An ordeal finished....

The last two days had been terribly horrible. Never ever even in my dreams, I had thought that medical examination in a government set up, a mere formality for securing admission in post graduation course, will turn out to be such a major ordeal. I have spent all years of my life after school (not that the time frame has been very extensive...but that constitutes a significant proportion of my comprehending sentient years!!) in a government medical college studying and working. It hasn’t never really been a heavy task understanding how appalling things are to get a work done in a government hospital. Everyone must have witnessed it....some or the other time....they are kinda notorious for lobbing out ill treatments here and there...only if you have gone with some personal reference, you could perhaps think of being able to surpass the callousness eventually incurred over you....otherwise, if you coincidentally get some work done properly, I must say try out somewhere else in life’s context also because you ought to be damn lucky... ;)

Knowing that we are already doctors, maximum from Delhi colleges only...these people almost didn’t care to show any reverence to exemplify the courtesy which ideally should have been bestowed upon us as a matter of similar professions. From calling us fasting at 9 AM to scolding with their eerie directions to waiting redundantly outside their MSS office amidst colossal morning OPD rush and to frivolously bamboozling us with their slowest possible efforts of finishing this rather stupid formality of examining us....they kept us lingering around for almost 7 hours till 4 PM.And not to mention that the person in authority, the very honourable Medical Staff Surgeon was fiercely irascible and looked very peevish inspite of a pretty face.

Now that it is over, I seriously keep thinking where do we as an institution go wrong in handling out these trivia despite not even being that busy in general nuisances. It’s after all not even that difficult to be able to lend out some sweet words. Just letting go off the frustration in life and maintaining endurance should help. Inevitably delaying things, reprimanding over silly stuff only brings out the worst of us. I know I’d never be that creepy or the time will tell, as my sister keeps saying.... ; )

Whatever happens,happens for the good :)

Oh!!!!! We poor lady doctors!!!!! The society has always ill treated women and we, the cream of the society (take it as a satiating bit) too have not been acquitted from this disparity. Forget about the species specific side effects that we as females have to face, the genera specific disadvantages- the penalty of being a "supposedly" weaker sex in this profession is also not left much behind; though the definitions this time are related to a different discrepancy…. I’ll just come to that.

We grow up all through our four and a half years of MBBS with our stethoscopes and white coats with the boys at par (not really writing ‘following’ as the statistics say!!!) to one day being addressed finally with the prefix “doctor” in our internship (believe me…. the only yearning of maximum people who enter this profession is the fancy attached to this prefix…my interviewing has revealed so followed next by identical parents’ line of work). The boys do achieve this felicity soon but unfortunately we are left in the rear being referred to as “sisters” every time (the word is used for nurses basically!!!!!!!!) Hmmmm…it might sound hilarious but ya, in a government hospital, most young female docs (with even their doc calling accessories on) are addressed 'sisters' by the patients and their relatives; often to the advantage of male nurses and ward boys who end up being called doctors by these jobbernowls.

I am being very veridical and not really telling this crap (or lemme call it a fact only!!!!) to vie against men folk. No special motive behind since I sincerely think that all those reading it here will (hopefully!!) not mistake calling us ‘sister’ in hospitals. Nevertheless something happened today in wards, which has been making me feel elated over this whole issue. My male Postgraduate doc was called “bhaisahab” by a patient. You might think what a big deal!!!! Sigh!!! Thankfully we are used to be calling sisters, had this not been there, who knows we might have landed up being called “bahenjis” every time…

So the coin has always two different sides. This whole desultory thought made me realize one thing that happens to be the redeemer of every drowning soul –behind every dark cloud, there actually lies a silver lining!!!!!

P.S. This is a part of my internship experience written during my Pediatrics rotation.