the theater cap

"bongi, i have a patient who came in last night with appendicitis. can you operate him for me?" my colleague was known to load shed and mostly i didn't really mind. that day, however, i just didn't feel like any extra work, so it took a bit of effort to fake enthusiasm. "sure! any time." i lied. "anything special or straight appendicitis?" "well, i saw him two days ago, but he refused operation, so he might be a bit sick." i knew what that meant. a bit sick was surgical talk for 'good luck pulling this one through'. oh well, a challenge at least. the patient was a young man of about 27 years old. despite the fact that he was clearly in pain he still was a striking individual. he was alert and interested in my analysis of the situation. his questions were to the point and demonstrated deep contemplation about his situation. his eyes sparkled with life and potential. he touched a chord in me and i felt for him, despite the fact that he had refused an operation a day or two ago that was clearly necessary. when i examined him it was clear that he needed surgical intervention, but his pain was no longer located just in the area of the appendix, but it had spread more diffusely through the abdomen. i decided that a lower abdominal incision would be better to fully address all potential problems. "doc, i like your cap." we were pushing him towards theater. i was wearing one of my genuine sutured for a living caps that i always wear when i'm in theater. i smiled. this sort of sma...
Source: other things amanzi - Category: Surgeons Authors: Source Type: blogs