Office Politics/Leadership Development – Page 2 – Dr. Plastic Picker
 

Category: Office Politics/Leadership Development

Mommy win

July 1, 2021

by drplasticpicker

Yesterday I felt literally and metaphorically “beat up.” I had a root canal and then I had to correctly address a middle-managment issue that required me to apologize. It was the right thing to do, but the circumstances that led up to that apology to a very wonderful person are so complex that it is mind-boggling. Sometimes I get so frustrated. If I was a man, I would not have to deal with many of the issues that make middle-management difficult. It’s still a man’s world, and as a technically part-time woman physician (supposedly 80%) leader – there is still so much unpaid work and responsibilities that I have to bear. It’s difficult for me because I’m the second income, and there is no financial or ego-motive for me. We are financially free, and it would be more cost-effective for me to return to clinic and just have the joy of seeing patients. I fundamentally love patient care. I since long got-over the ego-motives for being in physician leadership. We are glorified bean-counters and more like HOA-association heads. No real power, trying to get everyone to keep their front lawns up to made-up HOA specifications.

But I apologized and it was the right thing for the team, and my words were sincere. It wasn’t me, my actual person apologizing, it was Middle-Management Me apologizing. But in the back of the mind, I think of all the male leaders before me that never apologized. The Chief Boss a few chief bosses ago that made certain hiring decisions. The men that did untoward things to people that never fully had to own up to their moral transgressions. The men that sat there in the same position and essentially made a mess of the schedule that affected my life and the life of many working pediatrician mothers, and not many people said anything. The ones in leadership that formed a hiring system that is so stacked against BIPOC physicians, that it’s literally contributing to structural racism and health inequities. But it’s water under the bridge, and the current leadership team has no idea and they don’t need to know – because they weren’t even in our organization at that time. New team. It’s time to restart. It’s new relationships now. We have to build new connections and get to know eachother. But in my more vulnerable self, I feel hurt. I feel hurt not because of the actual situation that happened that required me to apolgize, but that I remember my journey to get to where I am. I see the accoloades that we are receiving for different metrics and how well run things are, and it was just assumed it was always like that. And I remember the past and how far it took us to get here, and no one remembers the steps and the efforts and the late nights trying to fix a system that seemed unfixable.

(more…)

May be an image of outdoors
Cloest place to buy sundries. Say hi to Phillip, nice gentleman there.

May 27, 2021

by drplasticpicker

I’m still processing it all. It was a whirlwind 48 hours. Someone mentioned to me on a work committee call that I was able to make because I was at the airport on a layover flying home, “I hope you enjoy your vacation.” I’m not sure why, but that kind of took me aback. Vacation? This trip was not a vacation. There is never a vacation from being Dr. Plastic Picker. This particular person didn’t mean anything by it and we have a complicated history between us, but it just shows no one knows your journey as well as you know your journey and I certainly do not know this colleagues – and the challenge is how and if to articulate it to folks. I’m not particularly close with the person who made this innocuous comment and it was meant as a pleasantry, so I didn’t feel the need to explain it further. I just said it was not a vacation and moved on to the next topic of the committee meeting.

(more…)

You can’t make this stuff up. I saw this yesterday on my beach plog on the way to Tourmaline.
Left the motorcycle but recycled the cans.

May 17, 2021

by drplasticpicker

Sometimes life is stranger than fiction, or even my trashart. I gathered bag #455 yestserday and it was a reused pita bread bag that was filled with wet plastic bags mostly washed up on Tourmaline Beach. I hadn’t really meant to head to the beach but I’m glad I did. It’s always an adventure. I wanted to start jogging more, so naturally ended up in my spot and did a beach cleaning amongst the rocky shore. I saw a beautiful snowy egret. They are a rare sight and only come feed where the kelp is left in it’s natural state. Where there is kelp, there are insect and remnants of crabs and other crustaceans. The “beach” of the white sand is really not natural. There is supposed to be kelp. The surf-rake removes it for us humans so we can recreate (and I mean to use that word in a new way). If it was up to me, we’d leave the kelp and the beach would be for the beautiful birds like the snowy egret.

