Kendall Madden
It’s a desert in here–
the way they suck
the air from one
compartment to another.
I’m parched–
forgotten rain,
blanched mollusk
without the sea.
My stiff face
tries to smile
at a wilted patient.
Pink-tongued lilies
once in a while
overcome the disinfectant,
stale sweat,
with hothouse perfume.
Outside the window
a view of roof,
helicopter pad.
We speak in grays and blues
our eyes watch
the brown bird
lift into the sky.
About the poet:
Kendall Madden is a fourth-year medical student at Stanford University. She holds a BS and MS in environmental science from Stanford and spent several years before medical school doing environmental-health research on the effects of agriculture on water quality in South Asia. She is interested in the ways in which the environment and health influence one another.
About the poem:
“This poem was written about the physical hospital environment and the ways it can impact patients and healthcare providers.”
Poetry editors:
Johanna Shapiro and Judy Schaefer
5 thoughts on “Inside the Hospital”
you got it girl, never stop writing.
Good poem on a timely subject. Hospitals are among the most INhospitable places one can be, healthy or sick. Add in the unhealthy hospital food and the spread of infection and oh dear, I hope I can stay clear.
Very nice poem, Kendall. It really captures the feeling of hospital rooms.
I love the imagery in this poem and am reminded of Donald Hall’s comparison of the hospital to a large ship… Thank you for this, Kendall.
Great poem, Kendall, thank you *****.
My sister I have seen the inside of many hospitals and nursing homes. We practiced medicine almost a 100 years but never together.
I wouldn’t have missed medicine or poetry for the world