More ridiculous red tapes

I was involved in two incidents recently. I'll try to be very open-minded and promise to be as unbiased as possible while reporting them. And take my words, these were not isolated incidents. They happen on a daily basis, not only to me, but to all hospital slaves across the country.


INCIDENT #1
I was on-call a couple of days ago. A patient was admitted with right leg cellulitis, and needed intravenous antibiotics. I prescribed them, and asked the nurse to administer them. Sounded routine enough. Apart from the fact that she, a very senior nurse, was not allowed to give the drugs.

She explained to me that she's new to our hospital and had not attended an in-house training course for IV drug administration. No in-house training, therefore can't give the drugs.

I asked her if she had done it before in her previous jobs. She said, "Hundreds, if not thousands of times. But that was in my old hospital"

I then asked if the equipment and technique were any different in these two hospitals. No, she said.

As there were no other nurses available, I had no choice but to administer the antibiotics myself. The problem was: I have never ever done it in my life. I have absolutely no training whatsoever in administering IV drugs. It's simply a nursing, not medical, task.

"You're the doc, you're allowed to give the drugs" said the nurse.

I reluctantly obliged, following a crash course from this senior nurse.


INCIDENT #2
I am a Cardiology SHO. By rank, I am the third most senior person in the cardiology team, after the Consultant and Registrar.

One day I was asked by my consultant to supervise an exercise tolerance test (aka treadmill test). It sounds straightforward enough, as I have been trained to carry out such a task. I went down to the Clinical Measurement Department where the test would be done. A cardiac technician came up to me, and she asked, "Are you here to supervised the test?"

"Yes I sure am"

"Are you the Registrar then?"

"No, I'm the Cardio SHO"

"In that case, you can't do it then. Only Registrar or Consultant can supervise a treadmill test"

"But I'm the Cardiology SHO" emphasising to her the word CARDIOLOGY. "Besides Dr G (the consultant) was the one who asked me to do it"

"I don't care who you are. But you are not a registrar. Dr G should know better."

"Does it mean a Gastro or Neurology registrar is allowed to supervise a cardiac test, but me, a cardiology SHO, isn't?"

"Like I said, you are allowed to do the test only if you are registrar or above"

I had to concede defeat, and walked away feeling very frustrated.