On a Lighter Note: Short Story By Dr Talia On a Lighter Note: Episode 01 Token # 336 An old lady, illiterate, who has rarely visited a hosp...
On a Lighter Note: Short Story By Dr Talia
On a Lighter Note: Episode 01 Token # 336 An old lady, illiterate, who has rarely visited a hospital for her checkup, having no knowledge of her any comorbid (her BP and sugar levels are never ever checked) falls ill, is drowsy for which she has to take rest so can't do her daily chores for 2-3 days. When it comes to his son's notice he decides to delay so that she gets well at her own, but she does not. He decides to take her to the hospital for which he needs money, For conveyance plus he has to take an off from work, which means no daily wage for that day. He takes some money from the savings he was doing for his kid's school fees and borrows some amount from his friend. Packs some food to eat while in the way, he takes his mother to the hospital so that she is diagnosed properly and given the right medications. He stands in line for The Token costing Rs.10. The security guard's behavior of letting his relative break the line makes him uncomfortable but he bears it. The rude behavior of the cashier at the cash counter, his slow pace of working and eating while giving tokens offends him, but he doesn't say a word. After all, this stuff happens. Takes his Token # 336, thrown out of the line. Now he is puzzled about where to go. Asks from three different persons, at last reaches Room XYZ of the OPD and stands in the line.
Dr.ABC is someone very passionate and compassionate. From her start of rotation in her house job she acts very well with the patients. She came here in ER on Monday 8 am. Worked till 2.00 pm. Asked her senior for namaz and lunch break but as everyone had to go turn by turn so she got half an hour free at 5.00 pm. Zuhr- already gone, she prays asr, has her lunch in 10 mins.. waits 5 mins for maghrib so that it does not get qaza. Prays Maghrib and rushes back to ER. Gets scolded for being 10 mins late. Because others also have to go and pray and eat. All her hard work from the start of the day is put aside. Now again she starts dealing with the patients showing empathy, and giving them the due care. Gets 3 hrs break from 2 am till 5 am. Offers isha, has her dinner and gets 2 hrs sleep.
While she is sleeping in the couch of the Doctor's room someone is peeking through the broken window of the locked door... She gets up, puts a dupatta as a cover on and tries to sleep again. After 20 mins at 4:55 am her time is over and she has to reach the ER so that someone else can have 2 hrs rest in a 30 hrs call. She reaches there, again starts seeing patients, and continues till 8:30 am. Has to get in the meeting for attendance, and reach the ER back in 10 mins because someone else had to go for breakfast. Every day someone has to sacrifice his or her one-time meal so that rest can be done. Today she couldn't do her breakfast. At 12:00 pm she is tired, hungry, sleepless and frustrated. There is a gush of patients. Some are serious, some are furious and the rest are curious.
Her head is banging. Her friend asks her to go and have something to eat. She refuses as just 2 hours are left and it needs energy to move. The storm of patients is not being controlled. Token 335 is an old age man who is habitual to get a painkiller injection comes and insists on having it, as he always gets it. she counsels him that its not good for him, she has some principles and she won't let him have it "on demand". He leaves the room cursing her for being sitting just to push away innocent poor people. But she swallows that. Doesn't reply back and starts focusing on the next patient.
