Happy Freddie (2)

Four weeks to go
We reviewed the sentiments of the individual Board members. Four, incuding my boss, tended to see it Freddie's way: the MSS is an independent organization and should not be meddled with for purposes of control and supervision. The other five members, including the Chairman, saw the MSS as falling under the Board's control. And what was alarming was that RQV planned to push his proposed amendments to the C&BL and was all set to put it to a vote at the next Board meeting. There was, however, a possible swing vote. One of the five could be swayed to change his mind.

The obvious thing to do was to stall during the next Board meeting, which is a monthly thing. I made it clear to Freddie that it was all up to him. He finally came up with the right idea: press the Board to define once and for all the relationship between the hospital and the MSS before acting on the question of the amendments. I pointed out to him that it was imperative that the Board understood that no action should be taken on the latter issue as long as the former remained unresolved.

Most importantly, this should all take place toward the end of the meeting, when everyone's too tired to take up anything so (relatively) complicated. Should the issue not be brought up at all, Freddie has to bring it up himself. I insisted: timing was everything.

We had four weeks to go till the next Board meeting.

One week to go
Last week, Freddie came back with the news that RQV was intent on railroading his amendments to the C&BL with the support of the Board Chairman, and that, in fact, RQV had announced during the MSS regular meeting the proposed amendment and the Board's approval of the same.

The result was pandemonium, as one could well imagine. The obvious issue from the MSS' point of view was interference in its affairs from the Board. Clearly, the members also viewed the MSS as extraneous to the hospital's organizational structure, and as such, beyond the Board's reach.

Five days to go
We decided to take the Sub-Committee (SC) into the fray. Freddie and I head this group working on a service contract between the hospital and the doctors, and a code of conduct for the doctors. We have six very active doctors participating in the project, most of them heads of a medical department in the hospital. Although the SC does not really have any personality to confront the Board with the issue involving the MSS, it could oppose RQV's plans as detrimental to the work we have already started. Plus, we could take the stand that, since the SC was also working on building a more professional and open relationship between the hospital and the medical staff, this plan would easily undermine whatever footholds we've already gained.

The Battle Plan
After much venting of frustrations, I suggested the following:

1. Doctors to make a list of all issues affecting them as members of the medical staff of the hospital.


2. Doctors to set a meeting with the Board en banc and present the list to them, requesting clear-cut policies on the issues. (Actually, it was Freddie's idea to meet with the Board en banc because of the swing vote. He can be good at this, in fairness, but someone has to kick it off for him, then he takes over. He still needs to develop the mean bones in his body. Ironic, considering he's an orthopedic surgeon. :P )


3. Freddie to volunteer the services of the SC to draft the policies.

The objective was to overwhelm the Board with so many complicated problems requiring urgent answers that, once presented with the way out, i.e., the SC, the Board would grab it at the first opportunity. (Like I mentioned earlier, this is a Board that has no sense of its full power as a Board.) The Board gets off the hook and heaves a sigh of relief; the SC gets to control policy-making. Everybody happy. (Especially me.)

It was a good plan. A logical plan. I liked it. I was so very proud of myself.

Unfortunately, there was no chance to test it.

To be continued...