Nana Dadzie Ghansah is a cardiac anesthesiologist.
They are not just sick people in need of care. They are people with lives, hopes, plans, and dreams. A day before they showed up, they may have dropped a son at school, taken a daughter to soccer practice, made dinner, had lunch with friends, done their nails, or even bought a new golf club.
Of course, there is the drug addict with endocarditis, the perpetual drunk with intracranial hematoma, or even …
“The hospital room was as cold as dead skin, the hallway crowded with lost souls and reeking of illness.”
― Raquel Cepeda, “Bird of Paradise: How I Became Latina”
Once upon a time, I met a young lady who wanted to be a doctor. I could see the naked determination and resolve in her eyes. Her older sister, who was a friend, asked her to talk to me about her dream.
I asked …
Just before I induced anesthesia, he said, “Doc, I want to apologize beforehand. I am incontinent due to a previous surgery so I might wet the sheets.”
I told him not to worry and that we understood and that “these things do happen.” His response has stuck with me: “Doc, but there is still some shame.”
I nodded, told him not to worry since he was going to get a catheter anyway, …
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