Spend better before spending more

ON a humid evening, Aishah cradles her daughter’s IV drip in a crowded emergency ward. A nurse warns of a 24-hour wait for a bed. Another child lies motionless on the corridor floor.

Across the hall, Dr Lim, on her eighteenth hour, leaves a trauma case for a cardiac patient. No ventilator is guaranteed. Specialist back-up is uncertain. The system demands more than stamina.