A Dog-Eat-Dog Business - The Life of a Hotel Doctor
I was delighted to receive a call from a large Beverly Hills hotel that hadn't called in years.
While I was attending the guest there was a knock. The guest was not dressed, so I opened the door and found myself face to face with one of the young entrepreneurial doctors who have entered the field. I suspected that this was his hotel.
Hotels occasionally summon another doctor when the first is slow arriving. Since I'm never slow, I've usually come and gone by the time the original appears.
"Looks like a communications slip-up," he said. "I'll take care of it."
I closed the door and went back to work. When I returned to the lobby, the concierge apologized for the mix up, blaming the impatient guest.
She handed me an envelope. This was one of the few hotels that pay the doctor directly, adding the fee to the guest's bill. Counting the money, I noticed that it was more than my usual fee. Seeing my puzzlement, the concierge apologized again and explained that, at the other doctor's suggestion, she had split the fee between us. Those young doctors charge a lot.
