A JUNIOR doctor was recently found out for being utterly rude when she gleefully posed for a photo while attending to a patient in labour.
The photo showed her with her right hand in her patient’s private part while her left hand was held up in a victory sign. In the background, the other medical staff could be seen, serious and hard at work, solely focused on the patient.
The photo went viral when this junior doctor posted it on her own social media account and riled up many Malaysians. Some came up with responses that it was only in Malaysia that such idiocy could take place.
As much as sentiments these days are that Malaysians are known for peculiar and astounding behaviour, there have been several recent exposes or reports of incidences of badly-mannered medical staff doing the same around the world.
Sometime in July, a Russian paramedic, now branded as “a horrible human being” was fired from her job after taking selfies with dying patients.
The paramedic, Tatania Kulikova would post photos of herself with unconscious accident and heart attack victims in the back of an ambulance with captions like “how I hate my job” and “another moron”. In one of her more infamous selfies, Kulikova is seen with her middle finger up at her dying patient.
It is hard to swallow how crass and cold some people can be. As for Kulikova, she should have just quit if she hated her job, instead of waiting to be fired. Then again, some people thrive on bad publicity and attention.
But of course, people addicted to taking selfies have already been medically described as having mental issues.
Meanwhile, in Mexico, medical student Maria Jose Gonzalez ignited public outrage when she took a selfie next to a very sick and dying patient. The photo was then shared on social messaging with remarks which were deemed inappropriate.
Gonzalez had argued that she had obtained permission from the patient to take a photo with her. Eye doubt that anyone this ill and on the verge of dying would be in the right state of mind to consent to a photo.
The university at which Gonzalez is a student has launched investigations into the incident and will insist on its students observing good manners and a code of conduct.
Bad selfie etiquette among medical staff is also known as a North American ‘thing’. There have been many incidences and reports of medical staff taking inappropriate selfies mocking their unconscious or sleeping patients. Back in the delivery room, a Venezuelan student obstetrician also brought on a slew of hate messages directed at him when he took a selfie with one of his patient’s private parts as she was giving birth, which he then uploaded on Instagram and bragged about himself in a rather tactless manner. He was also eventually disciplined.
While most of these incidences brought about reactions of the public being repulsed by the behaviour of the medical staff, and also issues on patients’ privacy, Eye feel that the actual concern should be the lackadaisical attitude of these medical staff, whose key responsibility is the safety and comfort of their patients.
Imagine being in the hands of a doctor or surgeon who was more concerned about posing for a photo, while you lay there in pain, bleeding out or gasping for breath.
To the doctor in Johor, you may think that delivering a baby is a normal procedure and you can, for a few seconds, slack off for a foolish photo just to feed your ego.
A few seconds can make a lot of difference in someone’s life and even the safety of the baby.
Medical codes of conduct and ethics exist for a reason. In the United Kingdom, part of this includes a document titled ‘Taking and using visual and audio recordings of patients’, which spells out that patients must be duly informed, consent given and that these recordings are made for a valid reason – for documentation or research for example.
Selfies? Photos to upload on your social media account? Nope, these are not included, and they should never ever be included.
Not only can they be demeaning to the patient, but also distract and implicate the other medical staff who are doing their very best to ensure the safety and comfort of the patient.
Taking selfies in emergency situations are not the only kind of selfies that pose a danger.
“Udah jadi penyakit bahaya ya!” (It’s become a dangerous sickness!) said a friend, in reference to selfies, when she witnessed a lady driver taking photos of herself while driving in Kuching recently.
Who cares if you get 10,000 likes on social media for photos of yourself, because your vanity and misguided ego may just end up causing hurt to others around you.
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