Staff of Ministry of Health at Palmer Road 1959
The red arrow points to me
Health-care Pioneers
“As we look back
over the last five decades, no matter how big or small you think your role has
been, the progress and achievement we have today is a result of the dedication
and hard work from each one of you.”
Minister of Health Gan Kim Yong
On Saturday 23 August
2014 I attended the Pioneer Health-care lunch hosted by Minister of Health Gan
Kim Yong at Mandarin Orchard Hotel, Grand Ballroom. More than 400 people were
at the function. Majority of them were seniors and former staff of the Ministry. There were music, songs and
dances during the seven-course lunch
The Health Minister paid tribute “to the sweat, the tears
and sometimes the blood” that pioneer health workers had shed.
His speech was appropriate as far as the public health
inspectors were concerned. During our outdoor site inspections especially in the
hot sun, we did sweat a lot especially during a survey for mosquito breeding.
Checking open ground was alright but inspecting a septic tank for mosquito breeding was all sweat plus a “bonus”.
I had to remove the heavy concrete slabs that covered the tank so that I could
check for mosquito larvae. I spent some time to remove the concrete
slabs and later to put them in-place again. It was not an easy job and I sweat a lot.
But you had the “bonus”!
A septic tank needed to be de-sludge regularly. A
contractor was engaged to do the job. After the septic tank was de-sludge the contractor
was supposed to take it away from site. Instead he dumped the sludge as well as
the fresh faeces beside the septic tank. After some time vegetation and grass
grew over the dung. So, on my way up the septic tank I stepped on the smelly
faceas and sludge. On the way down, I also jumped onto the dung. That was my
“bonus” that I did not want.
At another incident I was nearly stabbed by a pair of
scissors from an illegal hawker at Circular Road. Fortunately a colleague saved
me. The street was crowded with people looking for bargain and illegal hawkers
setting up stalls on the road. The five-foot way was obstructed by crates and
bales of textiles. We were there with police escorts to clear the obstructions
and the illegal hawkers. It was so crowded with people that we were separated
and I was on my own. That was when an illegal hawker attempted to stab me with
a pair of scissors. He did not had the opportunity to plunge the scissors onto
my body and disappeared in the crowd.
A colleague of mine was not so lucky. He was stabbed by a
butcher at Cambridge Road market while on duty. So blood was shed. The culprit was arrested and
charged in Court. He was found guilty and jailed.
There were a few other life threatening incidents, but I was just
doing my job.
