GRAB

In jest.

How do you grab?

Medical College Hospital in the late 70s and early 80s.

Cardiology, Medicine,Surgery, ENT or Ortho -  OPs

There is a large crowd of patients around each OPs.

You somehow have to consult the doctor. No way. You'll be pushing and nudging. No progress. It takes two to three hours to finally  grab a prescription 

KSRTC buses. The moment it stops, a large disorderly crowd mills around struggling to board and grab standing room. The lucky gets in just as the conductor gives the double bell. The bus gathers speed and throws a few down.

Bombay suburban trains. An unbelievable sight. The train enters the station. The crowd pushes in to grab a place to stand just as the unfortunate are heckled as they disembark. Some are pickpocketed.

Sanghumugham beach. The fishing boat returns with the catch. See how people push to grab the fish 

Now think of places where people assemble. They are exhorted to grab whatever is on offer.

Look at everyone crowding up to grab. Imagine the elders  or those not in perfect health doing that.

Malayali knows only one thing.

Push people around, move up, stretch a hand and scoop up or grab what he wants before anyone else gets a hand to it

BINU SAMUEL THOMAS

 

"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me". 2 Corinthians 12:9. Also love this quote from the late great Bruce Lee: 'Life's battles don't always go to the stronger or faster man. But sooner or later the man who wins, is the man who thinks he can.'

Binu Samuel Thomas

NO PROTOCOL

INJURY TO UNIVERSITY EMPLOYEE

It happened many many years ago.

The Kerala University campus in Trivandrum was blockaded by the leftist student activists Nobody could enter the campus. The left were not in power in Kerala at that time. 

The reason for the blockade could have ranged across umpteen reasons. It could be Vilanilam. It could be the Pre-degree board. It could be the irregularities in the examinations. When the left is not in power, the students would rise in revolt. Violence would be the corollary.. The Police  swings into action. Teargas shells explode. Water cannon hits the protestors. Then it is the lathicharge. The Police would aim at the heads of the unruly mob. 

The University Syndicate was in session. The protestors wanted to disrupt it. Some of them broke the Police Cordon and ran up the steps to the first floor. The Police were running after them. There were flower pots in the first floor. The student leader - a big time politician now - began throwing the flower pots at the Police. Unfortunately, one flower pot had hit a University employee, a woman on her head. It caused laceration and profuse bleeding. The lady was working  at her seat at that time. The flower pot was  poorly aimed and it flew through the open window into the office where the lady sat.

There was utter confusion and pandemonium in the office.The wounded employee was at once moved to the General hospital. She needed a couple of stiches. She was kept in the ICU for two days and was later moved to the Pay ward where she had to spend a week.

Since the Vice Chancellor(VC) had been on tour, the Pro Vice Chancellor(PVC)had been officiating as the Vice Chamcellor at that time. 

Someone suggested to the PVC that he must visit the employee who had been admitted to the hospital.

The PVC had replied, "As per protocol, the VC or the PVC are not expected to visit the employee  who has been grievously injured while she is on duty at the University office."

He didn’t bother though it was an employee who had been working under him and who had been grievously injured while she was on her job.

The PVC at that time had been very much vocal on Gandhian ideals.

Look how cleverly he evaded from his professed ideals and duty.

Even today, he highlights Gandhian principles.

Please travel back in history when terroists had wrought havoc at the Taj Hotel in Mumbai.

Ratan Tata had stood guard outside the ravaged Taj Hotel for days together.

It was the call of duty for him.

But our great PVC never felt it was his duty to look after the wounded employee of his own office.

See the call of duty !!!

KNOWLEDGEABLE COLLEAGUES

 

Studying with knowledgeable colleagues is good for growth.

We can then see the colleagues are teaching  and coaching one another.

You learn as much when you are taught by peers as by the faculty.

Teaching is a surprisingly powerful method of learning.

American visitors at KUTS

 American visitors at KUTS

The KUT Seminary Campus at Kannammoola, Trivandrum excels in nature's splendour. It is lush green with century old trees lining the path. There are ancient buildings here that date back to the early 20th century.

The surprise is, the institution is located at one of the busiest areas in the City. 

The authorities here are adamant they would not do anything that mar the blessing they have been bestowed upon by nature.

Many of the  visitors to Trivandrum step into the campus to savour the pristine beauty on offer. 

Recently a group of tourists from USA had visited the place. They walked around mesmerised. The Library astounded them. According to them the buildings displayed a seamless merger of the ancient and the modern.

The  Seminary had organised few cultural events by its students to showcase the heritage of Kerala and  India. It was a beautiful presentation.

In honour of the visitors from abroad  the Seminary had hosted lunch  before they left.   To keep them company, the entire staff contingent of the KUT Seminary had joined in.

