7 posts tagged “bureaucracy”
Aw huid, Aw houik, Ow shuek, muntah darah, vomit blood, hematemesis, nokoilob raha....all means the same thing - Blood gushing out from your upper orifice.
That's how I described the office efficiency.
Case 1: I applied for a promotion post - filled in the forms, which I downloaded and printed myself and send it to the relevent personnel in office within 3 working days of the advertisement. Closing date was 6 weeks away. Was assured everything was is order and would be "processed" asap.
2 DAYS before the closing date, a colleague checked out with the office and was told "Belum hantar ke Putrajayalah doktor...itu SKT belum cari dan isi. Orang yang buat itu cuti sakit! Mengandung...muntah muntah.Tak ada orang ganti"
Case 2: I applied for further training. Filled in the necessary forms, which I downloaded and printed myself, and handed up to the office to "process". Aaaah...yesterday the person who received my form, happened to meet me at a hall, "Arr...doktor, hari itu ada bagi saya borang pohon training ka? Saya ada jumpa dalam fail doktor. Masih mahu hantar ka?" I HANDED UP THE FORMS 6 MONTHS AGO.
Not that I'm bothered. In fact I've expected it. My many years in service has taught me something. To get things done in the bureaucratic way, one must make as many photocopies as possible and send to as many places and people as possible. It's like trying to dig for oil. Hopefully one of the many attempts will strike gold. There is no system. There is absolutely no connection between one department to another. In fact it is faster to send a snail mail from and to Putrajaya 2000km away than from someone in Putrajaya to pass it to another colleague sitting a few desks away.
I got what I wanted 6 months before someone at the office even took a look at my forms because I used the multi-hit theory. Just hit as many departments and people as possible. The more the better - the more chance you have to hit it right. Never depend on one. To those who put their faith in "The System", sorrylah.
Can really AW HUID.
And we are wondering why doctors are leaving in droves. Fed up.
Today I just received a circular regarding the PTK ( Penilaian Tahap Kecekapan) - an exam in the civil service for consideration for promotion.
Previously one's professional qualification (meaning you can be a medical officer, specialist or consultant with a string of qualifications behind your name ) and your civil service status are totally different and does not influence each other. Meaning it is absolutely possible for a medical officer to outrank ( and get a higher salary) a consultant despite the obvious disparity in qualifications.
The new circular states that "Peringkat 1(what's Peringkat 1?) Program Sarjana Perubatan/Pergigian" is equivalent to "PTK1 Aras 3" and "Program Sarjana Kepakaran Perubatan/Pergigian is equivalent to "PTK3 Aras 3". You need to pass the PTK 1 for promotion to U44 and PTK3 to U48
Correct me if I'm wrong. What it means to me is that doctors who pass the 1st year Masters programme/ Part 1 MRCP/MRCPCh is entitled to apply for promotion to U44. And those who completes the Masters/MRCP/MRCPCh is entitled to apply for promotion to U48. Previously one has to still pass the PTK 1 or PTK 3 for promotion despite having the postgrad qualifications.
You mean the professional Masters/MRCP/MRCPCh programme is equivalent in standing to the crappy PTK exams!!!??? I understand it's an effort to improve the promotion prospects for doctors in civil service (which is good) but the principle of equivalence here is rubbish!! One probably need to struggle at least 3-4 years to pass a postgraduate exam with many having to resit the exams several times.
PTK exams?!!!! I passed PTK 1 with Aras 4 ( the highest possible mark ) on one fine day I woke up and went to take the exams without even touching a book!! How can you compare it with a professional exam? Many got stuck with the PTK exams due to language problem ( especially overseas graduates )and because the questions for the PTK is completely irrelevant to their practice. And people who failed their professional exams or don't want to further their qualifications can still get promoted all the same if they pass their PTK exams!! - does it sound logical?
I say scrap the PTK exams and base one's promotion to their professional qualifications and performance in their work.
Just returned from a mandatory course in KL. I've decided to bunk in with a friend and not to stay at a hotel then claim back later.
