on the job

i previously mentioned about adaptation.

being in the public health posting meant going to the district health office and gov health clinics in a slightly far from urban area.

pretty soon you realize the work culture in these places is different from that in hospitals and the urban areas. everything is slower paced. ppl are really easy going. punctuality means being 30 minutes behind schedule. and if u're that new medical officer who reports for work there on your 1st day, u're in for a culture shock.

now our 1st reaction would be to stare in total aghast and shake our heads at the lack of urgency in the people, instantly labeling them irresponsible, slack, unproductive, superrrrrr malaysian and you wonder how is it justified that the gov service sector have workers like these who never fail to miss Minum Pagi and Minum Petang sessions daily and let lunch break cut past into 2pm. esp when its the Health sector where we're dealing with sick ppl who need urgent medical attention and such.

Being in charge (cz ur scale allows you to, even though u're new and they've been working there for the past 20 years and are as old as ur dad), you might think of initiating a regime change. You can make strict rules about adhering to punctuality, meeting datelines for reports etc. You announce your intentions in the 1st staff meeting (that starts 30 minutes late). You demand for reports at your desk at 8.30am sharp the next morning. Time comes. Nothing appears on your desk. Your staff act like yesterday's meeting never happened. you're doomed.

Think again. It's not going to be likely that u can initiate any change in culture in the workplace if no1's going to listen to you. In order to get ppl to listen to you, you gotta build rapport, get to know them, speak their lingo, know their background, become more of their friend, less of a boss. You got to have that public relation skill. That... subject you had in medical sch called... what's that again? PPD. ah yes. personal and professional development. you need to strategize. to find a perfect plan / solution to get things going and fulfill ur job requirement WITH the help of ur staff. You cant make them resent or dislike you or u're in for trouble.

take this scenario (from one of my lecturers):

A Medical officer calls up an ambulance driver to help him send an urgent medical sample to a very far place in the middle of the night. the fella refuses, saying he's Tired. the frustrated MO tells him off, and gets another ambulance driver to do it. he signs off a letter transferring the 1st ambulance driver out the next day. if u think problem's solved and that fella deserved it, you're wrong. 2 days later, the fella comes back with a letter from the ministry of health Instructing you to take him back in. He wins. hands down. apparently he's got huge cables in political parties.

there are a few ways we can look at this situation. Irresponsible ambulance driver who got off the hook with the MO as victim.

or if the MO had good PR with the ambulance driver, the fella wouldn't have obliged to do the MO a 'favour' to work and drive long distances in the middle of the night even if he really was tired.

thus the importance of establishing good relationship with your colleagues or staff in your workplace. no 1 can work alone. as a student we can still survive studying and managing things on our own without much contact with the outside world other than our circle of friends, but things differ a LOT in the working world.

i was initially disgruntled about having to wait and stone for hours when joining fieldwork attaching to the District Health Office fellas, but once i got into the fieldwork, fogging and all, i realised that hey, even though they work at their own time (never missing a tea break haha), they work efficiently. they get their job done well. bcz they're experienced and they Are passionate about their job. the old fellas who have bn 20 years on the job LOVe their job. they enjoy what they're doing. and they dont need a strict boss to get them to perform their job to their best.

Thank you for the fogging experience and everything!