Quarantine spin: a vicious cycle

received a call at 11am today from ICA: Aruna

informing swab to release test only on Sunday

meaning i can only be released earliest on Monday

which means its 11 days of quarantine

asked for understanding

she was powerless even after 20mins

just wanted to pass on to her superior

feeling hard done by because i abided by days 3 & 7 tests

as informed by hotel, and confirmed by authorities who called to ensure i did

and that i paid them for the test kits

i called the hotel at 11:30 and explained my grievances

and pointed out that i checked in at 9am, not 9pm

therefore spent a full day already on arrival

then ICA officer: Chee Kiang called back at 12noon

retold the situation to him

he was nice but judgmental and ultimately powerless too

used phrases like "you claim" and "I can't do anything"

asked me to call the Hotline: 68125555 

that i deal with it myself

all he wanted to do was to inform re swab test

i managed to get him to send email on my behalf

he seemed reluctant but eventually relented

asked to be copied but he says internal comms

so, i don't know if he did it or not

called the Hotline at 12:30pm.

it was a maze of IVR and took me three tries and 10mins 

just to get to option to speak to someone

was on hold for 20mins before i got to a person: Liyana

who upon hearing my situation said she would pass me to her officer

and 10 mins later she transferred to a National Care Hotline staff

(obviously her officer was wanting to pass it on elsewhere)

at the 30-min mark, Mahindra from the NCH came on the line

i was surprised he was the person who picked up the call 

as i wanted resolution not counselling

incredibly, he kept asking me to call the Hotline

which was the very people who transferred my call to him

yes, i was beginning to lose my patience, but i think i kept my cool

incredibly, for a counsellor, after listening to me 

(or rather not wanting to listen to me), he gave up

😖

so, i called back the hotel staff, Syahfri who got his duty manager Francis to call me back

he says he will help

help

help!

help ......... 

Quarantine 2

 It's the second time in the year that I am subjected to Stay Home Notice quarantine, in a dedicated facility, which in this case is not the home but rather the fairly new JWMarriott South Beach hotel. 

Unlike the first time in April, which followed a trip to Malaysia, this one was after a bit of travel to Malaysia, UK, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE. So the context of having to quarantine is somewhat coloured by the knowledge of how other countries are managing. 

With the exception of Malaysia (who is frankly playing catch up), other countries notably UK, Germany and UAE have led the way moving their society from pandemic to endemic mode. Once their vaccination rates approach 70%, they had the fortitude to open up their economies and borders, knowing the virus will not be eliminated, that infections will rise (esp with the highly transmissible Delta variant), and more people will get sick but not so much to overwhelm their health systems capacity. In other words, it can be managed more like the common flu. 

You can see from pictures in the previous post the extent of gathering allowed. It means restaurants and tourist sites can function. In the UK, they even allow cinemas and theatres to open and I went to both to enjoy the game changing No Time To Die and a third viewing of Hamilton!!! Masks are even optional in these crowded spaces.

Yet 11 swab tests later, I am still fine - testing negative all the way.

But upon arriving in Singapore, the scene was one from the movies. Workers dressed in PPE suits directing passengers in single file to their respective areas in an empty airport, once one of the world's busiest. The question that niggle on my mind is why? These are smart people who can understand the epidemiological data that vaccinations only partially prevents infection but is highly effective against serious illness and deaths, so why the panic when infection cases go up? 

Often government decisions are tempered by politics. Is this the case here?

Such are the musings of someone stuck in quarantine for the 5th day. I am at the halfway mark of this 10-day period and like the last time, I fill my day with lots of meetings. It helped that there is an Global Operating Committee meeting (on Munich time) these few days that runs till midnight which is perfect since I am still jet lagged and my body clock is still in Europe. My assistant has done a good job of setting up 10 calls per day spread over a 10-12 hour period.

After the calls, I would settle into Netflix and Youtube (talk shows, watch channels, news programmes) and fall asleep around 5am (or 11pm Munich time). And I would wake up by noon the next day. I will need to start adjusting my hours over the coming days. 

In between my meetings, I would  get some work done and clear emails. And of course, I chat and eat (a functional packed meal in plastic boxes) and drink (at night) as well. Got myself a bottle of Hendrick's and a bottle of Chianti upon check in and both are sustaining me well so far... and may also be prolonging my cough. So thankfully, the days and nights do pass quickly. I wonder about those who don't have the ability to work remotely like me. What do they do the while away the hours?

In my case, I paid for a larger room... a suite, to be precise, with a separate living and sleeping area with a large bathroom in between. It's not the size of the room per se but the fact that there are different sections so one feels less "trapped" in the same four walls. I would say I spend equal time in each section through the day. 

Yes, I know what you are thinking: how is it possible for one to spend 4 to 6 hours in the bathroom. Well, first you have to understand the family condition of having to go right after the meal. Then you add the fact that I tend to sit for a bit (and also enjoy the 'Toto Washlet' bidet ). Then I do take long showers twice a day and there is also a very nice bathtub here which I have soaked well in :-). So, there you go.

Cleanliness, they say is next to Godliness and I even joined the neighbourhood rosary session. 

Outside, the world ticks on.... (and one of them - an ICA officer - just called me today to make sure I am in my room. Well I am. I mean, where can I possibly go?)

Seven Nation Army

 White Stripes' best song is this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0J2QdDbelmY 

Besides the iconic bass riff - it's right up there with The Beatles' Come Together, Queen's Another One Bites The Dust and Duran Duran's Rio - the lyrics are simply amazing. Imagine these opening lines! 

"I'm gonna fight them off. A seven nation army couldn't hold me back"

In a manner, against conventional advice, I undertook a journey to reconnect face to face with my teams and clients in Malaysia, UK, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE. And three days ago, after being away for 30 days, I return to Singapore. Each country had their COVID entry procedure. A couple needed local SIM card, some required installing their mobile app. All required some level of pre-registration cum approval. And of course all of them needed PCR-negative test. 

The last one worried me because if I tested positive anywhere along the way (I had to do 13 tests altogether from the start to the finish of the journey and I am now at test #10 just today), I would get stuck and won't be able to complete the trip as planned.

But make I did! There were some funny moments when I joked with the swabbers in the Middle East (an Indian in Doha, a Malaysian in Riyadh and a Filipina in Dubai) first to be gentle and then that i ordered a negative test. Am glad they took it all in their stride.

I am glad to have done this. The leader of the ME business tells me that there is "so much positive feedback from the teams and the MDP colleagues – I think it is a strong statement to be the first PAL to travel to the different regions, and it makes our clients and us feel special to be part of your first visit."

ME (KSA, UAE, Qatar), UK and Germany are three of my largest markets in EMESA, a newly integrated region in the firm. In fact, PSPA in EMESA has been a solid multi hundred million dollar business the past few years and with a potential to grow exponentially 

I have identified several key unlocks:

• Dedicated leadership capacity
• Deepening core markets and attacking white spaces
• Bringing the full offer of PA offerings to all markets
• Heightening EVP with PS “ring fencing”
• Injecting further expertise into the region

I don't often blog directly about the business but this one where management attention comes against all odds... a seven nation army of pandemic protection measure, couldn't hold me back.