Patients

I left FL's office with NT. He obviously saw that I was startled with the idea of pathology clinic.

"Don't worry," my friend tried to reassure me, "The discussion is hot in America, but our friends here are hardly serious - they are sane !"

"Eh ...?" I made an inviting grunt.

My friend explained, "You know, when we were medical students, the King of the Round Table used to say if you like to work, become a surgeon; if you prefer thinking than working, go become a physician; if you like talking to others but neither working nor thinking, go become a psychiatrist; if you like to think and work, but do not want to talk to the others, you should become a pathologist. That's the main reason why some medical graduates end up in this department - they do not want to talk to patients !"

I pursed my lips, "Well, yes, very true. But I must say I see the need of having a pathologist to see the patient on some occasions. Say, I could understand why you set up a clinic - because you are the rare expert in metabolic disease and certainly the best one to explain what genetic test to choose and how to interpret the result. Similarly, PC, our consultant skin pathologist, want to go to the clinic because he does not want to see histology slides only; he likes gross pathology and prefer to see the entire specimen - which is the patient himself !"

My friend returned an understanding smile.

PS. My friend's citation is certainly not applicable nowadays. Pathologists do not have to see patients, but they may have to see relatives when receiving a coroner referral.

Quite a disappointment for both parties.