‘There was only one admission last night,’ he said, looking at the X-ray screen. ‘Not very interesting,’ he added. He was sprawled back in his chair, his back turned to us, trying to appear cool but looking instead like an awkward teenager. ‘Don’t ever say that!’ I said. ‘Who are you, by the way? And what do you want to be when you grow up?’ – a standard question I ask all the new doctors. ‘Orthopaedic surgeon,’ he told me. ‘Sit up straight and look us in the eye when you talk,’ I said. I told him that the progress of his medical career was going to depend largely on how well he presented
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