Reason?
Just last week the "accounts clerk" in my hospital called me to ask " Doktor, itu kursus doktor pergi dulu ( claims submitted about 2 months ago), pengurusan ada beri makan tak? " Shit! I do not care about the food reimbursement, I can sponsor the food myself. What I really want back is the hotel accommodation claims only. Anyway I'm grateful that the clerk took the effort to properly "process" my claims and called me to clarify. However it also tells me that my claims will take about 2 months before somebody actually takes a peek at it. No news when the actual $$ will come in though.
Well I suppose I should be grateful that the hospital is willing to sponsor my course in the first place. But the bureaucracy is ridiculous and is extremely discouraging. After all I'm not going for a holiday. Not me anyway.
So actually I've helped the hospital to save some money, although not deliberately. I'm no fan of pay first, claim later kind of system. Money go out is easy, to come back in....hahaha
Gestapo is at work again.
There is a large national conference held over merdeka from 29th Aug to 1st Sept. As this was a major event, our head of department which is also a prominent member of the society for this conference encouraged all his specialists, MO and HOs to attend this conference. The hospital ( =state health department ) would cover our registration costs.
On 30th Aug, I had a strange call from the State Health Department. The caller identified herself and well, politely asks me if I attended the conference. I enquired why she wanted to know. She said it was just to check if I was attending the conference (since I was sponsored for the registration cost). The lectures which interest me were on the 3rd and 4th day of the conference thus I did not attend the first and second day. Moreover I was on call on the 2nd day (30th Aug). Anyway the lady quickly accepted my explanation when I said I was on-call on that day and would be attending the following day (today).
Well, today I asked my colleague whether he received a similar call. And yes he did!
So by simple deduction, someone has been checking our attendence and was probably ordered to "remind" us. Just for curiosity I wonder what would happen if we didn't attend? Bar us from futher sponsorship? Ask us to refund the registration costs?
I understand tax payer's money is used. But I mean there has to be some flexibilty and trust. Furthermore anyone can just sign the morning attendence and disappear right? The point I'm putting forward is that trust is so lacking nowadays. We have somebody checking out punch cards, our call claims, our attendence for CME/lectures, our visits to district hospitals etc etc. I'm not suprised if somebody is monitoring other aspects of our daily work. Gimme a break man!
This is not the worst yet. I understand from my medical assistant that in order for them to claim overtime, they have to submit the name of the patient they saw, which ward they went, what procedure they did and the time in and out !
For crying out loud, sometimes we go to work early, sometimes we go back late, skipped meals due to work demands, get referrals although we are not on call, goes to do weekend rounds, see patients after office hours when we are not on call, claim passive calls although we were in hospital for long hours even to the extent of not claiming sometimes! ( with the little amount and lots of paperwork for claims ). With such surveillance and poor trust, this is just encouraging people to be calculative and to do the minimum!
Happy 50th merdeka for the nation! But not merdeka from surveillance :(
I found out today in the eyes of "bureaucrats", a course ( kursus ) ain't the same as a conference (konferens). What I discover was the reimbursement for hotel expenses for going to a "course" is lower than to a "conference"!
What's the feakin' practical difference between a course, meeting, conference, gathering...etc etc. It basically means a congregation of nerds to learn/to keep updated/to discuss/to share/to teach regarding the latest update, experience and treatment for the benefit of future patients.
This was confirmed by an accounts officer who has been working for donkey years. The officer said it is the wording that counts. The wording, not the substance. The duration, location, quality of speakers, number of participants, international or local event don't count one bit. It's the wording that determines how much you are entitled. If the word "course" ever appear in the brochure, the approval letter or your claim form then you get less and vice versa. Not that the entitlement is fantastic. It hasn't change for as long as I can remember. ( Considering the inflation and petrol prices which almost doubled, it is peanuts )
An analogy;
Worker monkey: I need to go to the toilet. I need some toilet paper.
Bureaucrat monkey : Why do you need to go to the toilet?
