what you mention about my earlier years, when I was just 12 days old in baby's age, my mother took me to a Chinese physician to help adjust my foot and I was thinking whether it is the physician when adjusting my angle of my foot, accidentally adjusted my knee as well. But that was what my mother told me about; I was not so sure myself.
