A Long Stretch

8 calls over 40 days did not sound too bad. I was sure I had done worst stretch before. But in private practice, it was different. It was more hands on. Coupled with the fact that the stretch went through my boys Xmas break was really a downer. We ended up staying at home much of the time.

Add to that the renovation which was going on, certainly the weeks could have gone better. And Idlan would be starting his classes again tomorrow, after only 3 weeks break.

It was my day post-call, and my next one would be another 3 weeks away. Time to stretch my back a bit before another series of call around the Chinese New Year period. I also booked 5 days off work in a couple of weeks time. I was thinking of a weekend away maybe with the family. It had been a while since we went back to Penang. I wonder where Anita fancied going ....

On Call New Year

It's second January and I was already on call while the rest were enjoying the Monday off. Some of the wards were still closed and the Casualty looked busy all morning. And I thought things would get busier as the day went on.

Weather looked dull outside and I was contemplating whether to head home now or catch a quick lunch. Maybe lunch is better as I might be busy later.

Happy New Year all.

Merry Holidays

Coming towards the end of the year, my clinics were still full and my calls were coming thick and fast. I wished that I had more time off but that will come after the new year.

After finishing a review on a patient earlier, I decided to just take a few minutes off to reflect and have a cup of coffee. The house was stripped for the renovations and the boys were keeping themselves occupied at home. Things were kind of hectic at the moment.

Still I was grateful for 2016 for it had given me plenty. Hopefully the next couple of days could afford me with some rest as I would be on call again on Tuesday ....

Behaving

It has been almost a week since the implementation of the new HMIS system at SJMC and it had been a trying one. There were quite a few mishaps but in the end considering the doom and gloom we were anticipating, the week ended pretty much where we started. Nobody really knew what to expect.

Some people were impacted more than others. I had a relatively slow week apart from the weekend when I was on call. The clinic was pretty light until this morning where it ran over until after lunch.

I was on call today and the hand overs seemed to be OK. An admission earlier got her medications missing, but it was easily rectifiable. Despite the busy clinic I found the new system to be workable. The problem I had earlier was with ordering CT scans. Thos would need sorting out since I would be ordering many more of those!

Let’s see how things pan out in the second week ….

The Transition

In life, we tended to resist change. SJMC had just gone through one with the implementation of the computerised Hospital Management and Information System - dubbed the HMIS. I was on call on the moment of implementation - midnight on 1st October 2016 - but the system remained off line until I finished my shift. The moment it became online, the mayhem started.

The management decided to close all outpatient clinic - although some did not have the choice but to remain opened. I did not bother since it was my post-call morning and I have got the photo walk lined up. I came to join the party later on that afternoon after the fun subsided.

For the HMIS, the ward would also change their designated nameFor the ultra-kiasuThere were plenty of kinks over the weekend, but it was helped by the Monday off for Awal Muharram. It is the first day of full day since the implementation today. I still had my clinic closed since I would be in Hospital Ampang examining, away from it all …..

Since I was using the same system at Park City and Ara Damansara, I understood the problems, but my worry was not on my side, but on the network itself. Would it be able to handle the stress and the workload? We could only wait and pray …..