As instructed by the doctor yesterday, we again took my bro to the hospital, this time to the orthopedic clinic. First we had to be referred from the regular clinic and that hardly took long at all; the attendant who helped us yesterday came to the rescue (he was positive of a tip, obviously).
On the surface itself the hospital seems to be on a precipice of poor management and shoddy operational standards. Clusters of garbage visible on the bare land adjacent to the hospital which have not been removed. And that queue of patients -Oh My Heavenly God!!- is beyond prediction. If we had not jumped the queue (yes, you heard me) by giving life to that adage old saying 'desperate times call for desperate measures', consulting the doctor would have been out of the question. By 11am we made an appearance at the orthopedic clinic while numbers for patients will only be given by 1pm. Oh joy, how awesome is that?!?
I sat in line to get a number -just so you know blue numbers are for repeat patients while red's are for first timers- which I must say can become a heated affair. I don't mean to sound dramatic, but of the red's only 15 will be seen by the head doctor of the clinic. If you miss out, well... tough luck. I'm not joking. I got number 10 and played the waiting game.
While waiting, I observed people (observing I do all the time) who had come to another clinic. An argument broke out between a patient and an attendant, the reasons I know not; at that time I couldn't care less. Staff take you for granted, stingy to deliver proper service, often verbally insulted- in the end you leave cured. In private hospitals its the reciprocal, and when you get the bill then you start having palpitations. Funny world, no? It dawned on me as to why people rely on government hospitals- its because they have the best doctors for free. Very simple.
Hanging around a hospital is not the best way to spend a morning, and like I had any other choice. Bro was so insistent today to see the doctor, we thought better get it over with. If not his incessant whining would never cease, neither would he listen to advice mum tries to impart. In the end (after nearly 5 hours, mind you), it all turned out to be a muscular pain and nothing else. Even that diagnosis didn't satisfy my bro who vowed to prove him wrong.
And... that's all I'm sayin' :p
On the surface itself the hospital seems to be on a precipice of poor management and shoddy operational standards. Clusters of garbage visible on the bare land adjacent to the hospital which have not been removed. And that queue of patients -Oh My Heavenly God!!- is beyond prediction. If we had not jumped the queue (yes, you heard me) by giving life to that adage old saying 'desperate times call for desperate measures', consulting the doctor would have been out of the question. By 11am we made an appearance at the orthopedic clinic while numbers for patients will only be given by 1pm. Oh joy, how awesome is that?!?
I sat in line to get a number -just so you know blue numbers are for repeat patients while red's are for first timers- which I must say can become a heated affair. I don't mean to sound dramatic, but of the red's only 15 will be seen by the head doctor of the clinic. If you miss out, well... tough luck. I'm not joking. I got number 10 and played the waiting game.
While waiting, I observed people (observing I do all the time) who had come to another clinic. An argument broke out between a patient and an attendant, the reasons I know not; at that time I couldn't care less. Staff take you for granted, stingy to deliver proper service, often verbally insulted- in the end you leave cured. In private hospitals its the reciprocal, and when you get the bill then you start having palpitations. Funny world, no? It dawned on me as to why people rely on government hospitals- its because they have the best doctors for free. Very simple.
Hanging around a hospital is not the best way to spend a morning, and like I had any other choice. Bro was so insistent today to see the doctor, we thought better get it over with. If not his incessant whining would never cease, neither would he listen to advice mum tries to impart. In the end (after nearly 5 hours, mind you), it all turned out to be a muscular pain and nothing else. Even that diagnosis didn't satisfy my bro who vowed to prove him wrong.
And... that's all I'm sayin' :p
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