There comes a middle-aged man having Token 336, who brings her mother, who is drowsy and is ill for a few days but doesn't remember the count. When asked about the comorbid he doesn't know that, because she has never been checked. Dr.ABC gets little offended on how irresponsible the son is, but keeps on checking the blood pressure which comes to be 90/60 mm Hg. The man who is worried about his mother gets nearer from the patient's seat to in between the doctor's and patient's seats and starts helping the lady doctor by holding the bp cuff. While doing this he unintentionally touches the hand of the doctor. She gets a chill down her spine. She asks him rudely to get aside and let her do her work. This was the last thing she wanted on her call. She gives the patient a chit on which its written.. "BSR and Temperature" and asks him to get it checked by the nurse outside the room on the left side. He takes his mother there. There's a long queue. After waiting for 7 straight minutes he gets to know that this was the Surgical Nursing Counter and the doctor has mistakenly sent him here. while he has to go to the Medicine Nursing Counter. He requests the nurse to do the work written on a chit, whatever it is, but she refuses as its not her task. She has other things to do. He is offended now. How stupid is the Hospital and doctors and nurses? They just know how to play with a patient like a shuttle cock of badminton. He then goes to the right counter, dragging his mother's wheelchair, again waits in a queue, and curses everyone in the line succeeding him. Gets his turn.. Her mother's BSR got checked and it turned out to be 430. The nurse tells him his temperature gets checked which is normal. Now again he has to stand in line to get in the doctor's room. After again waiting for 10 mins he gets in and the war begins
" Hey madam doctor, Are you even a human? My Mother is ill, she has not eaten for days, The nurse told me that her sugar levels are high, You are dragging us from here and there, you told me to go to the wrong counter, It been 4 hours I have been playing like a football. What wrong have we done to you? Just because we are poor, you do this to us? You lack the basic manners of how to talk to the patient. What do you think? who are you? one cannot stand near to you. While sitting in these chairs you tease the patients to spin all around the hospital to get his temperature and sugar levels checked? Couldn't you do it by yourself? What if my mother had died due to high sugar levels and this negligence? Would you have taken the responsibility? Do you have a mother?........."
"Excuse me, Mister, your mother has this condition for DAYS. After reaching to the hospital, you want to get herself treated in like 2 minutes? You know nothing about her history even. This is a Government Hospital. There are plenty of serious patients we have to deal with. You lack the basic ethics to deal with a lady doctor. We are humans too..."
"Wait what? my mother is not serious? What sort of people are sitting here? You are the real killers of mankind. I'll complain to the....." and leave the room.
Its 2;20 pm. Dr.ABC's call has ended 20 minutes ago. She packs her bag and leaves the Hospital. She kept quiet. Maybe because she was too tired. Too tired of the call or too tired of the system. and the misery it brings with it, or too tired of being a lady. Still, she is a butcher. There will be some days when she won't be quiet. When she will be tired of being tired.
He leaves the room. Some don't leave the room. He was innocent, poor, and unintentionally touched the doctor. Some don't do this unintentionally. He was worried for his mother. Some just roam around the hospital, to get themselves checked for free. His mother had raised BSR. Some have patients more serious than her. They have to sell their properties to get their loved ones treated in these hospitals. He was tired of the poverty and the misery it brings. There will be a day when he won't leave the room. When he will be tired of being tired.
~ Dr Talia
Dr.ABC is someone very passionate and compassionate. From her start of rotation in her house job she acts very well with the patients. She came here in ER on Monday 8 am. Worked till 2.00 pm. Asked her senior for namaz and lunch break but as everyone had to go turn by turn so she got half an hour free at 5.00 pm. Zuhr- already gone, she prays asr, has her lunch in 10 mins.. waits 5 mins for maghrib so that it does not get qaza. Prays Maghrib and rushes back to ER. Gets scolded for being 10 mins late. Because others also have to go and pray and eat. All her hard work from the start of the day is put aside. Now again she starts dealing with the patients showing empathy, and giving them the due care. Gets 3 hrs break from 2 am till 5 am. Offers isha, has her dinner and gets 2 hrs sleep.
While she is sleeping in the couch of the Doctor's room someone is peeking through the broken window of the locked door... She gets up, puts a dupatta as a cover on and tries to sleep again. After 20 mins at 4:55 am her time is over and she has to reach the ER so that someone else can have 2 hrs rest in a 30 hrs call. She reaches there, again starts seeing patients, and continues till 8:30 am. Has to get in the meeting for attendance, and reach the ER back in 10 mins because someone else had to go for breakfast. Every day someone has to sacrifice his or her one-time meal so that rest can be done. Today she couldn't do her breakfast. At 12:00 pm she is tired, hungry, sleepless and frustrated. There is a gush of patients. Some are serious, some are furious and the rest are curious.
