The Invisible Work

Introduction

I have never denied that a major purpose of this blog was not only to educate the next generation, but also to jot down notes for a future, more forgetful version of myself - all while trying to generate a bit of passive income.

However, the reality is that the income is negligible compared to the sheer effort required.

• A single day of locum wages can easily match two years of AdSense revenue, yet each blog post takes hours of planning, drafting, and finalization.
• Because of this, I have established my own set of rules: I now prefer to update or refresh existing posts rather than constantly creating new ones.

A few days ago, a colleague asked me, "If it doesn't generate money, what keeps you writing new articles?"

• Well, not all efforts in life yield immediate financial results.
• One way or another, you just keep trying and hoping for the best.
• In fact, we tend to get addicted to the things we can control, like how quickly we can finish and publish a blog post.

Shift in Perspective: Spoon-Feeding vs. Active Learning

Compared to my most productive years - when I was churning out notes every few days - that visible output has slowed down to just a few posts a month.

• The reason is twofold: I have already covered much of what I am an expert in, and my mindset is shifting toward a higher level of philosophical thinking.

For example, as a member of my hospital's medication safety committee, I have started questioning our methods.

• It would be incredibly easy to just copy and paste the precautions and alerts I have gathered from years of experience into an AI chatbot, rather than implanting them on newcomers.
• Does passive, spoon-fed education actually work better than active, problem-solving exercises for junior pharmacists, or vice versa?

A preliminary trend I have noticed is that juniors often do not see the point when we ask them to list the different formulations and strengths of high-risk medications available in the hospital - such as gliclazide, tacrolimus, olanzapine, semaglutide, and carbamazepine.

• In fact, many of them do not even fully read the Look-Alike Sound-Alike (LASO) medication list compiled by the hospital pharmacy department.
• Otherwise, certain medication errors can be avoided.
• What we are witnessing now is history repeating itself every few years, just with different individuals.

Under the Hood: Hardening RxLookup

Nonetheless, I must admit I have been spending more time polishing my e-books over the past few months.

Another huge chunk of my time is spent "vibe coding" to fix and maintain the PWA tools I have created, specifically RxLookup.

• Lately, I have spent countless hours consulting AI chatbots to figure out how to tighten its security architecture. To illustrate, I have implemented a stricter Content Security Policy (CSP), Subresource Integrity (SRI), comprehensive security headers, and strict permission policies, alongside updating dependencies and migrating to the latest Next.js version.
• Most recently, I completed a migration from Firebase App Hosting to Cloudflare Pages, deciding to fully convert the Next.js app to a standalone client-side output (output: 'export'). This migration and architectural shift were not accidental; it was a deliberate choice to cut my personal financial spending while continuing to offer free solutions to the public.

From my perspective, creating a sustainable, secure, and offline-compatible drug database app is a long-term investment, assuming the app gains traction among practicing pharmacists in Malaysia.

• I refuse to put any user who trusts me at risk.
• To my readers who have supported me all along: please clear your browsing history and site data, revisit the PWA links, and re-install them to your home screen to ensure you have these full security protections in place.

The Grunt Work Behind the Data

A friend of mine once joked that I must really enjoy building databases since I spend so much time editing data in Excel.

• Truthfully, it is not something I enjoy at all; it is a forceful necessity that demands hours of meticulous, draining work just to keep the platform viable.
• Each database update feels like a tiring, monotonous day wasted.
• What many do not realize is that I make a strict monthly commitment to manually input newly registered drugs and medication brands in Malaysia - a tedious but vital task just to keep the database accurate and relevant.

Summary

There may not be many new blog posts being released right now, but behind the scenes, the work definitely continues.