My brother-in-law who recently finished his studies from UIA have been working in UTM, Johor Bharu as a research assistant. Apparently his final year project piqued the interest of a lecturer there and he offered him the position and to start immediately. In the meantime he’s also been looking for a job at different companies which is a sensible thing to do because you know, he might just get a better offer somewhere else. You know how it is with government jobs, especially contract jobs, you get paid peanuts these days. So he moved to JB and rented a house with his friends there. Last week however he was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance after complaining of severe stomach pain. Before you know it he was scheduled to remove his appendix.
He was made to understand that they’re going to do the procedure immediately at the Sultanah Aminah hospital that day so he didn’t trouble himself to go to a private hospital which should be covered under his insurance policy. So he waited and did not have anything except water in preparation for the surgery in the crowded hospital ward. Hours turn to days and on the second day he asked the doctor again and he casually said actually he’s 4th on the waiting list and the doctor had to fix somebody else first. All his waiting and fasting for nothing. They should have the courtesy to inform him earlier instead of torturing him like that. So he asked for a friend to pick him up and then transferred to a private hospital. The removed the appendix and stitch him up within hours.
There was a debate recently on social media where people were comparing government and private hospitals, how government hospitals are good if not on par with private hospitals. The truth is they are miles apart in term of service, especially speed. Sure you don’t pay much at government hospitals but normally they would make you wait a long-long time before attending you, let alone performing operations on you. Not to mention super-crowded wards and substandard hygiene in their toilets. Therefore it’s no surprise that many people prefer private hospitals over public ones whenever they can afford it or use their medical insurance card. For some, government hospitals are only as a last resort when they have exhausted all other options. Personally, I would like me and my loved ones to get the fastest and best possible service when they are unwell. Hence why it is important to get yourself some sort of medical insurance for rainy days or at least find an employer with good medical benefits.
So after the surgery, I drove all the way to JB last Sunday to pick up my brother-in-law from the hospital. It is a long and tiring drive, especially when you’re fasting but it’s one of those things you have to sacrifice for your family. Lucky for me I left for JB late in the afternoon and since I’m driving alone, it took me slightly over 3 hours to reach my destination. After getting my BIL discharged from the hospital, I drove another 3.5 hours home including a quick stop for buka puasa. This week, I went to JB again this time with my family to send my BIL for the follow up. Somehow the doctor failed to show up and if my BIL didn’t have to go to JB anyway to pack up his stuff and move out, my long drive there would be for nothing. So that’s twice in a week I drove 600 kilometers to JB. Since it’s Ramadan and I don’t have much funds to enjoy ourselves we didn’t go anywhere much except to UTC to renew my wife’s driving license.
On the way back we stopped at Nilai 3 to buy myself and Adam our baju melayu for Raya. To be honest I don’t mind wearing the same old black baju melayu that I wore for the last two years but then, I thought it would be nice to have the same matching colours with my wife and kids again. We had dinner at the crowded Marrybrown outlet there and head home shortly after.
