My employer and I may be rapidly approaching crunch time. Three local health districts are to be amalgamated into one mega district. All senior medical staff have been 'invited' to a lunch-to-afternoon tea long meeting at a suburban motel. The email reads "Please be advised you have been invited..." Has the ring of a summons, don't you think?
The only reason Frank Burns would serve lunch and afternoon tea would be to ameliorate bad news. What bad news? Most likely, my colleagues and I will be asked/required to provide after-hours on-call services to more than one hospital at the same time and take weekend rounds at more than one hospital. In my mind, 'amalgamation' is simply a shorthand for decreased services and cost cutting.
I've just Google-Earthed the journey. A round trip through the burbs, from home to each of the three relevant hospitals and back, will mean driving about 84 km. Now, I like driving, I do, and I like Brisbane but I can think of better ways to spend a Saturday or Sunday morning. Oh, you can always listen to the radio or to talking books....yeah....yeah.
Traffic aside, covering more than one hospital at a time is not safe for patients. Murphy dictates that if more than one problem can take place at the same time and in different locations they most certainly will. It is also unfair on junior staff because of the increased pressure caused by removing an immediate source of supervision. I've tried it before and I can tell you: remote control medicine doesn't work.
As for myself, taking the added responsibility of supervising an increased number of junior staff when on call, particularly when I won't have worked with them on a day to day basis is not a good thing. The money side of things is always last on my list but the eleven dollars and two cents per hour I receive for fielding calls after hours is not enough if the number of calls is to be trebled.
As it is, I cannot attend the meeting. Sorry Frank. I'll have to wait and see the outcome. I might be trying to cross bridges before I come to them but on the other hand, just because you are paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you. A request to cover two or more hospitals at the same time will mean my resignation.
The only reason Frank Burns would serve lunch and afternoon tea would be to ameliorate bad news. What bad news? Most likely, my colleagues and I will be asked/required to provide after-hours on-call services to more than one hospital at the same time and take weekend rounds at more than one hospital. In my mind, 'amalgamation' is simply a shorthand for decreased services and cost cutting.
I've just Google-Earthed the journey. A round trip through the burbs, from home to each of the three relevant hospitals and back, will mean driving about 84 km. Now, I like driving, I do, and I like Brisbane but I can think of better ways to spend a Saturday or Sunday morning. Oh, you can always listen to the radio or to talking books....yeah....yeah.
Traffic aside, covering more than one hospital at a time is not safe for patients. Murphy dictates that if more than one problem can take place at the same time and in different locations they most certainly will. It is also unfair on junior staff because of the increased pressure caused by removing an immediate source of supervision. I've tried it before and I can tell you: remote control medicine doesn't work.
As for myself, taking the added responsibility of supervising an increased number of junior staff when on call, particularly when I won't have worked with them on a day to day basis is not a good thing. The money side of things is always last on my list but the eleven dollars and two cents per hour I receive for fielding calls after hours is not enough if the number of calls is to be trebled.
As it is, I cannot attend the meeting. Sorry Frank. I'll have to wait and see the outcome. I might be trying to cross bridges before I come to them but on the other hand, just because you are paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you. A request to cover two or more hospitals at the same time will mean my resignation.
2 comments:
Sounds dire! The menacing 'invitation' is a nice touch. I'm told that a new law is becoming popular in some of the Sydney hospitals. Ellen's Law states that "no matter how paranoid you're being, you're not being paranoid enough".
Heya B! Is that from MW? Think often of E - and smile. See you Sunday,
Zimbo.
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