We’re Tired But Not Worn Out!

One of the places where solace can be sought from the numerous challenges that confront us in life is the hospital. The hospital is supposed to be a place of serenity and utmost comfort, it’s supposed to play the role of a mother, seeing to the needs of all ill persons, it’s supposed to be a father taking difficult decisions in the face of mounting scientific evidence as well as playing the roles of family and friends, rejoicing with you when you deliver your bouncy baby boy as well as consoling you when you lose a limb or a loved one.

The multifaceted function of the hospital has led to a boastful number of professionals whose skills range from average, intermediate, professionals and even experts. These days one wouldn’t be shocked to hear Professor so so and so performing a surgery or Dr so so and so doing stool Microscopy. The hospital has developed into an organism from its rudimentary single celled stage. Those days were one medic performed all diagnosis and issued medications as well as did follow ups are fast disappearing beyond the thick blue skies. A shower of rain has greeted this new era. The complexity of professionals and experts within the hospital setting sometimes baffles many people. Indeed these specializations could be said to have led to greater efficiency and division of labour which amounts to better healthcare delivery and better organizational outcomes. Suffice to say, even amongst the various departments, there still are specializations. So if we take Physicians as a group, there are several types such as endocrinologists, laboratory physicians, emergency physicians, psychiatric physicians amongst a host of others. The same can be said about the laboratory where we have hematologists, microbiologists, mycologists, virologists and a host of others. Nurses are more prominent in the medical eco system in terms of visibility and also show numerous stratifications and layers , such as mental , pediatric, general nurses just to mention a few. Space wouldn’t permit me to mention all the other numerous specializations such as podiatry, dietetics, occupational therapy, pharmacy, optometrists, radiotherapy, physiotherapy and medical physics whose contribution to health care delivery cannot be overlooked.

These various professionals and expertise are acquired within various time lengths. Some ranging from 2 years for a Health Assistant to more than 10 years for Neurosurgeon. Indeed these wide ranges of persons who all contribute towards the performance of a hospital all have their premiums and roles they play. It’ll be Ostrich play to place all health care professionals in one box. This is sadly the situation in most Ghanaian communities who attach the term doctor to the white coat, irrespective of what the person’s qualifications or specialization is. The above mentioned areas creates a beautiful blend of professionals interspersed with auxiliary staff such as accountants , cleaners or orderlies , procurement staff, IT personnel , HR personnel just to mention a few. The hospital environment therefore provides the best place to witness how our co-habitation and hospitality as humans, Ghanaians and Africans are exhibited.

Due to the demand on medical professionals who are confronted with tight work schedules in their respective fields of endeavors as well as economical considerations, the tendency for most healthcare professionals to live up to their best in attending to sick patients is usually not met . In most government and health facilities, the lack of adequate remuneration complementary with work done serves as a disincentive to some workers who absent themselves from work with no reason. It’s noteworthy that some members of the medical fraternity who have attained the status of consultants come to the hospitals as and when needed and aren’t therefore permanent. A nurse or midwife who sees to about 20 patients a day in a Regional Hospital may not be as relaxed as another nurse who sees to 5 patients a day at a District Hospital. The dynamics of the jobs bares their effects on these two nurses who may both be trained at the same time and in the same institution. A midwife who would have to juxtapose between attending to 3 pregnant women in theatre may not show the same level of empathy as another who may be attending to just 1 in a private clinic somewhere in East Legon. This scenario plays across all the various professional fields where the workload outweighs the workforce. As a developing country, these bottlenecks cannot be ignored and should be taken into considerations when describing medical personnel. Most persons use unsavory words and even get to the point of issuing threats and casting of insinuations on health personnel who may only be doing their work. This is not to exonerate the bad nuts whose deliberate unprofessional conduct continues to drag the name of medical professionals in the mud.

Bearing all these challenges confronting health care professionals in the delivery of proper and holistic healthcare interventions to our clients, do we have a caveat or are we faultless when we shout at a patient due to the stress we’ve encountered in the day? are we blameless when we negligently cut off a left limb instead of a right one ?, are we blameless when we administer 10g instead of 5g to a patient , are we blameless when we give wrong laboratory results to the doctor for diagnosis ? The answer to this lies in a question posed by an HR consultant I encountered a few days ago at a seminar. She asked a question which I pose to all personnel today, WHO IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PERSON IN YOUR LIFE AT THIS MOMENT? As religious as I was, I started mentioning God, family and the like. Her simple answer was YOU. The most important person in her life was ME, how possible considering that this was even the first time I had met her. She set out to explain, if we’ll treat everyone who crosses our paths at each and every moment as the most important persons in our lives, everybody would be special. If a physiotherapist would see an accident victim as the most important person in his life at the physiotherapy clinic then he’ll give off his best just as he’ll see his wife as the most important person at the moment he gets home. If a Pharmacist would see a patient as the most important person in her life at the pharmacy, he’ll handle her as an egg and give off all his best. If we’ll all put our hands to the wheel and grind the health wheel, few people would die at the hospital, and patients would live longer, if we’ll determine to place importance on every life that God places in our care, our lives would be more meaningful and more accomplished. Let’s not forget that ours is a calling, to be a tool in the hands of the maker, to balm the masses and shed the light of God in the hearts of men.

The writer is a champion of preventive healthcare, and has a passion for stemming the ills in society through constructive pieces and articles. He’s a Scientist and takes key interest in prevalent public health issues. This he does as his contribution to knowledge advancement and a cure to the ills of society. He can be reached on [email protected].