Military Hospital

Down in Ekkattuthangal, the Military Hospital is right in the middle of all the noise of Chennai. It is a crowded area, and sometimes the traffic makes it hard for people to even get to the gate. Inside the walls, though, it’s a bit different. It is still busy, but it feels like its own little world. I’ve been working in the records section for a while. The humidity here is no joke; it makes the papers feel damp and the air heavy. We have these big ceiling fans that never stop spinning. The patients come in looking tired from the heat outside. We see a lot of people from the local units and their families. It isn’t a shiny new building with glass elevators. It is more of a practical place with concrete floors and heavy wooden doors. Sometimes the rain comes down so hard you can’t hear yourself think over the sound on the roof. We just keep moving, handing out medicine and checking temperatures. The tea here is very strong and usually has a lot of ginger in it. Most of the staff live nearby, so we all know the shortcuts to avoid the Ekkattuthangal traffic. It’s just a regular military hospital doing what needs to be done every day. There is always a lot of cleaning to do because of the dust from the road. We just try to keep things running smoothly.