Politics not so different from medicine – but with more support

Published on Monday 7 September 2009 19:35

PEOPLE who used to read the newspaper column I wrote when I was a GP often ask me how life has changed since I threw away my stethoscope and entered parliament.

What is it like leaving a well-regarded profession to become one of those who manage to make even bankers seem like pillars of rectitude?

Well, people don't always put it like that, but I know what is in their minds.

The truth is, as far as the constituency work of an MSP is concerned, little has changed. When I was a doctor I was regularly consulted about things like the need for a new house, bad neighbours, noise pollution and distress caused by drugs and alcoholism. Now I am consulted about things like the need for a new house, bad neighbours and… need I go on?

Like then, I do my best to help but, as in general practice, the solution often rests with other agencies, but I can press for action.

What is different? The quality of support for a start. In the parliament, if I experience a problem with my computer or need equipment, for example, skilled assistance with a smile is nearly always speedily at hand.

What a change from the days when light bulbs took days to be replaced and small office alterations that were needed so I could work more efficiently had to take their place in a long waiting list of similar projects.

I don't blame the long-suffering managers with whom I had to deal, but years of working in second-rate surroundings in a culture of targets make me appreciate my new circumstances more.

But what about all the political fights that go on in Holyrood? Don't they make life a misery? There are political tussles in all walks of life and certainly in medicine. The difference is all who have chosen a career in politics have chosen this way of life.

When politicians have major political disagreements, of course they volubly and passionately exchange views.

What is not so obvious is much of what happens in parliament is politicians of all parties working together to end up with what is best for Scotland. And when politicians fight on an issue, nine times out of ten they can isolate these disagreements from the rest of their exchanges.

Politicians have a professional job to do, and they respect the pressures and constraints imposed upon themselves and colleagues of other political hues.

My experience of politics in medicine was very different. Doctors choose to be doctors, not politicians, and while some slip naturally into a political role to advance their careers or their practices, many do not. They feel they are losing out in contests not of their own choosing, and the result is sometimes bitterness and despair.

So, the politics of medicine and, I suspect, of academia and other careers can be much nastier than conventional party politics.

I do miss the regular contact with professional colleagues and patients, many of whom became personal friends as we experienced the ups and downs of life together. Meeting them in the street helps, but doesn't replace the relationship that develops over the years.

I realise how lucky I am to have the chance of a new career at this late stage in my working life, getting to know so many new people and facing new challenges.

&#149 Ian McKee is a Lothians MSP and a member of the Scottish Parliament's health and sport committee