(more…)

Mantilija Poppy

May 4, 2021

It’s someone’s birthday this week. Mr. Plastic Picker and I have two teenagers now in the house. One about to drive and another living in a world of dreaming about volleyball spikes and playing varsity. They both have such conventional lives with conventional concerns. For someone who grew up in a refugee household, I realize how unusual that is. Mr. Plastic Picker and I are who we are because of the way we were raised, within loving households that faced more struggles but anchored in a country that had opportunities for us. We are not trying to recreate ourselves in our children or recreate the circumstances that molded us. We are happy that the children have volleyball, and some of the biggest concerns is who is going to be taller than whom. Which SAT prep course to take? Summer house vacation with friend or go with your parents camping? I concentrate on them and also concentrate on the society surrounding them.

Did you hear about Bill and Melinda Gates divorce? Do you think money had anything to do with it? No money in the world is worth the dissolution of a marriage. I remember when Al and Tipper Gore annoucned their divorce. Because I had rewatched the Inconvenient Truth so many times, I was shocked. My own parents are still married. Mr. Plastic Picker’s parents are still married. And indeed when I was a young doctor mulling over the divorce of Al and Tipper Gore, a Dr. KJ who was older worked beside me and she came out and said “I’m still married.” That reminded me not to borrow the concerns of others.

Bill and Melinda Gates mentioned in their press release about their three children, and successfully raising them. Mr. Plastic Picker and I are in the midst of raising our two tweens. For me, our marriage and the family we’ve created which is an extension of our two families merged into these two teens – is the most important thing in my life. Maybe this is something a liberal feminist would disagree, but its more important than my career and more important than money. I don’t talk about my marriage and my family as much about plastic, but I wonder if my friends truly understand.

But that’s the wonderful thing about the new world. I can do it all. I can be married, have two teens, and be Assistant Boss and be an Eco-Avatar Dr. Plastic Picker. I can do it all and also be head of vaccine quality measures. It’s funny one truly understands who is supportive of your career, or those who gently push you along and help you along the way. Beware of those who subtly leave professional land-mines. Dr. Plastic Picker is all my years of being a mentor and Assistant Boss, I never told anyone to quit. I never told anyone that you could not do anything. I hope that I encouraged people along their career path and their family. There is no race. You can have children, a successful marriage, and be in leadership. I’ll clear the professional land-mines for you. Other people don’t see them, but as a litter-picker now I notice them all.

Funny upcycled planter, will go on the other lunch table at the employee patio area at wr work. See his nose ring?

February 21, 2021

by drplasticpicker

I’m kind of all over the place this morning, and this weekend. We had a phenomenal pediatric drive through vaccine event yesterday. That’s already posted and publicized over several facebook pages and Instagram accounts. Then we did some parenting yesterday, and finally bought some underclothes for our daughter and much needed running shoes. Between Dicks Sporting Goods and RoadRunners Store (which I actually don’t recommend), we spent $350. So much for being frugal! We haven’t really purchased any sustaintial clothing for her in months. I don’t remember the last new piece of clothing? She is such a good daughter and okay wearing hand-me-downs and on this sustainability journey with me, but when you need sports-underthings you need sports-underthings. Mr. Plastic Picker and I are both real middle-managers and it doesn’t make sense during the COVID-19 pandemic to spend time exposing our daughter to possible infection and time is money, so we spent 3 hours shopping for things and spent $350 on things she really needed which are quality products that should last her a very long time. I told her honestly yesterday, “Mommy always likes to reuse and/or find a deal. But honestly dear daughter, we have plenty of money and daddy needs to work so let’s just get what you need and get home. It’s okay to get good quality clothes and spend money sometimes.”

I was pleased that we didn’t fall into the Road Runner’s trap of getting the custom orthotics for our daughter who has no foot issues. Sheesh. It was like going to buy a new car, and them trying to sell us all the bells and whistles when you just want to go home with the basic model. Definitely a hard sell. But we walked away and even had a good dinner, and avoided take-out yesterday. We almost ordered pizza and almost got burgers. But knowing that I could whip up dinner really fast, we saved ourselves the unhealthy fats and saved the earth a bit of emissions yesterday.

