Mary: "Dr. Grumpy's office, can I help you?"
Mr. Prevost: "Yes, Dr. Intern referred me to see Dr. Grumpy, and I need to make an appointment."
Mary: "Okay, we have an opening this Thursday, at 1:30. Would that work for you?"
Mr. Prevost: "Sounds good. What bus number takes me there?"
Mary: "Uh, I'm not sure?"
Mr. Prevost: "Okay, it has to be either Red Line 42 or Blue Line 17."
Mary: "I really don't know, sir."
Mr. Prevost: "Screw this. I'll find a place with a helpful staff."
(hangs up)
The question really isn't that weird IMHO. Then again: Mr. Prevost doesn't sound like a patient willing to put too much effort in his treatment.
ReplyDeleteConsidering Mary has no idea where he lives or what bus lines go near his house, it's a VERY weird question.
ReplyDeleteDodged another bullet there.
How about the person look at the address for the office and figure out what bus line goes there? Google maps will even help you with that and give you the schedule as well.
ReplyDeleteActually, most office staff would know at least what bus *goes by* the office...
ReplyDeleteI bet Mary would know how to get there if the patient were driving.
It seems to me that reception staff should be able to provide basic directions. I'm not talking about door-to-door directions, but how to get from the highway or a major road to the office and which public transit routes offer access to the facility. This doesn't seem like an unreasonable thing to ask at all.
ReplyDelete@2nd anon: I agree on the part that Mary wouldn't know where he lives, but it's not unusual, if you're working in a place that receives visitors, to know what lines can be used to reach you from several parts of town. Even if Mary doesn't use prublic transportation herself.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't be able to tell anyone, but that's because the buses in my neck of the woods are a joke for anything other than someone needing transit to and from an 8-5 office job...buses any other times of the day don't happen here. If you're not in a major urban area many midwestern towns have no mass transit.
ReplyDeleteWhat should I eat for breakfast Mary?
ReplyDeleteMary, if I eat buckwheat pancakes for breakfast with maple syrup, should I drink a big tall glass of milk or go with a glass of tomato juice?
ReplyDeleteI'm defending Mary on this one.
Some places, there's only one bus, so that's an easy choice. Some other places, the various 'lines' come at different times, so it'd be like memorizing a bus schedule with some familiarity of where the lines are running from. Like Packer, 'whew' dodged another. (wipes forehead). This patient might have gone postal if he'd actually arrived, accusing her of not telling him to get a transfer at the main depot.
In larger cities, there are several different business that pass the same businesses so without knowing the callers address, Mary wouldn't have a clue as to what bus line he needs. I live in a desert town of 150,000 and can think of many medical offices that have bus 1, 4, 7, 11, ext stop at or near the location. The guy didn't offer up his address, he just expected her to know.
ReplyDeleteSheldon, please stay off the bus
ReplyDelete