Her head is banging. Her friend asks her to go and have something to eat. She refuses as just 2 hours are left and it needs energy to move. The storm of patients is not being controlled. Token 335 is an old age man who is habitual to get a painkiller injection comes and insists on having it, as he always gets it. she counsels him that its not good for him, she has some principles and she won't let him have it "on demand". He leaves the room cursing her for being sitting just to push away innocent poor people. But she swallows that. Doesn't reply back and starts focusing on the next patient.
There comes a middle-aged man having Token 336, who brings her mother, who is drowsy and is ill for a few days but doesn't remember the count. When asked about the comorbid he doesn't know that, because she has never been checked. Dr.ABC gets little offended on how irresponsible the son is, but keeps on checking the blood pressure which comes to be 90/60 mm Hg. The man who is worried about his mother gets nearer from the patient's seat to in between the doctor's and patient's seats and starts helping the lady doctor by holding the bp cuff. While doing this he unintentionally touches the hand of the doctor. She gets a chill down her spine. She asks him rudely to get aside and let her do her work. This was the last thing she wanted on her call. She gives the patient a chit on which its written.. "BSR and Temperature" and asks him to get it checked by the nurse outside the room on the left side. He takes his mother there. There's a long queue. After waiting for 7 straight minutes he gets to know that this was the Surgical Nursing Counter and the doctor has mistakenly sent him here. while he has to go to the Medicine Nursing Counter. He requests the nurse to do the work written on a chit, whatever it is, but she refuses as its not her task. She has other things to do. He is offended now. How stupid is the Hospital and doctors and nurses? They just know how to play with a patient like a shuttle cock of badminton. He then goes to the right counter, dragging his mother's wheelchair, again waits in a queue, and curses everyone in the line succeeding him. Gets his turn.. Her mother's BSR got checked and it turned out to be 430. The nurse tells him his temperature gets checked which is normal. Now again he has to stand in line to get in the doctor's room. After again waiting for 10 mins he gets in and the war begins
" Hey madam doctor, Are you even a human? My Mother is ill, she has not eaten for days, The nurse told me that her sugar levels are high, You are dragging us from here and there, you told me to go to the wrong counter, It been 4 hours I have been playing like a football. What wrong have we done to you? Just because we are poor, you do this to us? You lack the basic manners of how to talk to the patient. What do you think? who are you? one cannot stand near to you. While sitting in these chairs you tease the patients to spin all around the hospital to get his temperature and sugar levels checked? Couldn't you do it by yourself? What if my mother had died due to high sugar levels and this negligence? Would you have taken the responsibility? Do you have a mother?........."
"Excuse me, Mister, your mother has this condition for DAYS. After reaching to the hospital, you want to get herself treated in like 2 minutes? You know nothing about her history even. This is a Government Hospital. There are plenty of serious patients we have to deal with. You lack the basic ethics to deal with a lady doctor. We are humans too..."
"Wait what? my mother is not serious? What sort of people are sitting here? You are the real killers of mankind. I'll complain to the....." and leave the room.
Its 2;20 pm. Dr.ABC's call has ended 20 minutes ago. She packs her bag and leaves the Hospital. She kept quiet. Maybe because she was too tired. Too tired of the call or too tired of the system. and the misery it brings with it, or too tired of being a lady. Still, she is a butcher. There will be some days when she won't be quiet. When she will be tired of being tired.
He leaves the room. Some don't leave the room. He was innocent, poor, and unintentionally touched the doctor. Some don't do this unintentionally. He was worried for his mother. Some just roam around the hospital, to get themselves checked for free. His mother had raised BSR. Some have patients more serious than her. They have to sell their properties to get their loved ones treated in these hospitals. He was tired of the poverty and the misery it brings. There will be a day when he won't leave the room. When he will be tired of being tired.
~ Dr Talia
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