No compassion at doctor's office

To the editor:

My sister, who had never needed medical attention since her move to Missouri from Texas, was able to get an appointment for a one-time consultation in November, thanks to a family friend, with a Cape Girardeau physician who does not accept Medicare patients. Apparently, the doctor did not inform his office staff, and my sister was treated harshly at the receptionist's window.

The doctor saw my sister and immediately had her admitted to the hospital where she passed away three days later from cancer. The physician, who admitted her visited her daily while she was in the hospital.

For anyone who witnessed the scene at the receptionist's window at the doctor's office, my sister was not indigent. She was a 66-year-old woman who was let down by the system when she needed help the most. Has medicine become such a big business that compassion is no longer a part of it? This doesn't speak well of the health-care profession.

I am writing this in loving memory of my sister, Jean Fortner.

SHIRLEY CARLTON

Zalma, Mo.