But I feel so connected with everyone today, even though I am just sitting at home typing away at the computer. I have been on and off typing, but in between communicated with the amazing students at the Sustainable Pharmacy Project who are applying for a grant, posted on my Crimson University Alumni Page about the same grant that all aims to increase the discussion on climate change and health. I made the Bobby Flay’s pizza dough again, as I looked through our fridge and homemade pizza is a great food waste recipe! So lunch will be pizza after about a 6 hour rise. I made one further step in solidfying the judging panel for the Green Ribbon that one of my amazing colleagues is organizing for the Greater San Diego Science Fair. And then I made a trash art piece that is very profound.

Do you see yourself?
6 months that thing was sitting there. 6 months.

February 20, 2021

by drplasticpicker

I usually want to present pretty pictures of nature and trash art for the readership. But yesterday I dragged this plastic large thing (I think it’s the underside of a car) from the corner of the HMO parking lot to the trash can near this hidden back patio where employees eat. I dragged it there and gave myself 3 bag credit. I’m at 13 bags of trash now, and I committ to 20 bags for the month. Honestly, around my neighborhood is pretty clean and I get to the beach about twice a week at most. I have a lot of environmental projects to do, and since I really am trying to save the earth – I’m taking the easy way out and picking up trash around the canyons and the HMO parking lot. And there is a lot of trash.

I had time at lunch yesterday to go on a walk with Dr. Dear Friend and we visited the baby succulents. She was tired and feeling sad, because a dear family member is very sick and in hospice. We are all going through life struggles and it’s important to hear our friends. So we walked up the HMO parking structure and I leant her my water bottle and she squirted some water on our succulent babies. We chatted and we were just together as colleagues and friends. The succulent babies are doing well, and you can check out Instagram to see how they are doing. I usually post at least once a week photos. They are succulents so they don’t really need to be watered. We are planning on planting trees up there and some succulent fairy gardens.

(more…)

I put it on the lunch table outside! Yes I did!

February 19, 2021

by drplasticpicker

It’s totally out. It’s totally out in my HMO and physician group. I gave a podcast interview on physician wellness and I talked about Dr. Plastic Picker. I know it sounds odd since I’ve been out there already all over the blogsphere and Instagram for almost two years, but it was an oddly anticlimatic moment. I guess I’ve gone up the middle-management ladder so far already, that I realize that pretensions are silly and it’s the subtance of the person and their work that is the most important. I have no fear anymore of being ridiculed or looking silly. I’m totally out there now. And the reason I am out there is I need to make real changes from within and green our healthcare sector.

Everything is decomposing in my former “guerilla gardening” project up on the HMO parking lot. It’s not really guerilla gardening anymore since everything has decomposed, and I’m going to actually put real compost into those planters. There is an aloe tree and a bunch of succulents, but I’m just going to plant some bluberry pushes and a lemon tree soon. Why not. I even told the head of engineering (I think he is the head of engineering? It might be an imaginary person). And he was okay with it.

(more…)

I don’t think this one is a puffy/airy as the last one?

February 6, 2020

by drplasticpicker

I have nothing TO DO this weekend. I will probably DO a lot, but I have nothing TO DO. I even put my work text messages on BUSY. Not DO NOT DISTURB just BUSY. I will finish Fridays charts this weekend, and probably do a couple of patient follow up calls. But even with the climate work, I don’t have anything TO DO. Last week we gave UCSD Family Practice Grand Rounds and submitted an abstract to the Journal of Applied Research in Children. So a lot happened.

And it is Saturday morning and even the kids don’t have anywhere to be because it is quarantine still. Last night I came home late from clinic on the later side, but not as late as the Friday night before. Our daughter had a Girl Scout meeting at 630pm and their father picked up sushi with lots of plastic packaging, as the kids requested sushi. I guess the carbon footprint from sushi isn’t that much because at most it’s little bits of fish. So we had sushi while our daughter was listening to her Girl Scout meeting and I went to bed early. Even with a normal full clinic day, work is tiring. Dr. Dear Friend had a very irate parent and multiple child protection issue cases, and she had a harder clinic day than I did. But it’s hard these days at work because of all the saddness when our families come in. COVID-19 has particularly hit the hispanic and southbay communities more, and this is where I practice. This is where I grew up.

