A Blog detailing the insanity of my medical practice and the stupidity of everyday life.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
I bet
Dr. Grumpy: "Any major illnesses run in your family?"
Mr. Cath: "My father had heart disease, but didn't know it until after he was dead. When his doctor told him he'd died of a heart attack, Dad was shocked."
"In retrospect, the fact that the only person he ever talked to was his doctor, and that his doctor was a blond 10-year-old kid, should have tipped him off."
I remember last year one of my patients brought in an Rx for Lorazepam. She said it was to help her deal with a recent death "in the family." She was blubbering quite a bit and I felt really sorry for her. I tried to do the best a pharmacist can do in terms of consoling her. Apparently it had been a couple of weeks since the passing and she just couldn't deal with reality of it.
I felt really bad. I did. Up until the moment I found out she was talking about was a HAMSTER.
An RN friend of mine was once paged to a patient's room after a "code blue" announcement had gone over the intercom. Her patient was extremely distressed, wanted to know "IS THAT CODE BLUE FOR ME?"
Don't think much of the old guy's doc for his Monday morning quarter-backing, after the event, but sure am impressed by his awesome meta- communications skills! I think gramps was so shocked because of the doc's determination to get the message thru to the *other side*!
If my doctor told me I ha died of a heart attack, I would be shocked too.
ReplyDeleteMaybe he survived the first code, heard the answer to "what happened", only to die of (non-ACLS)second shock?
ReplyDelete"In retrospect, the fact that the only person he ever talked to was his doctor, and that his doctor was a blond 10-year-old kid, should have tipped him off."
ReplyDeleteI remember last year one of my patients brought in an Rx for Lorazepam. She said it was to help her deal with a recent death "in the family." She was blubbering quite a bit and I felt really sorry for her. I tried to do the best a pharmacist can do in terms of consoling her. Apparently it had been a couple of weeks since the passing and she just couldn't deal with reality of it.
ReplyDeleteI felt really bad. I did. Up until the moment I found out she was talking about was a HAMSTER.
Wouldn't he have had to be shocked first before his Dr. could tell him anything?
ReplyDeleteNah, Nah, I said illnesses. Dead is a state of being not an illness.
ReplyDeleteLet's try this one again, okay.
That doc must be a really good communicator if he can get through to the dead.
ReplyDeleteAn RN friend of mine was once paged to a patient's room after a "code blue" announcement had gone over the intercom. Her patient was extremely distressed, wanted to know "IS THAT CODE BLUE FOR ME?"
ReplyDeleteDoctor, I never thought YOU'D make it up here!
ReplyDeleteDon't think much of the old guy's doc for his Monday morning quarter-backing, after the event, but sure am impressed by his awesome meta- communications skills! I think gramps was so shocked because of the doc's determination to get the message thru to the *other side*!
ReplyDeleteHow could anyone tell that his dad was shocked?
ReplyDeleteDon't tell me, he was so shocked that he turned pale and cold...
ReplyDelete