It was the last 45 minutes of my final day in Internal Medicine. I walked into a room where the patient complaint was "sick all the time". This is exactly the type of complaint that I dread.... it reeks of extremely complicated patient. Still, it is so rewarding to help someone when they are feeling down and out.
I walk in the small sterile exam room and find a woman in tears. Weeping. She says the nurse berated her about her smoking habit (2 packs a day). She doesnt understand why people are so mean to her. After a few minutes of me sitting and allowing her to talk I can see a change in her eyes. She is opening up to me and pouring out her soul. She talks about the recent deaths, and her failed marriage, her poor health and her absence from work.
She is a tough patient in the medical world due to her lack of follow through. Tests are ordered, she doesn't go. Appointments made, she cancels. She is on every pain med imaginable including the big guns, saved for dire situations. She has a patient profile that people may form opinions about before entering the room. Her record says alot.
But all people need second chances. We all deserve a chance to speak our minds and be listened to with patience and respect. This was what I did. I sat and listened. I told her that I was sorry to hear about all the misfortunes, and that anyone in her position would be feeling poorly. We talked about her health, and her emotional well being.
Then 20 minutes after our visit should have ended, on the way out of the room she turned towards me and took my hand.
She said, "I had lost all hope for humanity. I thought I would never find a person who cares. You have given me hope. Thank you. Don't ever let this job take your empathy away. I am not a religious person, but I think God put you in my room for a reason. I am sure of it."
Being able to reach this woman, to hold her hand and be a part of her life for this short visit, this is why I chose this career.
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