(more…)

Don’t food food in the vaccine fridge!

January 29, 2021

by drplasticpicker

I’m really proud of myself. I think it’s a function of having very encouraging parents who always taught me to be proud of myself when I deserved the praise. But I’m really proud of myself. I spent my time last evening being certified by the California Department of Public Health as a California Vaccines for Children Provider (VFC). It’s simply a series of 5 modules one has to go through, and are very specific for vaccine storage, distribution and how to account for these vaccines. Because it tests on a specific set of tasks that is required to order, distribute, store and ensure the safety of vaccines – you really can’t guess. I had done a similar training at the CDC website when I thought about leaving my current job during the height of my physician burnout and opening my own office. Good thing I started walking along the beach, and stopped feeling so bad. But this training was specific to california. For each module I was able to answer most of the questions as the material was similar to the federal one, but it was not exactly the same. Therefore missing one question, I had to go through the entirety of all four modules and test out. I passed them all.

Here is proof.

I proud of myself just like I’m proud of myself when I pick up a bag of litter. I have 2 more bags to reach my 20 bag a month goal I set for myself. It’s raining today and I have to orient a young pediatrician regarding the minutiae of quality metrics and then also have patients. But definitely this weekend I eyed a new spot I want to hike at, and maybe will pick up a bag of trash there.

Well. That is it. Nothing earth-shattering (which is good!) this morning. I spent last night on my OFF time training to be a California Department of Public Health as a California Vaccines for Children Provider (VFC). I’m one of two pediatricians in my organization, and it helps save our organization millions of dollars. Certainly that 4 hours is worth it. I also updated my resume on doximity! LOL.

(more…)

Sometimes the best solutions are cheap.

January 28, 2021

by drplasticpicker

Thank you to everyone for the virtual and real sympathy yesterday after my adventures with Moderna #2. Now almost 48 hours post vaccination, I am better after 3 doses of tylenol 1000 mg. My body feels like it ran a marathon, just exhausted but refreshed after actually sleeping and Mr. Plastic Picker brought home Rubio’s fish tacos and the fish taco was very healing. Someone in high school once told me fish was brain food, and since then I always think that when I eat fish – even if it’s from a fast-casual place.

The sympathic messages were very appreciated and healing. Please text me if you need similar sympathy, as I’m happy to text back some encouraging messages now that I’m done with Moderna #2 post-vaccine experience. Many of my real MD friends are about to embark on their experiences. This is a common shared experience for us, which is relatively uncommon in general but so much more frequent since the COVID-19 pandemic started.

I have been thinking about frugality and the importance of being truly fiscally responsible. Yesterday as I was trying to make it through the day, I was alternatively moaning in bed without anyone to attend to me (Mr. Plastic Picker was at work, my usually attentive tween daughter was at blended school, my teen son doesn’t hear anything and he’s a teenage boy and I’m his middle aged mother, and my in-laws are hard of hearing) except our crazy poodle-mix puppy. I did rest in bed, which was good to catch a few extra hours of sleep. I did take some tylenol 1000 mg doses, because after the first time it brought relief – I said why not??!! and took two more doses as I’m confidant that my body is teeming with spike protein antibodies. Just half kidding. I did take a total of 3 doses in the 48 hours. But in between my delirious social media posts about generating your will as I was thinking about my own eventual demise, texting my friend Usa who is the troop cookie mom this year for more cookies, and passing out again on the bed – I did do several things that I know were very healing and they were very cheap. The most relaxing things yesterday that helped me feel fundamentally better were sitting outside in the sunshine for a bit, and watching the birds at our two bird feeders. I looked at my small little container garden to see where the onions, sweet pea plant and succulents were at in their journeys. And then twice yesterday I did a few yoga stretches, once in the afternoon on the artifical grass in the warm sun and last night before going to bed. I turned on ocean waves as well before I went to bed and I had a good nights sleep. And now I feel better.

(more…)