2nd Week of MCO
Place was quiet again. Came to work early because I was on early duty. Was trying to get the PC working so I was crouching on the floor fiddling with the equipment. Heard someone shouting from a distance. Looked around, didn't see anyone.
Shouting went on. Turned to my left. Saw one lady shouting and pointing at me from a link bridge to the other end. "Yes, you!"
Confused, and stuck with the fiddling, I went, "Yes?" Didn't shout. I'm not the type who shouts, but my voice managed to carry.
"I'm looking for Dr So-and-So. Do you know where he is?" Yes, she's shouting from the other end. Thank God there were only one or two people at that time, so everyone was staring at her.
Oh for the love of --
"Go straight and turn right."
"WHAT?!" (She stood at the bridge, refusing to budge)
"I said, go straight and turn right." This time I made the gesture with my fingers.
I'm going to let out my rant here. Social distancing by the government is 1 meter, NOT A WHOLE BRIDGE! (Ridiculousness level: 1)
Work started like normal. Was so engrossed in paperwork that I didn't realize someone was directly speaking into my ear. "Hey. I'm looking for Dr So-and-So. Can you tell me how to get there?"
This irks me. Now see, I don't mind directing you where to go, but you could just say excuse me, not go directly to my ear. SOCIAL DISTANCING PEOPLE! The least you could do is say, "Excuse me" to get my attention. (Ridiculousness level: 2)
Received a complaint from a co-worker who was overly paranoid. Refused to touch the doorknobs or equipment. Insisted on someone to open the door for them like a butler, said the doorknobs and equipment were contaminated. (Ridiculousness level: 3) What did my lecturer teach us in college, besides my parents --
"Before and after you touch something, wash your hands."
I'll make things easy for you. Every time you touch something, wash your hands. Simple. No huss, no fuss.
Minister came live. Didn't really need to see the news to know that MCO was extended. Majority non-healthcare workers groaned. Come on, folks. Our cases at that time were skyrocketing above the roof, don't tell me you were expecting things to go back to normal so soon.
Being quiet means we are somehow closer to our co-workers and doctors (I'm talking about bonding, please don't mistake it for something else), because we are spending majority of our time in the hospital, and with not many patients around, we just go around talking to each other while keeping our senses on alert. Part of the package; you can never be too relaxed. But during that time, we get to unwind a little.
Bless our Triage friends. They were in full gear and scanning everyone who comes in. A co-worker said there's not much point, because Coronavirus (AKA COVID) is asymptomatic, meaning you and I could have it despite having no symptoms and looking healthy. The only way to be sure is to do a Covid Test, which is really uncomfortable. How so? Ever did an influenza swab? You need to insert a swab all the way up to your nose, which is really uncomfortable, not to mention irritating.
A father and his daughter came. Daughter had to do a temperature check. We used those ear-probe type thermometer. Immediately, the father launched several questions at me.
- "It's not hygienic."
- "How often do you clean it?"
- "How many patients had used this before us?"
- "Why do we need to re-check? Downstairs already did it for us."
Look here. We are not dumb or EVIL okay? We changed our ear probe daily, not to mention wiping the whole thing down with alcohol wipes AFTER EVERY PATIENTS. And nowadays, we don't use to old fashioned oral thermometer anymore. Go out to any clinic, most of them used forehead scanners or ear-probe. During my time, do you know what we use? Those old glass thermometer with mercury in them, which you need to shake several times to prep it and ask the patient to hold it under their tongue or armpit for THREE MINUTES. In our current world, people want instant service, like hey presto! 'Cause we still keep those lying around, in case we need to re-check. We tell patients to wait for the beep and they pull a face. "Why so long?"
Regarding the re-check: It's a must, okay? Supermarkets and clinics are practicing re-checking temperature. I don't set the rules, I just do my job. Father wouldn't let his daughter come near me (Okay, I'll respect that.) but he himself refused to even let me scan him near. Best part, when I want to hand him their temperature reading, he dug out a Dettol wipe, careful not to make contact with my skin as though I had the plague. (Ridiculousness level: 4)
Complaints came in from our staff: Housekeeping staff came up to us to tell us someone stolen their box of mask. I can't even-- WHY WOULD YOU STEAL SOMETHING OFF THE HOUSEKEEPING TROLLEY? (Ridiculousness level: 5) Nothing we can do about the stolen goods. Advised the staff to lock it in his compartment, rain or shine. Another staff came up to us how one family were really clever. They distracted the staff, while one kept close to the hand sanitizer at the counter. When the staff was distracted, the person swept the bottle of hand sanitizer into the bag they were holding and ran off. (Ridiculousness level: 6) I don't usually curse or swear, but I tell you, on that day, I hope karma rain down on these people.
The one good thing that came out of this whole pandemic, it really brings out people's true nature.
