Arrive at the clinic
just before opening
8:45am
already a line up
at the door

The great unwashed
some more so than others
reduced to cattle herding
due to doctor shortages
door opens earlier than expected

Twenty or so patients
sit or stand in a rectangular loop
in a small waiting room
for their turn to register
under the Walk In sign
each with his or her own
unique predicament
my own causes me to go up
to the less active
Family Medicine counter

Doctor retired over a year ago
I tell them
since then
been a crap shoot
trying to find a new one
meds have run out

Metformin
Candesartan
Hydrochlorothiazide
(sexagenarian party drugs)
your health card and
driver’s license
please
have a seat
we’ll call you
when the doctor is ready

Doesn’t take long
a short middle eastern man
(as many of them are these days)
walks into the examination room
takes blood pressure
high brows the numbers
on the gauge
while saying very little
as he hands me a
form for blood work
quickly approves my new
prescriptions for 90 days
no refills

Wasn't as painful as I thought it would be


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260 hits as of April 2024

11/11/2023

Posted on 11/11/2023
Copyright © 2024 Chris Sorrenti