There are many ways to say goodbye: bye, see you, catch you later, so long, have a nice day, take care, cheers, and so on.
It can be so tricky, however, for a doctor, especially for a Chinese doctor, to say goodbye to a patient. As you know, 'goodbye' in Chinese just sounds like 'see you or see you around'. The thing is nobody really wants to be sick again - in other words, they don't want to see their doctor again, but the doctor and patient may feel like saying something when they are leaving each other after a satisfying visit or consultation.
It's not like the doctor is a bad guy or unqualified or just someone who doesn't want to help or is so annoying, so they may say 'see you' to each other when the patient is leaving. Sometimes, they do mean it because they may have made friends with each other - doctors do make friends with their patients!
Yes, it's the same thing that a car owner doesn't really want to see the garage mechanic again, because it may mean something is wrong again with the car if they need to see each other again, unless they are already friends and are meeting each other for something pleasant, not for a broken car.
So, you can see how tricky it can be for a Chinese doctor to say goodbye to a patient.
Comments
Thanks, Onee!
Dear Expector,,
Here we usually say 'I get well, doc. Thank you for your help' then we leave...and smile. :)
Though I rarely come to doctor when I get minor illness, I never hate those who treated me in the hospital. It's wow to see them again outside. But, we usually forget since we occasionally met. Nice topic, doc. I do appreciate the job of the doctors. Those who treat patients well are the real hero.
Thanks for sharing. :)
Thanks, bet!
You may say....stay fine!
@Evangelina
You are not alone – sometimes we just can't remember the suitable word or expression for a situation:)
@noasl
Is that Malaysian?
@Luci
Really? That's much trickier:)
@tawfeeq
Welcome back! Tanks for the interesting explanation!
@Keen
That sounds great!
( Fee Amaannullah) amaan means protect
Is also famous here in Pakistan. To the best of my knowledge, it means, " May Allah protect you!" We say it when beloved ones depart from for long or short journey.
Btw, Taufeq, welcome back
We say in Iraq “God be with you…في امان الله” .By the way ,Good-bye This phrase comes from : " God be with you ". It has been shortened over the years since 16th century. Shakespeare used "God be wy you." The substitution for good for God seems to have been mainly due to the influence of such phrases as " good day" and " good night."
Source: Dictionary of Word Origins. John Ayto.
Dear Expector Smith , I feel happy that you are still here in EC as an active member.
Yeah .. it's some kind of awkward situation to be into. Over here, sometimes it's much easier if we say to each other 'Assalamualaikum = May the God be with you' instead of goodbye or see you again.
@Evangelina
Yes, some people even see their car as their lover – as if the car was a living thing!
No one wants to be ill, but nobody is disease–free. Doctors can be so helpful, though:)
@Shobe
Thanks for the comment! It sonds like "if only there were no such thing as 'doctor' or 'hospital'":)
@Icha
Yes, the doctor doesn't need to say anything when the patient is leaving, even though the patient said 'Bye' or 'Thank you' to the doctor.
@Grace
Yes, you should be careful about what you say when you visit a patient!
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