Worker monkey: ???What!! What's the difference?
Bureaucrat monkey: Well, if you go to pee, you'll get ONE piece of toilet paper. However if you go to shit, you'll get ONE AND A HALF piece of toilet paper.
Worker monkey : Uhh...I'm going to shit.
Bureaucrat monkey: Nah..there you go. ONE AND A HALF piece of toilet paper. Enjoy shitting.
Soon the story goes around to all the worker monkeys. Every monkey now wants to shit only.
Bureaucrat monkey 2 : Hey bureaucrat monkey, the council of monkeys wants some quality statistics on our toilet usage so we can improve our services.
Bureaucrat monkey : Hmm...yeah I've got it all done. 99.99% of monkeys only shit. Virtually no monkey pee nowadays.
He presented the findings to the council of monkeys.
Council of monkeys : WOW...monkeys only shit nowadays. They do not need to pee anymore. WE HAVE EVOLVED. Now we are 1st world monkeys not 3rd world monkeys any longer.
Smart alecky advisor monkey to the council : Hmm..in that case why don't all of us remove our bladders. Less burden when we swing from tree to tree.
That's the bureaucracy which irritates the hell out of me. What an "intellectual" conversation. If I keep on at this kind of conversation, I'll be a monkey soon.
Well, at least if I can't change the system, nothing's stopping me from beating the system:) After all it helps to keep my brain cells well greased :)
Come on, let us stop this monkey business. If anyone can make a change to this stupidity personified, please do. Let us strive for a better tomorrow if not for ourselves, for our children and our children's children.
Since I'm too lazy to prepare any presentation tonight for my district visit next week, I'll blog more ;) I mean I've been been visiting this district every month for almost a year...and "instructed" to give CMEs each time. I bet none of my colleagues does it every month. I've run out of topics already...
In university, we would need to sign in for every lecture and tutorials. Attendence carries a percentage of the total marks during year end assessment. Never mind if one is sleeping thru' the lectures, it's your signature that counts! I mean what NONSENSE is this? It's the student's decision whether he feels it is necessary to attend or not ! If he doesn't and flungs the exams later that's his problem! If he doesn't attend and still passes with flying colors it means he has not missed much! YOU CAN PULL A HORSE TO THE RIVER BUT YOU CAN"T FORCE IT TO DRINK! So why pull the horse to the river in the first place?
Which brings to mind our hospital's "compulsory" attendence during the weekly continuous medical education session. If one does not attend, a letter requesting explanation of your absence will come from the director. What the..!!! We're treated like school kids ! Whether we feel it is of benefit to attend is our choice. I mean come on la...we're all professionals, still need to use the "whip" ah? Shame shame.
This apply also the monthly district visits which is done voluntarily ( half voluntarily ;) ) What pisses me off is that we are being "monitored" of our visit, what we did there, how many patients did we see and what CME we gave at each visit etc etc! I was first informed of this by the district hospital's director on my 3rd or 4th visit regarding this "covert" directive" coz the higher ups are checking. Later came these forms which we are instructed to fill regarding the above as well. I can't believe this!!! Freaking insulting !!!! We are treated like kids again! I've never filled nor handed up these forms. I don't give a damn. We're profesionals, we know our responsibility. For crying out loud, do I need to check that all the district hospital staff attend the CME as well? Shame shame again.
What's happening here? You mean the whole system is filled with cheats ever ready to "dissappear" given the slightest chance? Something is VERY VERY WRONG with the system if we are down to this level. I can say one thing for sure, nobody will be attending to my patients should I suddenly go absent.
Next is the on call claims. Every claim has to be accompanied by the "punch" card now even on passive calls. This is despite certification from the head of department that such a person was truly on duty. ( Your boss has to sign the on call list and the call claims)
So in conclusion, is the whole system is filled with dishonest cheats who will steal, deceive and go AWOL at the slightest opportunity that we need a gestapo team to keep them in check? How sad !
