Ashley, one of my colleagues, and I discussed whether or not a doctor, nurse, or other providers of care should cry or show emotion with a patient or client. We’re not speaking of meltdowns or becoming so emotionally involved that it impairs our judgment or makes it difficult for us to render effective care, but simply being able to show a human response in the presence of your patient at …
So what if cry with my patients?
We had just exchanged “I love yous” about 15 minutes before the intercom blared: “Code blue.”
Just like that, my sister was gone — all from what seemed like a simple knee surgery. Simple in the fact that the type of surgery my sister was supposed to have had that fateful morning was an open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF). Thousands of these surgeries have been performed every day. But something …
Pulmonary embolism: the killer clot in your veins
As medical professionals we often see people at their worst: battered and broken, bothered and in pain, no make-up, bad hair day, naked and too ill to even care about modesty. At those critical moments, in our patients’ hour of desperation, they hand over their lives to us … and the lives of their family. All that they are — they willingly place at our mercy. At times, burnout, and …
5 ways to show empathy in medicine
I remember just moving to Atlanta and having breakfast with a new-found friend I had met while working at a hospital as a registered nurse. The food at our chosen eatery was far from great. But I must say, my friend’s enthusiasm for life, specifically living in Atlanta, was fulfilling enough to make me forget the chef’s lackluster culinary skills. She was warm, outgoing, adventurous, somewhat inquisitive — just what …
Did diet pills kill my co-worker and friend?
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