Mantoux

"Next" called a voice from next door.

I got up and walked into a 1960s styled room, equipped with a faux-wooden lino bench and cupboards that had seen better days. On a black very old and chunky seat sat a middle aged female nurse.

"Name?" she called without looking up.

"Andy..." I replied.

"And you're a... ?"

"Medical student".

"Ah" non discreetly.

She continued, blase. "Bring out your arm and let's have a look."

I revealed the red mark on my anterior arm where a few days previously another nurse had poked me with the Mantoux test.

"Emm" as she used a pen to draw on the skin, determining the size of the lump.

Once the border was clearly defined, she used a ruler and measured the size.

14mm.

She looked up.

"You know what this means?" she looked up past her half glasses.

I nodded.

She pulled out a card the size of a credit card, jotted a few details down such as my name, date of birth, today's date and size and handed it to me.

"Ring that number and make an appointment for a chest X-Ray, then we'll arrange for a doctor to see you."

And with that, the consultation was over.

Next step: Chest X-ray in 3 weeks.