I wanted to host my HIV programme in a different format this year. Instead of another aerobics session with a public talk, I made it into an organised CME session. The turnout was bad as I overlooked certain things that could have made a difference. Less than 10 people attended the talk.
NO hype. There was no hype built around the programme. Hence, people were not excited to attend the session and just cited ‘being busy’ or ‘patient ramai’ as an excuse. I could do better by explaining what World AIDS Day is and emphasising the importance of healthcare worker’s support.
Existing HCWs do not see their role in HIV care. To them, it is a distant thing managed purely by myself, Dr Minci and members of my team. While it is true that we coordinate patient’s care, other healthcare professionals are equally important in managing these cases.
Team spirit. It is noticeably lacking as compared to my NCD team. Perhaps it is predominantly male making them less enthusiastic about the frills of any celebration.
Anyway, InsyaAllah I can do better in 2025. I will be having a new co-champion. I hope that everything goes well. Amin.
Planning and organizing this programme was a learning curve.
Human resource stuff. Funding stuff. Logistic stuff. Part of my miscellaneous task includes printing out certificates, present hunting and creating montage. This is my first time using Canva to create videos. I had no idea you could make one so easily. I am contemplating getting the Pro version. I was swayed to get Spotify Premium just for this event as I wanted background music to always play while participants were registering. So now there’s no more music interruption on Spotify and I can download my tracks to play offline.
One of the most valuable lessons was in communication. Learning how to talk to the boss, and team members (the good and the bad), physical communication, and online communication..
The beginning is always the hardest, once it looks easy, more people want to be part of it.
2. Teamwork Works when the Core Members are strong
3. Sometimes you have to be authoritative in your approach. Saya nak ni. Saya nak tu Sediakan bla bla bla
4. A multidisciplinary programme requires skills to not only work with the leaders of other units but also to overcome issues pertaining to the Generation Gap. Aged members or those too young may not understand where your ideas are coming from.
5. Having said that, we cannot change how other leaders choose to run their units. Especially when the practice is ‘ memang biasa kita buat mcm ni’.
6. Organizing a programme/outreach is fun when you have Money, Human Resources and No Redtapes. Nak pinjam board utk tampal poster promosi pun kena surat seminggu before programme. In the end, I used my Elaun keraian to support the programme. I printed out our own certificates using my trusted Brother printer at home.
7. Patients can change. Patients can improve with the right psychological state and an appropriate biological intervention
7. Malaysians enjoy free things – so we prepared mini goodies to bring back home.
8. To lead means having the skills to delegate – knowing who can do what task. Failure to do so results in the head shouldering most of the responsibilities. For some people we give instructions, and they can carry out and consult back accordingly. Some need to have their work scrutinized with frequent checks. Let’s just say that I learned my lesson.
9. Creativity means different to different people. What you imagine/envision may not be properly interpreted by some. So, if the results are acceptable, you kinda learn to just shut one eye.
10. Show up and face the challenges
The award recipients and The Team
I submitted our event to the International Diabetic Federation committee for consideration to be featured on their site. We will see how it goes.
With god’s will, we will plan more activities for Hypertension and Asthma next year.
Minci Moss 