Tag: hospital

A Feel Good Story

Many government departments are making improvements quietly to improve customer service and more. Often and ironically, we do not see it until we compare it with private companies for which they were benchmarked against. Deteriorating quality is creeping up on privately owned telcos, banks, subscription TV and insurance companies, for example.

Notable on the opposite spectrum are customer service improvements and increased efficiency in work processes of certain government owned entities. Some, not all. Leapfroggers are hospitals, police stations, immigration and transport departments which were previously well known for their tardy service and long queues,

I was at the 147 years old KL General Hospital (HBKL,GHKL or HKL) this morning. Not only are the nurses friendlier, but they all seemed genuinely happy and went out of the way to help patients. Even the doctors came out of their consultation rooms to look for patients. Guess what? They even have a Drive Through Pharmacy now

We don’t always need privatization to fix things. We need a change of attitude and guts to identify weaknesses and to find better ways of doing the same things.The area shown on this pic is a wheelchair parking area though the markings on the floor are a little faded, The nurse standing there was like a mobile help counter, aiding and guiding patients who were confused or lost.

She also chatted with solo patients. Seeing her smile made me smile. After all, we go to hospitals to feel better and a few uplifting moments do no harm. The improvement in productivity and efficiency mean the waiting area was virtually empty by 11 am. So what are are private sector corporations good at? Producing feel good PSA videos during festivals lah.

#feelgoodstory #uplifting #klgh #work #hkl

A Jakun Moment: A Look At Classy Solitary Confinement.

I was inside the glass bubble lift of the exclusive Prince Court Medical Centre, a five or six star, private hospital in Kuala Lumpur. When I reached the ground floor, I thought I was at the KLIA airport foyer. The lobby is that sprawling. A Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf shop and a MyNews.com magazine and convenience store complete the illusion of an airport. On a wall next to the visitors’ seating area were all kinds of framed awards, recognition certs and citations hanging, leading me to believe I am at the lobby of an insecure advertising agency. If you ever been to an ad agency, you will know what I mean.

I went to visit a good friend who was scheduled for a spinal cord or backbone surgery costing RM140 000 to be paid for by insurance claims. Makes my recent hospital stay of RM 85 000 at at a non-elitist private hospital (courtesy of insurance too but I had to cough out an “excess” from my own pocket, leaving me bankrupt at a time when I can’t work. Much like car insurance accident claims) The charges for both hospitals looked like shopping at 99 Speedmart versus Ben’s BIG.

Shockingly, another private hospital in Jalan Ampang quoted my friend even higher. Pays to shop around as many people do not realise insurance is not a bottomless pit. There is always an accumulating limit to money claimed. Spinal cord surgery is very risky, highly specialised and rightfully expensive. On the the other hand, I see a disturbing trend on social media where people are going to this hospital for childbirth, using selfies with the baby as humble brags since geo tags are used for every shot.

One thing, I felt right away during the visit (at 10:30 pm) was that it is a very lonely place for an adult patient. No other patients and visitors were visible from the very private room except the nurse attending to his needs. It was like classy solitary confinement.

#princecourt #privatehospital #jakunmoment #blackandwhite #hospital #privatehospital