The downside of this pathetic surveillance is that no employee will ever go the extra mile, to give that loyalty to the service. The phrase "this is not my job" will be uttered even more frequently. They are treated like "criminals" and thus will behave like one. What goes around comes around.
After reading Bill Gates' awe inspiring speech...I feel so humbled, so insignificant, so small....after all what have I done that can even go near the achievements of Bill Gates ( and I'm not talking about wealth here )
I can't help but noticed that every year during university application and admissions, many students are clamouring to do....yes MEDICINE.
I wonder why my ex-university or ex-school never asked me to give any speeches before ;) Afterall I know many schools do invite ex-student who are doctors to give motivational speeches to uni-students to encourage them to take up medicine. Hahahaha......
If I had to give a speech to the students, it would be probably be something like this hehehehe ....
Good morning to Mr. so and so, the principal of Sekolah ABC, my fellow teachers and students. Thank you for inviting me to share with you today my experience. I'm grateful and "honored" today to be back in my alma mater....etc etc or some other bla bla bla ;)
Medicine is certainly a noble profession but one must have the right aptitude, personality and the humility for this profession. It is a profession that "selects" you, not the other way round. You don't choose to do medicine. You don't have to have an IQ of 160 to do medicine but then you can't be a moron either. You are dealing with lives here.
To enter medicine in a public university, you must first fight among your peers for the highest number of A's. Oh wait a minute, nowadays you need to get a full A1s. Then of course you must also must be "active" in your extra-curricular activity. This constitutes 10% of your score. Never mind that some other schools have fake clubs to boost their students' marks, after all you must be honest and have integrity since you're aspiring to be doctors anyway. If you do get in for medicine, don't be fussy over which university. After all, most of you will be practising in M'sia since none of the degrees are recognized in most countries outside M'sia.
After admissions, you may be lucky to get some good lecturers to teach you, if they haven't left the universities or retired yet. Hmm....and of course you will still have to deal with the usual backstabbing, secret classes, "special notes" that a few elite people may have. And of course if you aren't suave, sexy or good looking enough, patients may also not let you examine them. But sometimes bribing may work though. You must also learn good communication skills.
Of course during examinations, your attributes may also help you tip the balance to your favour. It doesn't help if you stutter or just looked a little drab. For the female students, a little cleavage may just do the trick.
After your exams, yahoooo!!! you made it. Now comes another playing field. Many of you would like to work in a city like KL. But hang on...you've just signed your soul away when you sign the letter of employment. Hmm in all likelihood you'll be at least a state away from your hometown. You are bonded for 4 years and can be transferred anywhere.
You'll be earning less than a Mc Donald's worker on a per hour basis. You will be probably be doing a lot of clerical work during your first year. In certain places, you might be doing EOD ( every other day ) calls meaning you'll spend less than 36 hours PER WEEK at home. If you are incompetent or slow , then it makes more sense to save on rental and just sleep in the hospital. Senior doctors may be harsh, afterall this profession is not for the weak hearted. Patients and relatives aren't gonna pity you. After all they are sick. Sick patients can be demanding. This is a good time also to lose some weight since you won't have much time to eat anyway. Public hospitals have continuous admissions day and night. Oh yes, do not bring any valuables to work, you do not have a personal locker or room. If its stolen, well...too bad.
Then after that you have to pass the internship assessment again. Should be no problem though for most... Next you'll need to consider your own career. Oh yes, you'll need to go through a thick layer of bureaucracy to be confirmed in service. Why? You'll be stuck with the same salary without it and of course no chance of doing any masters programme. To be confirmed, you'll be needing a lot of phone credits and lots and lots of patience. There is also this PTK exams should you eye for a little extra salary. Better keep your school books for this.
And don't start decorating your house yet. You'll be probably transferred yet again.If you do decide to go for masters, the cycle repeats itself. So students, I wish you all the best in your journey. Remember it is the journey that counts, not the destination. You may not reach the destination. Thank you once again. I'll be available for Q & A later.
Hahahahhahaha.....I'm sure the hall will be empty by now.
