Step two of the secret game plan
Straight from the office, Badal da went to the Central Market and entered The Medical Hub. There was quite a rush at Dr. Joydeb Mukhopadhyaya’s clinic. He asked the lady behind the desk for an appointment.
"No appointment is available for the next two months," the lady answered back mechanically, "You can book for any date after two months, and then every day at 10 in the morning, you check with us on the phone. If someone cancels the appointment on that day, then you get the appointment in his place.”
"Bulls…... I mean, there is no other way to get an early appointment?”
"I am sorry, sir."
"And if someone is very sick, he will die before he gets the appointment, won’t he?” Badal da said with amazement.
"Doctor sahib doesn't see seriously ill patients. In that case, you can get yourself admitted in any hospital," the lady shot back.
Badal da realized that any argument would not change the system. He had to think of some other way. He had found out that Dr. Mukhopadhyay was the best physician in the town. According to step two, he had to get cured and that too in the next few days.
He waited for some time. He observed that the doctor took on an average of around nine to ten minutes for each patient. Few came out in only three to four minutes. Badal da had a long list of complaints. He thought he would write the whole list of complaints beforehand.
But then another question came to his mind – will he have time to listen to me properly? He was in his deep thoughts when the lady suddenly asked, "Sir, do you want a booking? Please tell me your name and age and deposit the fee."
“Let me think for a while,” Badal da replied.
"Sir, please decide fast. There is much rush out here. I cannot allow you to stand here for no reason."
"Is there any way I can get an appointment today, or let's say tomorrow at the least?" he said this in a very soft voice so that others around could not hear, “I am ready to pay double the fee.”
The lady looked at him for a while and then ignored him completely. She became busy in managing other patients. Badal da understood that no trick would work here. Suddenly she came and asked, "What is your problem?"
“I want to get an early appointment …… that’s it,” Badal da now became irritated.
She hushed him to silence, "I mean, what is your health problem?"
“Why, are you going to treat me?” Badal da asked her in a low voice.
The lady became angry, “Do you want toady’s appointment or not?”
"Oh, good gracious god," Badal da hastily answered, “Yes-yes.”
"You will have to wait till ten o'clock. I will try my best for you. If you are lucky enough, you will get an appointment today. Now deposit the fee," the lady said in his ears.
Badal da took out a two thousand rupee note and gave it to her. She returned eight hundred and asked his name. Badal da told her and counted the currency she returned after moistening his right thumb with his saliva.
He gave a triumphant look at the other patients who had booked their appointment long back and now waiting for their turn. Badal da managed to get an immediate appointment using his negotiation skills. He felt elated.
Now he had to wait for another four hours. He asked for a piece of paper from the lady and went downstairs. He sat comfortably in the coffee shop ordered for one and started scribbling all his complaints. He had to ask for another piece of paper from the coffee shop owner. After sipping two cups of coffee, he finished writing his complaints.
He came back and sat in the patient waiting area. Two cups of coffee that he had taken started stirring his stomach. Somehow, he controlled himself. But at nine-thirty, he had to rush to the nearby Sulabh Shauchalay (Public Toilet). When he came out, it was almost seven minutes to ten.
He hurriedly climbed the stairs because the lift was stuck somewhere on the fifth floor. The clinic was a deserted place now. The moment he entered the room, the lady rushed towards him, "Where had you been? I was looking for you for long. Next is your turn to go inside. Tell everything quickly. I could make him agree with much difficulty."
Badal da thanked her and started searching the pieces of paper in his pockets. He could not find them. He became very nervous. When his name was called, he got up with shaking legs, thinking - how will I summarize my whole list of complaints in a short time without the help of those pieces of paper?
But to his relief, just in time, he found them inside his helmet, hanging down through the straps from his left arm.
Dr. Mukhopadhyay was an old man in his seventies. Badal da entered his chamber. The doctor was watching him with a grave look from behind his spectacles. Badal da walked to the patient's chair and asked permission to sit down. The doctor nodded. He sat down on the chair. The doctor raised his eyebrows as if he was saying – now shoot your problem as soon as possible.
