ESL Podcast 567 – Visiting a Patient in the Hospital

George: You’re just in time. There’s only another 20 minutes until the end of visiting hours.

Inez: I got here as soon as I could. How is Uncle Peter?

George: They moved him from the emergency ward¹ to the intensive care unit. He’s on life support.

Inez: How could this have happened? How could somebody in the prime of his life collapse² suddenly like that?

George: They’ve been running tests all day, and the doctor is supposed to come by after her rounds to talk to us. Hopefully, we’ll get some answers then, and she’ll give us an update on Uncle Peter’s condition. Come on, I’ll take you to the ICU.

Inez: Okay, but I really dread³ seeing him on a respirator and hooked up to monitors.

George: This is it, room 323.

Inez: Oh, look at him. What are all of these IV drips for? He looks so lifeless in that hospital bed. Is he under sedation?

George: Yeah, I think so. We’ll know more when the doctor gets here. Oh, here she is.

Inez: Let’s hope she has some answers for us.


Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

1 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。

2 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

3 dread   

vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧

参考例句：

• We all dread to think what will happen if the company closes.我们都不敢去想一旦公司关门我们该怎么办。
• Her heart was relieved of its blankest dread.她极度恐惧的心理消除了。