Death of a hospital

Abstract

To walk the corridors where lives once were saved and lost, where now the ambience is as soul-searing as Flanders Field. The sounds of laughter, weeping and family members milling around come to mind as you pass empty room after empty room and nurses stations. Suddenly, you see the delivery room where all your children were born. Vividly you recall the nurse who brought your first child out of the suite for you to behold and hold. Again the ominous quietness and emptiness envelope you again. Then you pass the emergency room where you moonlighted decades ago to build your practice base. The emergency room is now called a stand-by emergency station with only the sparse personnel standing by. How could you imagine in those long ago years that your flagship hospital could become swallowed up by progress. To walk past this tarnished old lady at night is like meeting an aging witch long after Halloween has passed.