Badal da started reading from the paper trembling in his hand.
“Sir, I get a queer kind of sensation in my tummy more often than not,” he stopped and looked at the doctor.
He was listening with his eyes fixed on him. Badal da continued, "It comes suddenly any time of the day. Like, while I was waiting outside, I had that same feeling, and I had to rush to the Sulabh Shauchalay. ..... it is quite close to this place. ..... You must be knowing,” Badal da could see that the doctor’s face was like a mask. He did not show any reaction. But he was listening.
He continued, "Sometimes the stool is soft… I mean normal…. but at other times, I get pain in my stomach, and I pass loose stool. But on most of the days the stool is very hard and I have to take ‘isabgol' husk at night……. You know I am also having gastric problems. Sometimes gas comes out from above, but mostly I pass it from below, and then I have to rush to the toilet because it smells pungent. I cannot pass wind in public."
Badal da stopped for a while. He became a little nervous to think that the doctor would not get interested in the smell of the gas and would ask him to continue. But he didn't say a word. The good thing was that he was listening to him attentively. That is why he is the best doctor in the town, Badal da thought.
He again started, “My wife also had similar problems. In the beginning, we did not take it seriously. But later, she was diagnosed with cancer and died two years back. I don't think I have cancer. But doctors in my Company hospital are not able to diagnose. They are giving me the same medicines every time I visit them."
He produced his Medical Book and continued reading from his list of complaints. While listening to him, the doctor turned pages of his Medical Book, stopped and read few things here and there, and lastly placed it on his table. He again started staring at him. Badal da was saying, "Usually, I have a good sleep at night. But when I am awake for late hours due to some tension …... you know everyone in this world has some or the other tensions in life…...I also have some days. Especially on those days, a peculiar sensation arises in my stomach. It goes to my left shoulder. Then I am unable to sleep. The Company doctors have done ECG on many such occasions, but they say there is nothing wrong in my heart. ….. Sir, if you want, you can also do ECG. In fact, I want my whole body checked. You order all the tests that you think would be required. I am ready for that,” Badal da stopped and expectantly looked at the doctor’s face.
When he did not say anything for some time, then the doctor asked, "Is that all Mr. Badal?"
"Sir, I also have other problems which may or may not be related to my stomach problem. Like, I have a headache at times, pain in the legs and spasms at night. I guess because of gas. I take antacids. Sometimes there is a relief, but at other times there is no relief."
The doctor looked at his watch. Badal da thought I should cut down my complaints related to stomach only. After all, he is an old man and at this hour must be very tired. He hurriedly said, "Sir, I have lots of problem in my office, and if I do not become well in the next few days, then I am going to lose my job. ........ I think that's all I have to say."
The nurse came and took his blood pressure and counted his pulse. He asked, "Is everything all right?"
The nurse politely said, "After the examination, the doctor will talk to you."
She led him to the examination table. The doctor came and examined him from head to toe with professional skills. When he put his palm softly on his abdomen and produced ‘dumb-dumb' sound by tapping on his very own fingers, Badal da became very impressed. He had never been examined like this before.
But soon, he was again examined in a manner he was never examined before. The doctor wore a glove in his right hand and slid a finger in his anus. The finger tried to search something inside. Badal da felt embarrassed. But it was taken over by pain when he withdrew his finger and plunged some hard and cold object inside. Now Badal da was convinced that the doctor would, in all possibility, find out the real problem within him.
After the examination, Badal da wore his pants and tucked in his shirt. He came and sat on his chair. The doctor was writing seriously. In the end, the doctor raised his head and said, "Look, Mr. Badal, you do not have to worry much. Take these medicines for about two weeks, and you will be all right."
“Should I take medicines before meals or after meals?”
"The lady outside will tell you in detail," the doctor stood up, indicating that the consultation was over.
Badal da also got up and asked, "Do you want me to see you after two weeks? I am booking my appointment today?"
The doctor put on his coat and said, "You will be all right. You don't need to come again."
The doctor walked out of the chamber. Badal da looked at the prescription. There were only two kinds of medicines written, and to his astonishment, there was no mention of any lab test.
