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Dopo aver fatto l'impegnativa, il dottore farà il tampone in due minuti.

Dopo aver fatto l'impegnativa, il dottore farà il tampone in due minuti.
After making the referral, the doctor will do the swab in two minutes.
From Lesson 390:Time duration vs. time elapsed (in vs. tra)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Dopo aver fatto l'impegnativa, il dottore farà il tampone in due minuti.

Why does this sentence use in due minuti instead of tra due minuti?
This highlights the main difference between these two prepositions of time. Using in due minuti means the physical process of doing the swab will take two minutes to complete. If the sentence used tra due minuti, it would mean the doctor will wait two minutes before starting the swab.
Why is it Dopo aver fatto and not a gerund like Dopo facendo?
In Italian, when you want to say after doing something, you must use dopo followed by the past infinitive. The past infinitive is formed by the infinitive of the helper verb (avere or essere, often dropping the final e) plus the past participle. You cannot use a gerund directly after dopo.
What exactly is an impegnativa?
L'impegnativa is a specific Italian medical term for a referral or prescription issued by a doctor through the national health system. A patient needs this document to book specialized tests, such as the swab mentioned here.
Is tampone only used for a medical swab?
In this context, il tampone refers to a medical swab, which became an everyday word during the COVID pandemic to mean a rapid test. However, it can also refer to a stamp pad, a buffer, or a menstrual tampon, though assorbente interno is much more common for the latter.

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