Will you give up your job and care for others ?
HIS boss and colleagues told him he was throwing his career away.
He also faced stiff opposition from his relatives when he left his promising job as a doctor and moved to China with his family to work with HIV patients.
But Dr Liow Chee Hsiang has no regrets - even though his family's monthly household income decreased from a five-figure sum to about $3,000.
'I wanted to make a difference in places where there was a greater need for medical care,' said the 36-year-old.
Before leaving for China in 2002, Dr Liow was a medical officer in various hospitals here for six years.
He and his wife Crystal, 38, are now part of a registered non-government organisation, Bless China International in Yunnan. They partner with the local Health Bureau in working with HIV patients and high-risk groups.
The couple's three sons - Micah, seven, Nahum, four and 10-month-old Ezra - also moved to China with them.
Dr Liow has seen many heartbreaking stories of HIV victims, he told my paper recently.
Many sufferers - some as young as infants - are often ostracised by their families and society, he said.
Dr Liow said: 'Many of them are innocent victims who caught the disease from their spouses or parents. Stigmatised, nobody wants to touch them.'
Leaving the comforts of home did not come easy for Dr Liow.
He said: 'Leaving my job was a big struggle. It was comfortable and there were great opportunities.'
Finances were also another concern. Though now earning a fraction of their previous salaries, the couple still contribute monthly to the Central Provident Fund and save for their children's education.
Dr Liow was also at the scene of the Sichuan earthquake in May - he was part of a team of eight doctors who arrived on the fifth day after the disaster.
He recalled: 'It was a mass of confusion. Thousands of children became orphans overnight.
'I remember a child walking alone in the streets, with the words 'searching for father' and his father's name written on his shirt.'
The couple plan to return home when their sons are enlisted for National Service.
Said Dr Liow: 'Friends tell me I sacrificed a lot to move to China. But I didn't lose anything at all, I gained. My family is closer than ever, and I get satisfaction when I see lives change.'
HIS boss and colleagues told him he was throwing his career away.
He also faced stiff opposition from his relatives when he left his promising job as a doctor and moved to China with his family to work with HIV patients.
But Dr Liow Chee Hsiang has no regrets - even though his family's monthly household income decreased from a five-figure sum to about $3,000.
'I wanted to make a difference in places where there was a greater need for medical care,' said the 36-year-old.
Before leaving for China in 2002, Dr Liow was a medical officer in various hospitals here for six years.
He and his wife Crystal, 38, are now part of a registered non-government organisation, Bless China International in Yunnan. They partner with the local Health Bureau in working with HIV patients and high-risk groups.
The couple's three sons - Micah, seven, Nahum, four and 10-month-old Ezra - also moved to China with them.
Dr Liow has seen many heartbreaking stories of HIV victims, he told my paper recently.
Many sufferers - some as young as infants - are often ostracised by their families and society, he said.
Dr Liow said: 'Many of them are innocent victims who caught the disease from their spouses or parents. Stigmatised, nobody wants to touch them.'
Leaving the comforts of home did not come easy for Dr Liow.
He said: 'Leaving my job was a big struggle. It was comfortable and there were great opportunities.'
Finances were also another concern. Though now earning a fraction of their previous salaries, the couple still contribute monthly to the Central Provident Fund and save for their children's education.
Dr Liow was also at the scene of the Sichuan earthquake in May - he was part of a team of eight doctors who arrived on the fifth day after the disaster.
He recalled: 'It was a mass of confusion. Thousands of children became orphans overnight.
'I remember a child walking alone in the streets, with the words 'searching for father' and his father's name written on his shirt.'
The couple plan to return home when their sons are enlisted for National Service.
Said Dr Liow: 'Friends tell me I sacrificed a lot to move to China. But I didn't lose anything at all, I gained. My family is closer than ever, and I get satisfaction when I see lives change.'