Though there was free interaction as everyone waited to partake in the lunch,  five of us formed a separate group to have our lunch away from the visitors. Perhaps inhibition might have induced us to do that. Perhaps  the fear of English of the phenomenal malayali must have made us form that unitary group.  However there was one vacant seat in the middle at that six seater table. We knew from our experience, another of our clan would soon take that seat.

To our surprise one of the vistors, a lady had chosen to take that seat disregarding that it was a male only preserve. The presence of an alien made the rest remain silent and munch the food with relish and of course without looking up. Adding fuel to the intrusion, she began engaging all of us in a conversation that ranged between a variety of topics. The lady must have come across people like us before. She had opened up  smartly. 

Pushed to an inextricable corner,  we had no other option but join her and respond to her queries. Civility demanded it. The table became lively. 

The beauty was she had made us shed our inhibitions  and converse freely in the only language she knew, English  - though the usual malayali normal is that they invariably shy off from speaking the universal language. 

Invigorated by the conversation we parted after enjoying the sumptuous food on our plates.

It was a great time for all of us.

Lunch over, the group left for their ensuing destination, leaving behind precious memories of some wonderful moments in our lives

LEARNING PROCESS

 

LEARNING PROCESS

When you have a task to tackle

When you find the task on hand is beyond you

When you are certain failure  looms ahead

Go after it

Try and find ways 

To come up with game plans

To turn the table

That'll be the stuff 

A lot of people don't see

The work you put in

Away from the shiny lights

It'll always be nice 

When you get the rewards

From your hard toil

JUBILEE MEMORIAL HOSPITAL

 

OPERATIONS AT THE PHARMACY NEED A RELOOK. IT IS STATIC.   EMPLOY DYNAMISM

 We are senior citizens. We are pensioners.

When we become unwell, like everyone else we are forced to proceed to a Hospital, consult a doctor and subject ourselves to the treatment the good doctor suggests. The treatment cures us and we go on with our life.

On Saturday, 10^th Jan 26 I was suffering from fever, severe head ache, and a running nose that gave me no let up. I just couldn’t put up with it anymore. My mind told me I must consult a doctor at once. Finding me unwell, Lila said she’d accompany me. I was in no position to drive our vehicle. She had stopped driving after she had retired from her job.

We took the Uber autoriksha route. It took some time. At the Hospital, the receptionist provided us with token no.32. It was 12 noon. The Doctor had a number of patients waiting for consultation. We could meet the doctor at 1.15 pm. She was very considerate. Examination over, she prescribed the medicines and told me to consult her again if I had any further discomfort.

Medicines are supplied at the Pharmacy. Prescriptions from all the consultants end up at the pharmacy. The Jubilee Memorial Hospital, thronging with patients was having a very busy day. At the Pharmacy you have to have another token. There will be a heavy backlog. You wait there patiently for another 30 to 45 minutes for your number to be called. At the counter you are asked to pay up through cash, g pay or card. Then you have to wait for another 5 to 10 minutes for collecting your medicine.

We went through that process and reached home at round 3 pm. The medicine did act. The incessant flow from the nose had stopped. But by Monday violent bouts of cough started and I had no respite. I went on till Tuesday, the 13^th hoping the cough would go away. No way. It was worsening. We knew another visit to the hospital was essential.

We reached the hospital at 12 noon. This time we were lucky. We could meet the doctor fast. She wrote the prescription after careful evaluation. But we were unlucky at the Pharmacy. We were behind 40 patients. It took almost 40 minutes for our turn. Lila went to the counter at the Pharmacy. No invoice was handed over. The young girl took her card and swiped it. Money was transferred. No counterfoil was given either.

Another 10 minutes, the medicines were delivered. Instead of placing the medicines in the cover, the young lady had delivered the medicines and the cover separately. Lila had a difficult time to put them all into the cover as she was holding her shoulder bag with one hand. Fortunately a young man, who observed her predicament, did the good Samaritan act. He took the cover from Lila and placed all the medicines and the prescription in the cover.

We didn’t bother to verify anything at all. We somehow had wanted to reach home fast and take some rest.

At 6.30 pm a young lady from the hospital called me on my phone. She said against an invoice of Rs.609.10 I had paid Rs.6.09 only. She wanted me to G Pay the unpaid balance. I asked how it could be, for the amount was keyed in by the staff at the Pharmacy and we had no bill with us at that point. When I asked for it she forwarded the copy of the payment voucher. I said by the time the medicine was delivered at the Pharmacy the patient and the bystander would never be in their normal frame of mind after such a long wait. They would be thinking only of  reaching their home somehow without any further delay. I added they had to streamline the operations at the Pharmacy. I told her no one wants to visit a hospital as a patient. They do that out of sheer necessity. And they should not expect that the patients or the people with them would be coherent.

I told her I would send the amount that was short and did as I had agreed to.

I have no complaints about anyone at the hospital over our discomfiture

But as I said the operations at the Pharmacy of the Hospital need a critical review or audit by the people who are managing it.