A Family Doctor's Tale - MY OWN FAMILY CLINIC

MY OWN FAMILY CLINIC

Midway though my group practice stint, I found that I had successfully for a housing board shop which I could use as a clinic for a reasonable rent of $1001( I tendered 1 dollar above the thousand dollars).

With my savings of $6000 from my work as a locum, I managed to get a young contractor to build the inside of a simple clinic.

The clinic has a small waiting room with seats and a reception cum dispensary which is connected to the 2 consultation rooms through sliding doors. 
Each consultation room had a bed with drawers and a table,chairs and a small cupboard. 
All these furniture are still used in my clinic today 37 years later such was the quality of wood in those days. 

I opted for a ceiling fan for the waiting room and an air conditioner which pulled in air from the back of the consultation rooms to the dispensary. 

I also opted for a record card system for the patients( there were no computers in those days). 
The storage cupboards for the record cards are still in use today. 
The dispensary has shelves and cupboards to keep the medicines. There was a table and chairs for the clinic assistants to register and dispense medicines. 
There was also another table for them to eat their meals


 Together with the signboard and metal gates, I managed to spend just enough of the $6000 and on time for the opening in January 1974.  
It was an auspicious opening because I also found that my wife was expecting our second child. 

At that time I did not even have any clinic assistant. I was working alone. However I did put up a sign asking for people to work as clinic assistant. 
The nurse from the Run Down Clinic came down one night and helped me to set up the medicines in the cupboards, She also told me that a lot of patients were asking for me but she could not give them my address. It was against my medical ethics.



Residents started to move into the estate after I opened the clinic.
It was at this time I employed the first girl who came for an interview. She used to work as a nursing aide in a private hospital. She could cut gauze to make dressings, rolled cotton balls from cotton wool and sterilize instruments for surgery by boiling them in the sterilizer. 

The second clinic assistant was employed when she brought her nephew to see me for food poisoning. 
She used to work in another clinic quite far away for several years. 
She brought her expertise from that clinic suggesting some medicines which her former clinic was using besides those that I have bought from the salesmen that I have met at the Run Down family clinic. 

I taught them how to write the medicines dispensed in the Dispensary book which all doctors were to keep as a record for Ministry of Health inspectors. 
I also taught them to read my writing and how to dispense the medicines to the patients according to my instructions. 
They were also to collect the money from the patients and gave receipts to all the patients. At that time any receipt above $20 must have a 10cents stamp on the receipt. 
The 2 clinic assistants were honest and hard working. 
The second girl whom I hired is still working at my clinic to this day.


Because I was depending on my wife's income as a teacher, I have to work long hours in order to make ends meet for the clinic.
The hours were for Mondays to Saturdays:

9am to 12.30pm

2pm to 5.30pm
7pm to 9pm 


For Sundays and most public holidays, the hours were 9am to 12.30pm.

The only holidays that I rested was on 
May Day( rest for employees- I was a socialist), 
National Day (a patriotic), 
Christmas Day (a Catholic), 
New year Day( a new year) and 
Chinese new year ( traditional).

It was hard work but I was young and idealist and eager to support my family.

Such was the life of a family doctor starting his own clinic at that time.

My wife used to worry about the clinic asking me how many patients I saw each day. I would answer "1",sometimes "2" or "3".
As each day passed and more residents moved into the estate the numbers slowly increased.

My old Medical officer from Thomson Road General Hospital came to see me at the clinic as did the Junior partner of the group practice. I was happy to see them even though there were few patients.

As usual my wife brought my daughter to my clinic on Sundays and public holidays.
In August of that year my wife gave birth to our second child another beautiful and healthy girl.

I was very contented with my life having a devoted loving wife, 2 beautiful daughters and my own family clinic which I always wanted to serve my community.