When you are at the top..

I went to Port Dickson last week. It was one trip that I initially dreaded since it was all about standards and procedures... How can you look forward to a 3-day presentation and discussion of ISO??

But looking back now, I'm glad that I went. I learned and experienced alot in that 3 days. I now know what people in Endoscopy Department really do and the different types of procedures that they provide. There are about 15 different 'scopies' that they carry out each day! I now know how many phone operators we have in the hospital and the problems that they're facing too. So, the next time I need to get through urgently to the wards during on-calls and the operators take donkey years to connect me, I probably will be more understanding and have more patience instead of just cursing them while waiting!

I also get to know more people that I normally deal with only over the phone and through letters. I can now put a face to Mr X, the Social Welfare Officer who I normally deal with whenever patients need help with payments of their drugs or Miss Y, the new scientist in Infectious Control whose name I kept hearing but never knew the face.

But the main lesson that I learnt there was how a good boss should be like. Each department (of the hospital) was represented by the head of department and 2 or 3 of their staff. As expected, most presentations were done by the departmental staff and the heads were there to add-on points and to help out during the Q&As session at the end of each presentation. I noticed some bosses were really supportive and helpful (mine included, thank god!)and some even switched seats to the front during their departments' presentations. However, some were not-so-supportive and one particular boss (I shall not reveal his name or the department that he heads) was one good example of how a boss SHOULD NOT be. Not only that he didn't pay much attention when his own staff did the presentation, he even continued playing with his phone (messaging I guess) when his staff were fired with endless questions and complaints!And when he finally opened his mouth, he sounded really defensive and unfriendly. Enough to say that I really pitied his staff that day...and wondered how do they survived all these while..

A friend who was there at the meeting with me made a comment that we are lucky to get a boss who is not only very supportive but also comparatively easy to talk to. I couldn't agree more. She may not be the perfect boss, but she is definitely one of the best heads in this hospital... or atleast among those that I've observed in those 3 days...

How is your boss like?