Thursday 1 November 2007

Medics on a Train!

I’m currently on a train to Edinburgh to attend a surgical skills course for medical students; fortunately by the wonders of modern technology I was able to reserve a seat with a plug socket for my laptop. Sadly, I wasn’t able to reserve all 4 sears so when I got on, someone was sat in my seat. Anyway, I finally managed to get myself sat down but as there was someone next to me I had very little space so I sat reading my gadget magazine (ok so I’m a geek) waiting patiently for the other person to disembark.

I soon realised that the woman next to me, who’s toe I had stood on and almost destroyed when sitting down, was in a deep conversation with the lady at the other side of the table. Now, not that I’m nosy or anything but I soon realised they were talking about doctors, not only were they talking about doctors they were quite openly slagging them off. For some reason I found this absolutely hilarious. I listened attentively for 10 to 15 minutes or so, whilst pretending to drool over the latest gadgets in my magazine.

I could barely contain myself as such wonders as “they’re [doctors] all very very arrogant” and “you either get one of those – just out of medical school types who barely look 18, or an arrogant consultant who won’t listen to you” came flooding out. At this point, I decided it might be quite funny if I got out something medic-y. I happened to have the details of my surgical skills course so pulled it out of my bag and slapped it triumphantly right in the middle of the table. Almost immediately the conversation stopped and the look on their faces was a picture. For the next 10 minutes or so they continued to babble about this and that although there was no more slagging off doctors.

Now I don’t know if this was right, or if it was wrong, but they were really giving doctors a hard time and rather than butt in and stand up for them, I thought the subtle approach would be more amusing.

Anyway, the lady, who also had a ridiculous amount of rubbish which she failed to remove from my side of the table until she departed, has now left the train leaving me free to type blog posts/work on my foundation application/play football manager or all of the above. Actually, my foundation application is just about finished, missbliss is has spent ages trying to delete the 100+ extra words I had written for each question and it’ll be ready to submit well before next Friday’s deadline.

p.s. Writing on a train is strange, every so often the person next to me takes a drink and perhaps, just maybe, takes a sly peek at what I’m up to – in which case, Hello! I don’t really know if he’s reading this or not, but either way, I thought it would be amusing to type this just so he knows that I know, if he is reading that is.

10 comments:

missbliss said...

Is it a futhermucking train?

Ms-Ellisa said...

Good job on the subtle approach...! I am all with you on this one.

It wouldn't do any good if you talked to them, because methinks that you would just end up in one of those stupid no-end arguments where the other person uses catch-phrases and says stuff like "Oh I don't know for myself, it's never actually happened to me, but I'm SURE that blah-blah-blah"...

AMiB said...

haha great job...well done. i was actually thinking about going to that in edinburgh (even though we're just a preclinical school, we get invites to all the events lol), but thought it would be too much hassle, and plus, i'm way behind my work as it is!

have fun!

jysika said...

Well. Xavier is learning about Language and Communication in Health Care. She needed practice so I volunteered to be a patient. She would start asking all these questions and doing all these things that doctors are suppose to do but things that my doctor never does.
So I guess they must have just had bad luck with doctors because there are good doctors out there (right?)

For me, Doctors scare me. I get so nervous I start to babble and then the doctors get annoyed with me. I would rather SUFFER through an illness then go see a doctor. :(

jysika said...

Oh but they shouldn't have been mean because that's just not nice! They really should treat doctors with respect because they do have hard jobs!

You handled that situation well though! Humourous!!

David said...

Hmm a busy train - not the type i like, I prefer moving from my allocated seat to find an empoty one. If it is wifi, it sounds like a GNER train - my personal favourites. Enjoy Edinburgh, I had a happy 4 years as a Biology undergraduate there - don't live to excess tehre, but have a nice time and do (if you can) get a meal at Monster Mash - my favourite restaurant. Are you up there all weekend? If it's at RCSE then I guess you are staying there?

Elaine said...

You always have to waych out for these sweet little old ladies!

Anonymous said...

haha no that's brilliant - like your style. They wont forget that anytime soon, stupid dumbass ignorant...woah I'm sounding like Dr Rant :S

But yeah, a good story hope the conferene went well!

Calavera said...

Hilarious! How funny! If only you could have pretended to be searching through your bag and then whipped out your stethoscope and placed it on the table too...

what a load of ignorant bints. I hate it when people generalise like that.

Juno Rising said...

Haha very funny indeed. Thought i'd introduce myself, Im Cherie. Not in medicine but Finance.

I met a medic student on NYE but i'm sorry to disclose that he turned out to be a real wanker! (No offence, you seem rather gentlemanly). I did think this chap was sweet at first, as he tried his very best to chat me up all night. I think what helped him morph from sensitive Doc to arrogant consultant was 1) I told him I had no intentions of sleeping with him, and 2) He was very disapproving of the crowd I was with, stating "Oh my god, who are these people". They were a bit younger, and just having a good time. He wasn't in anyways sincere to people of different social status and caliber to him. Eventually he just buggered off, didn't even say goodbye to me. Which was a surprise considering he was trying to groom me for HOURS! Oh well....

Saboteur Cherie x