Image: Designed by rawpixel.com / Freepik Recently I had cause to visit the after hours clinic in the emergency ward of my local hospital. Don't worry, I'm fine, thanks for asking. I'm not dying, or even at risk of dying (apparently). Anyway it was a Saturday morning and I was there for a few hours sitting in one of several patient bays all divided by curtains but with the entrance completely open. What I noticed is that everyone of the staff seemed to talk to each other like they were standing in a field, raising their voice just to be heard by the next nearest person (probably standing quite some distance away). Now I get that in a busy emergency ward it's important that staff can be understood and communicate clearly but I know this morning wasn't busy because one of the staff said as much in a phone call... "No, it's not busy, just a steady stream so far." I also know that the patient just down from me came in as a result of an allergi