Ghost to the Rescue (standard:Fan Fiction, 1870 words)
Author: Juggernaut	Added: Jun 15 2013	Views/Reads: 2630/1866	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
A surgical resident at a hospital gets assistance from an unexpected source.

Ghost to the Rescue 

Subba Rao 

The 100 years old general hospital in South India was named 

King George after a British ruler.  Like Hindu temples built on hill 

tops, the hospital was built on a mountain top makes it visible from 

far distance. Down the hill, just a short walking distance is Bay of 

Bengal, perhaps the cool ocean breeze was a consideration in selecting 

the location for the hospital. The original hospital building was built 

with rock passant so as all the other city buildings like tax office, 

municipality office and even the high school, all built during British 

era as if the same architect designed all these buildings in town. 

The general hospital was built to provide free treatment to 

the public and train doctors. Patients travel long distances from 

distant villages to see specialist doctors at the hospital.  Many past 

physicians and surgeons that served at the hospital were on the list 

of ‘who's who' in the field of medicine in the entire state. The 

medical school attached to the hospital was known for academic 

excellence and rigorous hands on training. The medical and surgical 

residents work long hours to gain as much experience for their own 

benefit. 

In the outpatient department, it is not uncommon for patients 

to wait for long hours before they can see a nurse and much longer if 

they could see at all a doctor. The poor patients have no choice but to 

wait since they cannot afford treatment at the private clinics just 

outside the public hospital. At the hospital entrance, security guards 

allow enough patients to fill the outpatient hall for the day only 

making exceptions for emergency cases. Sometimes, the security guards 

act like God in separating who would get in and who will stay out. 

Scores of doctors employed at the public hospital also have 

their own private clinics just outside the general hospital readily 

offering personal treatment for the patients willing to pay a hefty 

fee. This is in total contrast to the ambiguous free treatment poor 

people get at the public hospital after painful waiting for hours. Just 

outside the public hospital were large bill-boards listing dozens of 

doctors in private practice. 

The environment around the public hospital was anything but 

serene with heavy vehicular and foot traffic and vendors, particularly 

during visiting hours in the morning and evening. Vendors line up at 


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