He ran after him and found him waiting for the elevator to arrive. Badal da asked, “Sir, you forgot to write the lab tests.”
"You don't need one," said the doctor and entered the elevator when the doors opened. The elevator moved down, leaving Badal da wondering.
He started brooding. He never asked me anything, did not ask for any lab test and did not do an ECG. How can he be the best doctor in the town?
The lady who gave him the appointment asked him with a smile, "Are you happy that you could see the doctor today?"
She expected that Mr. Badal would thank her for the generosity. But he rudely turned around and walked away.
On his way back home, he stopped at Ghosh Pharmacy and produced the prescription. Hemant was delighted to see Badal da for the first time with a prescription in his hand. He took out and packed the medicines and said, "Ekso kudi taka. (One hundred and twenty rupees)"
“What? Only one hundred twenty rupees? Have you given the whole course of the medicines?”
Ghosh da checked again and confirmed. Badal da started murmuring, "For writing one hundred twenty rupees medicines, the doctor charged me twelve hundred rupees? This is not fair? Ghosh da, please tell me what are these medicines for?"
Ghosh da put his near vision spectacles on his nose and read the composition, "The first one is ........ for Dysentery and the second one is …… wait a minute, why the hell he has given this medicine? This medicine is for mental condition."
“What? I am not a mental case. How can he write this medicine for me?” Badal da became very upset.
Ghosh da tried to console him, "You know it happens sometimes. Dr. Mukhopadhyay is too old to practice now. It would help if you asked me before consulting him. I think you should have gone to Dr. Desai. He sits in the same building one floor below."
“Oh, I wasted my valuable time today and my money, too," Badal da grumbled and left the medical shop.
The packet of medicine was lying over the counter. Hemant was quick to speak out, "The doctor has given him the right medicine. Why did you object? See, he has refused to buy them. It is your loss, after all."
Ghosh da growled, “Will you keep quiet?”
Badal da went to the Chinese food stall, got one plate of chicken chow mien packed and went home. He knew by this time Mr. Tanmay would have gone back with his dinner.
After eating the stuff, he checked his WhatsApp message box and found photos sent by his son. He was in Vienna these days on a vacation tour, and he had posted some ‘selfies'. Badal da sent back a thumbs-up sign in appreciation and tried to call his daughter. The phone was switched off. He sent a message – Can we talk? Call me when you are free.
He went to bed but could not sleep. There seemed to be an upheaval in his tummy. He again took medicine given in the dispensary. But this time there was no relief.
After a disturbed sleep at night, he got up in the morning with swollen red eyes. He did not feel like going to the office. He rubbed some ice on his eyes and sat in a chair in his balcony. If he were staying on the upper floors, this would have been his balcony. But for ground floor flats, it was like a verandah enclosed with the iron grill from two sides.
His Step Two of the Secret Game Plan was not yet over. He did not find the remedy to his illness even after spending twelve hundred rupees and four hours in Dr. Mukhopadhyay’s clinic.
He decided to consult Dr. Desai as soon as possible. He did not have enough time to get cured. He felt very uneasy. His chest was burning. He finally got up and went to the washbasin. Put his two fingers in his throat and puked. He felt a little better.
On the way to his office, he made a detour to the Central Market and luckily got an appointment with Dr. Desai at five-thirty in the evening.
In the office, he again had to pretend that nothing was wrong with him. He entered the office with a forced smile on his face. But the environment in the office had changed. All were busy completing their daily jobs before the close of the office hours. No one had time to watch Badal da, and he could easily escaped their attention.
Swati asked him, “Did you see Dr. Mukhopadhyay?”
He told her everything. She said, “You should have tried his medicines. After all, he is more qualified than your medical shopkeeper.”
He informed her that he had taken an appointment with Dr. Desai this evening.
“But I have heard that his consultation speed is twenty per hour,” Miss. Swati did not seem to be happy with his decision.
“What do you mean by twenty per hour?”
“He sees twenty patients in an hour and writes very costly medicines,” she explained.
“This is impossible. You must have heard it wrong. .... Moreover, I have already paid his fee of rupees five hundred for consultation.”
