This patient reinforced a simple but important lesson
My first week on call, I got called in for a code blue. This patient happened to be the sickest patient on our unit. He had a tumor on his brain stem that was affecting his vision, hearing, swallowing, and breathing, so he had received a tracheostomy and gastrostomy tube as most palliative patients in his situation do. After a series of neurosurgeries, he was undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments. …