Congee vs. Soup vs. Water

A lesson in burns and cultural competency.

As my preceptor was teaching me about burns management, he asks me the question of whether having hot water splashed on you or hot soup would hurt more. And I responded...

G (me): Soup.
Preceptor: Ok. Why?
G: Because there's oil in the soup.
P: Yes, so depending on the type of soup, there will be more or less oil. Compared to water, it hurts more. But why?
G: ....
(After a moment of silence as I struggle to come up with an explanation. Sometimes common sense doesn't come so quickly to me...)
P: Ok. Well if you get congee and hot soup splashed on you, which would hurt more?
G: The congee.
P: Ok. Why?
G: Because it's more sticky.
P: And what does that mean?
G: ... (mentally struggling to explain myself)
P: The difference between the hot water, soup and congee is the amount of Time the heat is in contact with the skin. (I start nodding now because the lightbulb has lit up in my head) Oil is also going to be hotter than water so we need to know that when looking at burns. Think of fried chicken. It gets to be so fried because of the oil! So when we're talking to patients, asking them how their burn happened. We need to think of the clinical importance of each and every detail!


(For those who don't know, congee is a rice porridge that has the thickness and viscosity of oatmeal that is a bit watered down)

Yes Sir! Don't think I will look at congee the same ever again.

Meanwhile, I'm craving a bowl of beancurd jelly (豆腐花). Oh sweet smoothness! (See photo taken at Yee Shun Milk Company)