"I am trying very hard to become head of my department" the visiting professor told me. "Actually I am the most snior person and the job should be mine. But others with vested interests are stopping me."
"But why?" I asked. "The salary is not different, and it is not much fun doing all that paperwork as a head of the department."
"It is not the salary" he said. "It is the opportunities."
"What opportunities?" I asked. I did not anything that one could not do only because someone else was the head of the department.
"Opportunities to go abroad" he said. "As a head of a government medical college's head of a department, I can go to US twice or thrice in two years. It is fun., One gets to visit one's children settled there. One saves a bit of money too."
I would never know that bliss because I was head of a department in a civic hospital, where people are not sent abroad on civic money. Anyway i was not interested - I did not even possess a valid passport, and did not want one too.
Then I heard of opportunities in civic hospitals too. One colleague was speaking of another head of department.
"That is a horrible head of department. He does not want anyone else in the department to get any opportunities."
"What opportunities?" I asked.
"Going for meetings to other cities or at five star hotels in town" came the answer. "Any such thing comes along, he grabs it for himself."
So the scale was tone down a lot, but the concept existed in civic hospitals too.
Then one day came the big break for the speaker. There was a paid trip to the US for a few months. I was told only when the visa was given, meaning all other things were done.
" I will be going tomorrow" I was told. I understood it was the fear of the opportunity being lost that had prevented that person from opening up earlier.
I said 'happy journey' or something to that effect. I could not have said what was upsetting me because it could not be understood and acted upon by the opportunity seekers. In a job like ours, I expected one to seek opportunities to exel, to do something that would make a difference for someone or better still, for the medical field as a whole, to leave a mark on this world when one finally passed away. Someone looking for a free lunch could not grasp that concept, and perhaps would not be able to make good use of any of those opportunities I had in mind. Well, that is life.
"But why?" I asked. "The salary is not different, and it is not much fun doing all that paperwork as a head of the department."
"It is not the salary" he said. "It is the opportunities."
"What opportunities?" I asked. I did not anything that one could not do only because someone else was the head of the department.
"Opportunities to go abroad" he said. "As a head of a government medical college's head of a department, I can go to US twice or thrice in two years. It is fun., One gets to visit one's children settled there. One saves a bit of money too."
I would never know that bliss because I was head of a department in a civic hospital, where people are not sent abroad on civic money. Anyway i was not interested - I did not even possess a valid passport, and did not want one too.
Then I heard of opportunities in civic hospitals too. One colleague was speaking of another head of department.
"That is a horrible head of department. He does not want anyone else in the department to get any opportunities."
"What opportunities?" I asked.
"Going for meetings to other cities or at five star hotels in town" came the answer. "Any such thing comes along, he grabs it for himself."
So the scale was tone down a lot, but the concept existed in civic hospitals too.
Then one day came the big break for the speaker. There was a paid trip to the US for a few months. I was told only when the visa was given, meaning all other things were done.
" I will be going tomorrow" I was told. I understood it was the fear of the opportunity being lost that had prevented that person from opening up earlier.
I said 'happy journey' or something to that effect. I could not have said what was upsetting me because it could not be understood and acted upon by the opportunity seekers. In a job like ours, I expected one to seek opportunities to exel, to do something that would make a difference for someone or better still, for the medical field as a whole, to leave a mark on this world when one finally passed away. Someone looking for a free lunch could not grasp that concept, and perhaps would not be able to make good use of any of those opportunities I had in mind. Well, that is life.
