Gail Bell
The Nation Reviewed
Quiet, Please: CityRail’s ‘Quiet Carriages’ Trial
Gail Bell
The ticket seller at the security window at Tuggerah Railway Station, on NSW’s Central Coast, hands me a leaflet showing a young man’s face...
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Arts & Letters
As Robert Was Saying: In conversation with Robert Dessaix
Gail Bell
Robert Dessaix refers to the heart attack that almost ended his life in July 2011 as “the emergency”. “I’m not interested in the physical...
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The Monthly Essays
A Quiet Anniversary: AIDS 30 Years on
Gail Bell
The taming of HIV/AIDS is Australia’s good news story. Our swift, egalitarian response – the so-called ‘Australian model’ – made us unique...
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The Monthly Essays
Prescribing Behaviour: The Rush to Diagnose ADHD
Gail Bell
Allan has been in the game for over 30 years and currently works at a special school, discreetly tucked away on the edge of a sports field...
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The Monthly Essays
In the Rat Room: Reflections on the Breeding House
Gail Bell
In many ways it was the perfect job for a young recovering panic merchant. Geographical isolation, hours alone with non-speaking mammals, a...
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The Nation Reviewed
Inside the Pillbox: Bullying in the Workplace
Gail Bell
I ought to be well beyond 3 am revenge plots against the workplace bully but when it’s too hot to sleep and the frog outside my window is...
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The Nation Reviewed
Taking Care
Gail Bell
My mother-in-law is bracing herself for loss. As moving day approaches, appetite and sleep have deserted her. She is shrinking in size. Her...
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The Nation Reviewed
Heart to Heart
Gail Bell
My sister is in town, on leave from her burn-out job and hankering for family. We both work in health provision, which is to say, we serve...
More ...The Monthly Essays
Liquid Handcuffs: The Methadone Program at 40
Gail Bell
Two old hands who dose at the pharmacy where I work (a couple, Danny and Carla) have been using since they were 18. They are in their...
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The Nation Reviewed
Ghost Writers
Gail Bell
This time last year, I roamed through the over-furnished rooms of Katherine Mansfield’s birthplace house in Tinakori Road, Te Puakitanga,...
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