Breakdown of Dokter menulis diagnosis awal di kartu pasien saya.
Questions & Answers about Dokter menulis diagnosis awal di kartu pasien saya.
Indonesian does not use articles like “a/an” or “the” the way English does. Nouns usually stand alone:
- dokter = a doctor / the doctor
- diagnosis = a diagnosis / the diagnosis
- kartu = a card / the card
Whether it means a or the is understood from context, not from an article.
If you really need to make “a certain specific one” extra clear, you might add words like itu (that) or ini (this), but it’s optional:
- Dokter itu menulis diagnosis awal… = That / the (particular) doctor wrote the initial diagnosis…
Seorang literally means “one (person)” and is sometimes used to emphasize a certain or one person, or when first introducing someone:
- Seorang dokter menulis diagnosis awal…
→ A doctor (one doctor) wrote the initial diagnosis…
Using dokter without seorang is more neutral and is very common, especially when:
- The doctor is already known in the context.
- We don’t need to emphasize “one single doctor.”
So:
- Dokter menulis diagnosis awal…
can naturally be understood as The doctor wrote the initial diagnosis…
Indonesian verbs do not change form for tense. Menulis simply means “to write / writing” in a general sense.
The time reference (past, present, future) comes from context or from additional time words:
- Dokter menulis diagnosis awal di kartu pasien saya.
→ The doctor wrote / writes / is writing the initial diagnosis on my patient’s card.
(Which one? Context decides.)
You can add time markers if you want to be explicit:
- Kemarin dokter menulis… = Yesterday the doctor wrote…
- Sekarang dokter menulis… = Now the doctor is writing…
- Besok dokter akan menulis… = Tomorrow the doctor will write…
The base verb is tulis (write). The prefix meN- (here realized as me + n → menulis) usually:
Turns a root into an active verb
- tulis → menulis (to write)
- baca → membaca (to read)
- masak → memasak (to cook)
Marks an active voice (subject is doing the action)
In Dokter menulis…, the pattern is:
- dokter = subject (the doer)
- menulis = active verb (is doing the writing)
- diagnosis awal = object (what is written)
In Indonesian, descriptive words (adjectives) generally come after the noun they describe.
- diagnosis awal = initial diagnosis
(literally: diagnosis initial) - orang tinggi = tall person (literally: person tall)
- mobil baru = new car (literally: car new)
So awal (“early/initial”) functions like an adjective here and must follow diagnosis.
Awal diagnosis would sound wrong in this context.
di is a preposition of location: in / at / on depending on the noun.
- di kartu = on the card
- di rumah sakit = at the hospital
- di meja = on the table
ke means “to” in the sense of movement/direction:
- Dokter pergi ke rumah sakit. = The doctor goes to the hospital.
pada can also mean “on / at / to” but is often more formal or abstract:
- pada hari Senin = on Monday
- pada pasien ini = to/with this patient (more formal)
In di kartu pasien saya, we’re talking about a physical location (the diagnosis is written on the card), so di is the natural choice.
kartu pasien saya can be parsed as:
- kartu = card
- pasien saya = my patient
So literally it is “the card of my patient”, which in natural English becomes:
- my patient’s card
It can also be understood as “the patient card that belongs to me (I’m the patient)”, but in typical hospital context, pasien saya usually means my patient (from the doctor’s perspective). The exact nuance depends on who is speaking and the context.
To force other meanings:
- kartu pasienku = my patient card / my patient’s card (using -ku “my”)
- kartu milik pasien saya = the card owned by my patient
- kartu pasien itu = that patient’s card
In Indonesian, possessive pronouns normally come after the noun:
- pasien saya = my patient
- kartu saya = my card
- dokter saya = my doctor
So in kartu pasien saya, the order is:
- kartu (card)
- pasien (patient)
- saya (my)
= the card of my patient / my patient’s card.
If you move saya, you change the meaning:
- Dokter saya menulis diagnosis awal di kartu pasien.
= My doctor wrote the initial diagnosis on the patient’s card.
(Now saya describes dokter, not pasien.)
Yes. -ku is a suffix meaning “my”, more informal/intimate than saya:
- pasien saya = my patient (neutral / polite)
- pasienku = my patient (more casual / personal)
So:
- di kartu pasien saya
- di kartu pasienku
Both are grammatically correct. The difference is mainly tone and level of formality. Saya is safer in neutral or formal situations; -ku often sounds more personal or informal.
They look similar but are different words:
- dokter = medical doctor (physician)
- doktor = person with a doctoral degree (PhD, academic doctor)
In your sentence, dokter is correct, because we are talking about someone writing a diagnosis for a patient, i.e. a medical doctor.
Both forms exist in Indonesian:
- diagnosis – closer to the original scientific/medical term; common in formal/medical writing.
- diagnosa – widely used in everyday speech, and also accepted in many contexts.
In this sentence, you could say:
- Dokter menulis diagnosis awal di kartu pasien saya.
- Dokter menulis diagnosa awal di kartu pasien saya.
Both are understandable. If you want to sound more formal or closer to medical jargon, diagnosis is safer.
Yes. Since menulis does not mark tense by itself, the sentence can mean:
- The doctor wrote the initial diagnosis on my patient’s card. (simple past)
- The doctor writes the initial diagnosis on my patient’s card. (habitual)
- The doctor is writing the initial diagnosis on my patient’s card. (present progressive)
Which one is intended depends on context or added time words:
- Sedang can emphasize “in the middle of doing”:
- Dokter sedang menulis diagnosis awal di kartu pasien saya.
= The doctor is (currently) writing the initial diagnosis on my patient’s card.
- Dokter sedang menulis diagnosis awal di kartu pasien saya.