cut off at eighteen

[Ostap]

Hello, teachers. A woman is calling a hospital for a surgery asking if they serve patients as young as sixteen.
Hospital: Each department is different. Some departments cut off at eighteen. How old is your patient?
listen at 0:57

What does "cut off" mean here? My guess -- hanging up the phone when they hear the "patient" is only 18.

 

[emsr2d2]

Hello. teachers.

A woman is calling a hospital for a surgery to discuss a surgical procedure, asking if they serve treat patients as young as sixteen.
Hospital: Each department is different. Some departments cut off at eighteen. How old is your patient?
listen at 0:57

What does "cut off" mean here? My guess -- hanging up the phone when they hear the "patient" is only 18.

I don't believe for one second that you really think they're using "hang up" to refer to a phone call. Clearly, they mean that some departments require a patient to be at least eighteen years old in order to consider performing some surgeries. Eighteen is the "cut-off age" (in this case, the minimum age. Sometimes it can refer to the maximum age).

 

[Ostap]

Thank you, but I also have a question regarding the correction:

asking if they serve treat patients as young as sixteen.

I used "serve" because, first, the caller herself used that word, and also because the this kind of surgery doesn't cure an illness / deasease; it's, roughly, more like a plastic surgery to change something about your body that you don't like. Does "treat" work in this context?

 

[Rover_KE]

Yes, it does.

If you don't like it, you could also say 'operate on'.

 

[emsr2d2]

Thank you, but I also have a question regarding the correction:

I used "serve" because, first, the caller herself used that word, and also because the this kind of surgery doesn't cure an illness/disease; it's, roughly, more like a plastic surgery to change something about your body that you don't like. Does "treat" work in this context?

I believe she said "service", not "serve".

Any surgery performed on a person is a type of treatment. As Rover said, "operate on" would work just as well in this context.

Other users should note that the TikTok channel this is taken from is a politically motivated right-wing site that is known, primarily, for spreading anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment. @Ostap - it would be very helpful if you would make it clear in post #1 that you are posting political/controversial/divisive content and that the views expressed are not your own. Also, there is no need to post an entire video, even if you tell us the time marker of the sentence you're asking us about. It's very easy to post a link just to the part of the video containing the sentence in question and maybe a couple of seconds either side of it.
Right now, I'm milliseconds away from deleting the thread because of the general content of that TikTok account. UE does not wish to be associated with divisive, non-inclusive content.

 

[Ostap]

Also, there is no need to post an entire video, even if you tell us the time marker of the sentence you're asking us about. It's very easy to post a link just to the part of the video containing the sentence in question and maybe a couple of seconds either side of it.

I always do that with Youtube links, but it's not technically possible with Twitter videos, as far as I know.

@Ostap - it would be very helpful if you would make it clear in post #1 that you are posting political/controversial/divisive content and that the views expressed are not your own.

But at the link we just hear someone (pretending to be) trying to politely sign for a gender-affirming surgery. Nobody there is expressing any views, let alone controversial or divisive. The medical staff saying what age is acceptable for the surgery at the clinic -- that's all there's in the audio. I wouldn't post anything offensive.

 

[Ostap]

Right now, I'm milliseconds away from deleting the thread because of the general content of that TikTok account. UE does not wish to be associated with divisive, non-inclusive content.

Yes, if it's problematic, I wouldn't object to deleting.

 

[jutfrank]

I don't see why we need to bring politics into this. This is a question about use of language.