"If you are not satisfied with Dr. Mukhopadhyay, then you must have seen a Gastro Specialist."
“Now tell me about this new species of doctor?”
“Gastro is a super specialization for stomach problems. You will find one in The New Corporate Hospital at the outskirt of the town,” Swati informed.
“First of all, let me consult Dr. Desai," Badal da didn’t want to waste his five hundred rupees he had already paid.
“But you have very little time. Forget those five hundred rupees. It is time now you started ‘Step Three’ along with ‘Step Two’. I suggest you go to the Corporate Hospital get a ‘Master Test’ done and also consult the Gastro doctor along with the reports,” Swati said firmly.
Step three was to get a master test done. If nothing was found in the tests, then he could boldly refuse the VRS offer, and if Mr. Trilok sends him to the Medical Board, nothing would be found on him to force upon separation from his job. But if there was a problem, then it was better if he opted for voluntary retirement.
She asked him to book an appointment online. He did that. He paid ten thousand rupees and got an appointment for the next day morning. He was asked to report an empty stomach sharp at eight in the morning.
So Step Three of ‘The Secret Game Plan’ had begun. He wrote an application for casual leave, got the request agreed by Swati and left it on Mr. Ttrilok’s table before moving out of the office in the evening.
But Badal da wanted to earn back his five hundred rupees that he had paid in Dr. Desai’s clinic. When I have already paid the fee, what was the harm in seeing him once, he thought.
From the office, he headed towards the Central Market. In Dr. Desai’s clinic, there was a big framed garlanded photo of an old man with vermillion on his head, in the patient waiting area. Badal da asked the attendant whose photo was that. He said it was doctor sahib’s Gurudev’s photo. Badal da got very impressed. He offered a long ‘Pranam’ to Gurudev and sat on one of the chairs.
The doctor called him in. He had to remove his shoes before he entered the chamber. But immediately, a strong, pungent smell coming from his socks filled the room. He had not changed his socks today. A well clad, clean-shaven and well-mannered Dr. Desai greeted him with a smile and extended a warm hand.
Badal da felt ashamed of the bad odor coming from his shoeless feet. But Dr. Desai did not seem to be affected by the smell. Badal da looked at Dr. Desai's face, and he wondered why the doctor was not able to identify the pungent smell. It appeared to Badal da that he had seen the reflection of Rs. 500/- currency in doctor’s eyes, which came in a flash and then disappeared.
The doctor made him comfortable very quickly and was so friendly with him that after two minutes, he thought he had talked with him for more than an hour. When the doctor saw him decently out of his chamber, Badal da looked at the wall clock and was surprised to see that he had taken exactly three minutes for his consultation.
So Swati had the right information about his speed, he thought. But then another thought overpowered him. Although he did not seem to mind the bad smell, he must have been suffocating with it. That is why he hurriedly saw me off because he had called his clinic attendant inside with the can of room freshener immediately after I left the chamber.
Nevertheless, Badal da was impressed with Dr. Desai's behavior. He had a nice feeling when he received a printout of the prescription, which had a long list of lab tests.
Suddenly a thin queer looking guy snatched the prescription from his hand. He quickly did some mental calculation and said, "Three thousand four hundred Rupees, sir."
“What do you mean by ‘three thousand four hundred Rupees, sir'?" asked the perplexed Badal da.
"For these tests, sir."
"No-no, I am the Company's employee. I will get my tests done in my hospital free of cost,” answered Badal da.
"You perhaps don't know, sir," the guy smiled at him, "Doctor sahib doesn’t accept test reports from any other lab.”
“Why?”
"He believes only in my reports," he smiled again.
A surge of anger rose inside Badal da, but he smiled and said in a low voice, “Tell your doctor to stop bleed his patients through the cuts.”
Before the guy could understand anything, Badal da had time enough to sneak out.
He was very annoyed, more annoyed with himself rather than the doctor or his pimp. He stopped at Ghosh Pharmacy and reproached Hemant for not taking his request seriously. He gave him two days’ ultimatum to find that Magic Pill. He was so furious that Hemant did not dare to speak out a single word.
