Dr. Shamim Ara

Dr. Shamim Ara Sizu is the head of dermatology over at CIMCH. MBBS, DDV, MD. Skin and hair stuff mostly. Chittagong gets incredibly humid by April. People sweat through their clothes just waiting for a rickshaw. That means a lot of fungal infections. Ringworm. Weird rashes. She probably sees fifty cases of itchy skin a day. Her office has that faint smell of medicated soap. She sits behind a desk with a big magnifying glass. The kind with a bright light attached to it. She just looks closely at people's arms. Tells them to stop scratching. They scratch anyway. She writes down the name of an ointment. Small tubes. She tells them to apply a thin layer at night. Just basic instructions.

She handles the other things too. Brittle nails. Hair loss. Young guys come in worried about going bald. She just looks at their scalp. Maybe prescribes a spray. Sort of a slow process. She is also listed for sexual diseases. Patients usually whisper when they talk about that. Looking down at the floor. She just asks direct questions. No big reaction. Just writes the antibiotics on the pad. She teaches the medical students too. Showing them pictures of eczema or leprosy on a projector. The slides are probably a bit faded. She finishes her clinic list. Caps her pen. Washes her hands with regular soap. Leaves the room.