Do not judge a book by its cover

It has been almost 2 months ever since I started working in a hospital which specializes in Infectious Diseases and Trauma. Most of the patients are HIV positive patients who walk in to collect their supply of medications. Right now you could already have your own perception towards how a HIV patient should look like. Well, I did visualize them as someone uneducated, skinny, haggard, tired, dirty if they were males and "hooker-looking" if they were females.

These perceptions are just plain prejudice. Hey, we can't judge by the look! First impression deceivesss.. I believe a person portrays itself in a certain manner to convince others to see how they want to be seen. Neat looking doesn't mean healthy neither does oily-face messy-hair means diseased!

So far none of the HIV patients meet all the criteria from my imagination. All of them are well fed, even though lipodystrophy is one of the side effects from the treatment, yet they still look WELL FED!

Some of them have neat luscious hair who speak fluent American English in a highly well-mannered way. Some just look like any ordinary hyperactive hawkers who perhaps have served me my favourite dish ! Some came with their spouse to collect BOTH their supplies; others came with the entire family including children as though they were collecting groceries from the counter.

What saddens me were those patients who came alone, along with their guilt who shy away from all eye contact in the room. Of course there were also "innocent criminals" who got their dreadful death sentence from their most trustable legal life partners.