I… don’t.
I’ve never met a medical professional who enjoys a surprise because as medical professionals – we like to be “in the know”. We have to be “in the know” because when we aren’t: people die and lawsuits happen.
Ok, so, my point actually (and I do have one…) has nothing to do with surprises, death, lawsuits, or even being a medical professional….
My point is this: who ever said, “what you don’t know can’t hurt you”, was a complete and total moron. Because for most people I know: not knowing – is the worst feeling in the world.
As medical professionals, there are so many things we have to know. We have to know that we have what it takes, we have to know how to take care of our patients, and how to take care of each other. Eventually, we have to figure out how to take care of ourselves.
As medical professionals, we have to be in the know, but as human beings – sometimes its better to stay in the dark. Because in the dark-there may be fear, but there is also hope. After 11 years of steering clear of a dentist... I went to the crew dentist today - with Ativan, Paracetamol, and Ibuprofen on board of course.
Four cavities (Gross! I know, right!?!?) One filling today, three more in a month. You see, regardless of the fact that every single time I put anything in my mouth - my teeth would hurt, I had hope that one day... it would go away, resolve itself.
(Outwardly - my teeth look great. Apparently, inwardly... not so much.)
I mean, disappearances happen in science. Disease can suddenly fade away. Tumors go missing. We open someone up to discover that the cancer is gone.
Its unexplained.
Its rare.
But it happens.
We call it misdiagnoses: say “we never saw it in the first place”… any explanation but the truth.
The truth being that life is full of vanishing acts. If something that we didn’t know we had disappears: do we miss it? Disappearances happen, pains go phantom, blood stops running, and people… people, they too fade away.
No comments:
Post a Comment