Dr Luke Patterson ran a second clinic on the outskirts of Rosebud. Open twice-weekly, the old concrete-block building also housed a tiny pharmacy where locals could purchase basic medications. Prescription medicine had to be obtained from the Safety Beach North clinic in person, but Luke often overlooked this rule where elderly patients were concerned. Initially, the Health Department had been slow to respond to his request for a Rosebud clinic, but he had persisted, becoming more of an irritant than a plague of mosquitos. Following protracted meetings and communications, the public servant charged with overseeing the case had given the go-ahead, rather than suffer further contact with the tiresome doctor.
An abandoned café – run-down but structurally sound – had been allocated for the ne
