Elephant

With apologies to John Godfrey Saxe (1816-1887)

It was eight folks from Wellington
To learning much inclined,
Who went to see the Elephant
(Though all of them were blind),
That each by observation
Might satisfy their mind.

(The “Elephant" in question
Was not a pachyderm,
But a system strained and broken,
A cause for deep concern,
To nurses, doctors, patients
- and to you, when it’s your turn).

The First, a…