A day in the hospital: Expect care and learn to understand
This day was a roller coaster of emotions. From the hustle and bustle in the morning to the brief warmth at noon, from the helplessness in the evening to the deep thoughts in the heart, the hospital should be a place to heal the body and mind, but today’s experience made people a little tired and even disappointed. However, when I calm down and look back on this day, there may be something worth learning - about the system and human nature, about understanding and adaptation, and about how to maintain inner balance in such an environment.
The chaos in the check-in procedures makes people ask: Is this the so-called medical efficiency?
The most important thing today is undoubtedly to accompany my mother to Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital to go through the hospitalization procedures and prepare for tomorrow’s surgery. I thought this was just a simple process, but the reality gave me a severe wake-up call.
The check-in procedures alone took more than an hour. The hospital has obviously designed an electronic check-in system - eZhitong App, but the operation is simply crazy. The response is delayed and the operation is not intuitive. It seems like the UI design is still stuck on ten years ago. I can’t help but think that when this system was originally developed, a lot of budget must have been spent, right? Unfortunately, good technology should be about reducing friction, not creating more obstacles.
And this is not the most frustrating part. The hospital registration area is obviously overcrowded, but only one elderly volunteer is stationed to assist. Is this arrangement really reasonable? Seeing a group of patients stuck at the check-in counter, but no one came out to coordinate the movement and optimize the process. This kind of medical management makes people wonder, is anyone caring about the medical experience of patients and their families?
Of course, I know that manpower is currently tight, all walks of life are short of people, and medical staff themselves are also under great pressure. But that doesn’t mean service management should stand still. After all, patients and their families come to the hospital with all kinds of stress and worries. If even the basic check-in process is so confusing, it is really hard to put people at ease.
A hospital is not just a medical institution, it should be a place where people feel cared for
After finally getting through the formalities, my mother was successfully admitted to the ward. At noon, we went to the hospital’s food court for dinner. The scene here was quite refreshing. In the past, the impression of hospital catering was always boring and boring, but now the hospital food court has almost become a small shopping mall, with various restaurants and drink shops, and an endless stream of people coming and going. It is more like a lively public space than a hospital.
Such changes do bring a lot of convenience, especially for family members who stay with patients for a long time. It is indeed a good thing to have better dietary choices. However, as hospitals continue to improve these commercial facilities, should they also think about how to improve medical services and human care simultaneously?
In the evening, I returned to Taipei first. It turned out that my mother was in the ward. Because of the cold weather, I wanted to borrow an extra quilt from the nursing station. Unexpectedly, I encountered a small problem. It turned out that the hospital quilt required a deposit of 1,030 yuan, but my mother only brought 800 yuan with her, and she couldn’t get it all at once. She tried to ask the nurse if she could borrow one first, but the other person’s attitude was indifferent. Her mother didn’t know what to do for a while. She even asked the nurse, “Can I borrow 200 yuan from you?” However, the nurse refused.
When I heard about this, I had mixed feelings. I know the hospital has a hospital system, but this is just a quilt, so what’s the big deal? Sometimes, a small thoughtfulness may make patients feel warmer care.
Later, a nurse at the nursing station finally reluctantly lent me a quilt, and the matter was resolved, but the “uncomfortable” feeling still lingered in my mind. In this world, sometimes just a little difference in temperature can make people feel different.
Learn to find warmth in chaos, and also learn to understand and adapt
Of course, today’s unpleasantness does not mean that there are no warm moments in the hospital. At noon, my mother and I had dinner together and even watched an episode of the Japanese drama “[Private Banker](https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/private banker)” together. Such a small blessing made me temporarily forget the troubles and helplessness of the morning. Even if the hospital experience is not as expected, at least for some moments, we can still laugh through it.
This also got me thinking, maybe our expectations for “Service” should be readjusted. Of course, this does not mean to lower standards, but to understand that there may be reasons behind every system. The indifference of nurses may come from the exhaustion of long hours of work; the chaos in the check-in process may be related to the shortage of manpower; and the hospital is still looking for the best solution to the balance between business and service.
This reminds me, when facing difficulties and challenges, in addition to expressing dissatisfaction and questions, can we also understand and think more? If these problems make me uncomfortable, are there more positive ways to influence and change them?
Maybe, one day in the future, I can really help the hospital design a friendlier and more intuitive check-in system? Perhaps, when the experience of medical services is improved, the pressure on patients and their families can also be reduced?
These ideas may not change the current situation immediately, but at least they allow me to see the possibilities in the future.
A tiring day, but also a day of thinking and growth
This day’s torment is indeed tiring. The experience the hospital gave us, mother and son, was not pleasant. The cumbersome procedures and the indifference of the system made us feel helpless. But beyond these details, I still feel some warmth, such as the time spent with my mother, such as the nurse who was willing to lend the quilt after all. Finally, I want to say thank you!
The world may not be perfect, but we can choose how we see it.
In the next few days, I will have to go back and forth to the hospital to help deal with my mother’s affairs, and I may encounter more troubles, but I hope that I can face it all with more patience and understanding. I also hope that I can turn these experiences into experience and find better solutions.
Because, after all, all difficulties are part of what makes us grow.
