Doctor?" said Jan. "What doctor? I called him this morning and got his secretary on the line. I asked for a flu prescription and was told I could come pick it up tomorrow morning between eight and nine. If you've got a particularly bad case of flu, the doctor himself comes to the phone and says, 'Stick out your tongue and say "Aah." Oh, I can hear it, your throat's infected. I'll write out a prescription and you can bring it to the pharmacy. Good day.' And that's that. Easy job he's got, diagnosis by phone. But I shouldn't blame the doctors. After all, a person has only two hands, and these days there're too many patients and too few doctors.
In this excerpt, Jan expresses frustration with the medical system, specifically the ease with which doctors offer prescriptions over the phone. She describes calling a doctor for a flu prescription, only to learn that the doctor's interaction is minimal and impersonal. The doctor appears to rely on quick assessments, suggesting a lack of thorough examination and connection with patients.
Jan acknowledges the challenges faced by doctors, noting the increasing number of patients and the limited number of available doctors. This situation creates a reliance on convenience that compromises the quality of care, leading to a system where personal interactions are rare. Ultimately, she empathizes with the doctors, recognizing the demands placed on them in a pressured healthcare environment.
