The Phone... Another way to fob medical students off

Today Google is celebrating the birth of Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone. Thanks to his ingenius invention which we can't live without these days, we have found another social function for it - fobbing off medical students.

I dragged my ass out of bed by 7.20 this morning so that i could attend the ECT session. I'm not an early morning person. This being my second attempt at attending a session, i was pretty determined to see one.

Nurse Unit Manager said to just turn up in the mornings. But didn't state the time. So we found out after our first attempt that it started at 8am instead of 9am.

So i walked into the place, got ignored by the 2 nurses behind the glass panel. Waited for them patiently and greeted them politely and with a smile to ask to attend the session.

Nasty nurse: "No you can't. You need to phone in ahead of time to let us know that you're coming."

Me: "But the NUM and the Drs said that we can just show up."

Nasty nurse: "No. That's not the case. You have to let us know ahead of time."

Me: "Why is that?"

Nasty nurse: "Because there are too many people and we need to get the patient's consent. There are too many students always popping in and out."

Me thinking: What people? The nurse, the Dr, the patient and the anaesthetist. What students? There are only 4 of us attached to this hospital and none of us has seen any ECT yet.

Nasty nurse: "Get the other male nurse behind the counter to give you the number to this ECT suite so that you can call ahead." *Storms off*

So after some more conversation with the male nurse who wrote down the extension number for me. I asked if he could just write me down in the diary that i'd like to come back next friday.

Male nurse: "Look. I don't work here. I work in the ward upstairs. Call this number and arrange to come another time."

Me fuming mad but not saying it out because i'm such a wuss: What the shit! I'm standing right here... trying to tell you guys ahead of time that i want to attend a session, just like your colleague wanted, and you want me to call you back another time? Where is the sense in that?

I headed off to do other stuff and 2 hours later i called the extension number.

Me: "Hello, Good morning. I'm a medical student and i want to attend an ECT session next friday. Could you write it down in the books so that the nurses know that i'm coming?"

Guy over the phone: "I'm not aware of any medical student booking system. Who was it who told you to call?"

Me: "Nasty nurse did. She's the one who gave me this extension number."

Guy over the phone: "Well you should be talking to Nasty nurse then."

Me thinking: Duh! Why else am i calling this number you dim wit???
Me actually saying: "Well is she there then?"

Guy over the phone: "No. This is the ECT recovery suite. You should talk to the nurses. Bye."

Me: *Ready to strangle him telepathically if i actually had such powers.*

Luckily i bumped into our Consultant, whom i complained to and she said that it shouldn't be the case and that she will follow it up. Thank you very much!

I still get mad when i think about it. *Deep breaths*