Also, I tend to view the light-hearted banter with the nurse and the doctor quite amusing and empathetic; American doctors would never write ‘apples and apricots’ when something like ‘penicillin’ was expected, nor ’speaks English’ for serious hearing impairments.

And then, since I came out better than expected, I’d say the moral of the story was that (these) German doctors, at least, were quite reliable, competent, and with a great sense of humor to boot.