We are all equal ........ but some are more equal than others!

The General Medical Counsel (GMC) in the UK is addressing some issues around doctors training and the question of disability…..how to balance between equality and fitness to practice? Are we all equal? And can my medical history, mental status, circumstances affect my ability to do my job or is this discrimination?

 There are no easy answers – as usual –  and as I think about the issue, I think this affect not only medical education but all walks of life. To be a police officer I have to be certain weight and height, not discrimination against overweight people but practical requirement to be able to catch the cheeky mugger as he runs like the wind in a busy shopping centre. I can not role on a wheelchair expecting to be offered a job as an airhostess not because of disability but because it will not be safe for me or the passenger in my care if I am not mobile quick enough to evacuate in case of an emergency.

I don’t want to see a doctor who needs more help and support than all his patients! I equally don’t want to see people rejected from jobs just based on their skin colour or gender or because they simply ‘don’t fit in’.

In this seesaw, I feel that equality is becoming a huge issue and almost all other factors seems to be forgoten. I think there are few questions to consider with any job;

-        Can I still do the job?

-        Am I a danger to myself or others?

-        Will my ideas, beliefs, mental status, medication etc get in the way of my professional judgement?

Equality, yes sure, great and wonderful but let us keep the balance on this seesaw and make sure that fitness to do the job is considered too.

Reading between the….. lies!

Reading people’s CVs, personal ads, profiles and even obituaries is fascinating. They all read a happy, well balanced and amazing picture of harmony and maturity. From a ‘people person’ to ‘team player’ and from ‘outgoing, fun loving and loyal’ to ‘great parent and friend’. These are not lies and are not exaggerations, this is the way WE see ourselves, or the way we WANT to see ourselves.

I don’t think you will ever find a CV that says, ‘ I am a nightmare to work with’ or ‘I can only work when people listen to every word I say’. Personal ads is another one, no one will say that they are ‘indecisive, immature and got a lot of issues around commitments’! Instead, they like to see themselves as ‘easy going’, ‘a child at heart’ and ‘will only settle when I find my dream match’!

The good thing is that when God created us, he saw it was GOOD….all of it. With every part that we may not like or people might find it difficult to cope with, HE still finds us GOOD and longs for a relationship that last with us, just as we are, no pretends and no lies.

Now you see it.....now you don't

Today, I had a big task at work, to clear my electronic data from my computer. I wrote about this last week and today was the day that I had to move all my electronic files, folders etc. Where do you start, I have endless number of documents, lots of drafts and final documents, some duplication and some just back up files. Some I worked on long time ago and some are as recent as last week. I had lots of things already organised in big folders (yes, I am not totally hopeless) but I still felt overwhelmed by the task at hand.


So, I decided to do this in a tidy and organised fashion (OK, OK, no need to laugh) I decided to do it the quick way. I created a new folder and called "work old PC" and then moved everything to it, just as they are. 'I will look into them later' I told myself. The files were so big and took a long time to be transferred to my external drive but it was done at the end. Then with one click I deleted the folder from the main computer after it was transferred. Just like that, one click, one button and it was all gone. More than 8 years of work, research and teaching just gone from the PC, as if I was never there. All you can see on the old PC was my log in name.

There is a book on Amazon called "Now you see it, now you don't: lessons in sleight of hand" by Bill Tarr. Shows you how to do magic tricks and when I deleted the files it felt like that, a magic wand that cleared everything. Then I thought, what if we can do that in real life. Just one click and the problem is gone, one button and 'done' pain deleted. But if we can do that, then we have to be able to run the risk of deleting the good things by mistake or accident. I don't really fancy backing up my relationship in 3 different ways like I do with my documents in case they get lost. I am confident in the love, support and friendships that I have and am sure they can not be lost by mistake, or with a click of a button. As much as I would like for the bad things to be taken away, I know that God in his wisdom is writing the story of my life, weaving it all, dark colours and bright ones, all together to make a wonderful complete picture.

Enjoy life with all its ups and down, no back up and no system crashes, invest in what matters as when it is all said and done only two things remain, your faith and your relationships.

New task

As I get ready to start a new position in a wonderful location ( see the photo above), I have the very interesting task of moving my belongings from my current office. I have endless amount of books, papers, documents, etc that I have accumulated over the years. However, it is my electronic belongings that will take a long time to tidy up. In theory, the electronic belongings are not as obvious as books, papers etc, however they are very important and no one can help me move them. At work, I have access to 3 different offices with 3 different computers, I also have electronic legacy with photos, address and information on websites and university files. Thinking about how to work through it in an organised way is a bit daunting.

But as I think about it (this is the stage I am in at the moment, just thinking, no actual packing just yet), I realised how many electronic information I have out there!

email accounts, store accounts, Face book, twitter, eBay, paypal, online calendars, photo libraries, online banking, supermarkets online shopping, documents storage and many other accounts I have online.

With every account comes user names, passwords, security information and even some silly details about  pet names or shoes size! How are we dealing with this volume of information and belongings and what if something happen and I can not for the life of me remember my passwords? Do I need to leave my electronic "belongings" in my will?

I am sure I do not need to answer these questions right now and I better concentrate on actually doing the packing and tidying up to move to my new office in time, only to start creating more legacy somewhere else.

Church time

An excellent cartoon from the Asbo Jesus website.