In those days, working on call was very onerous. Your turn came around often and there was so much to do from 8pm-8am. There were no mobile phones, only bleeps, and they had a limited range so you had to live in the hospital when on call. Between calls, you hung about in the juniors’ “mess” which was a bit of a slum. Time-passing when not working consisted of watching rubbish TV, reading the paper and trashy magazines, eating pizzas and snoozing.
This was a difficult assignment. I was no longer the naïve development specialist of yesteryear. By now, I had worked on several complex conflict management problems, but this one was troubling. It was the first time I had been asked to work under cover to identify possible fraudsters. There were ethical issues in telling people you were reviewing the clinical trial procedures when you were doing much more.
I strolled over to the Rowing Club to work out an approach. The river was sparkling in the low autumn sun and its peaceful banks were a welcome respite from the stew of busyness of St. Angela’s teeming corridors. The ever-smiling and helpful Maria was tidying up the newspapers after the lunchtime rush, and getting the club ready for a party. I was drawn into the excitement of putting up the bunting and balloons, and popping streamers everywhere. Tonight’s “do” was Professor Sharkey’s bash for his firm to celebrate the end of the rowing year. Continue reading
Old Lady by the Sea 