Every Doctor Has Their Own Cemetery

[Kuba]

A nice happy thought to get our minds off of interview stress😀 : How do you think you are going to react when you kill your first patient?

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[DoctorMom78]

A nice happy thought to get our minds off of interview stress😀 : How do you think you are going to react when you kill your first patient?

😱 😱 😱 What?!?!? I have no idea how to respond to this post other than by posting lots of freaked out faces.😕

 

[Kuba]

😱 😱 😱 What?!?!? I have no idea how to respond to this post other than by posting lots of freaked out faces.😕

haha, i thought of this wonderfully morbid thread when I remembered the Polish phrase (the title of the thread.) It is a really weird thread tho, lol, i aplogize. I must be in a weird mood.

 

[DoctorMom78]

haha, i thought of this wonderfully morbid thread when I rememred the Polish phrase (the title of the thread)

LOL! OK, sure, if you say so. Ummm, If I ACTUALLY KILLED one of my patients I would probably sink into a deep depression, begin consuming lots of alcohol, cheeseburgers, and chocolate, and rapidly accelerate into a downward spiral of self-loathing and disgust which would ultimately result in my being locked up in some rat-infested looney bin trying to chew off my foot so I would bleed to death. 😉

 

[Kuba]

LOL! OK, sure, if you say so. Ummm, If I ACTUALLY KILLED one of my patients I would probably sink into a deep depression, begin consuming lots of alcohol, and rapidly accelerate into a downward spiral of self-loathing and disgust which would ultimately result in my being locked up in some rat-infested looney bin trying to chew off my foot so I would bleed to death. 😉

hmm, i kind of hope you are not serious. Most doctors I have spoken to agree it is only a matter of time before a patient dies because of your mistake.

 

[DoctorMom78]

No, it is completely a joke, (well maybe not about the cheeseburgers and chocolate), but I had no idea on a better way to respond to your post. Since it is now after 11 and I am deliriously stuffed on leftover turkey and diet pepsi as well being chronically sleep deprived, it seemed rather humorous to me. Then again, it may just be the turkey talking....😀

 

[DoctorMom78]

Oh, and in all seriousness, I don't agree that it is only a matter of time before a patient dies because of your mistake. My father is a doctor and he has never killed anyone. I think most doctors do not. Sure, they probably all make some mistakes, but they are probably mostly minor and generally not lethal. I prefer to believe this rather than believing it is inevitable that I will kill someone someday. I guess only time will prove us right or wrong.😉

 

[Kuba]

Oh, and in all seriousness, I don't agree that it is only a matter of time before a patient dies because of your mistake. My father is a doctor and he has never killed anyone. I think most doctors do not. Sure, they probably all make some mistakes, but they are probably mostly minor and generally not lethal. I prefer to believe this rather than believing it is inevitable that I will kill someone someday. I guess only time will prove us right or wrong.😉

well I certainly hope you are right. I heard some interviewers ask that same question that I asked in interviews.

 

[DoctorMom78]

well I certainly hope you are right. I heard some interviewers ask that same question that I asked in interviews.

NOTE TO SELF: Do not mention anything about chewing off feet when in interview...

If I was actually asked that in an interview I would respond by saying that to err is human and while it is certainly possible for doctors to make fatal mistakes, it is their responsibililty to make sure that they have the proper medical training and understanding of the patient's condition so that they can drastically reduce or completely eliminate any possibility of such an error occurring. It is the duty of the physician to ensure the patient's safety at all costs.

 

[jkhamlin]

hmm, i kind of hope you are not serious. Most doctors I have spoken to agree it is only a matter of time before a patient dies because of your mistake.

OK, so that brings to mind a story. I work in an inpatient pharmacy in a hospital. I wasn't there when this happened (it was on the night shift), but it is now legend in the pharmacy where I work. It is up there with the top ten dealing with nurses horror stories.

One night our pharmacist on duty had put on an order for vitamin K for a po dose. The technician filled it with an injectable dose, and the pharmacist missed the mistake when he was checking meds. I will tell you that in a hospital, medication errors happen all the time, that is why every pharmacy has a double check system. This is not unique to pharmacy, but it is obvious in our department.

The dose got out to the floor, and the nurse caught the error. 😱 She called down to the pharmacist and pointed it out. The pharmacist told her that it wasn't a problem, all she had to do is send it back, and we would already be sending her the vitamin K for the correct route of administration. She hung up, and came downstairs to the pharmacy with the incorrect dose in hand. She talked to the pharmacist, and he tried to reassure her that everything was taken care of and that we had already sent the correct med to the floor through the pneumatic tube system. That wasn't good enough for the nurse. "What are we going to do about this?" she demanded. 😕 The pharmacist then repeated that the problem had already been corrected. The nurse apparently wanted heads to roll. She demanded that the culprit be found and something done. The pharmacist told her that mistakes happen. She then told the pharmacist that she had worked in healthcare for thirty years and never made a medication error. 🙄 That is where the pharmacist ends the story, and we all shake our heads. I am not sure what the pharmacist did in response, but knowing him, I am sure he laughed at her and told her that we would not be going on a witch hunt over vitamin K.

 

[toothless rufus]

A nice happy thought to get our minds off of interview stress😀 : How do you think you are going to react when you kill your first patient?

Hey, its not called practicing medicine for no reason!

 

[Kuba]

Hey, its not called practicing medicine for no reason!

haha, true!

 

[Oculus Sinistra]

A nice happy thought to get our minds off of interview stress😀 : How do you think you are going to react when you kill your first patient?

I'll be in the middle of anger, misery, and embarassment.

I'll want to quit, to just walk away, but then I'll realize the show must go on.

Learn from it. Always, always learn from it.

Today you lose a life, tomorrow you save a life.

 

[Kuba]

I'll be in the middle of anger, misery, and embarassment.

I'll want to quit, to just walk away, but then I'll realize the show must go on.

Learn from it. Always, always learn from it.

Today you lose a life, tomorrow you save a life.

👍

 

[RollWave11]

Oh, and in all seriousness, I don't agree that it is only a matter of time before a patient dies because of your mistake. My father is a doctor and he has never killed anyone. I think most doctors do not. Sure, they probably all make some mistakes, but they are probably mostly minor and generally not lethal. I prefer to believe this rather than believing it is inevitable that I will kill someone someday. I guess only time will prove us right or wrong.😉

I disagree completely. I think docs probably kill patients more frequently than you'd think due to random mistakes but not usually as a result of some massive misjudgement. I doubt any doc would say they've gone through their entire career without botching something. Mistakes are natural.

 

[toothless rufus]

In all seriousness, it is a very sobering thing; you are responsible for the very life of your patients. It is not something to be taken lightly, and as a physician, you must remain ever vigilant to not make a mistake that could have such a tragic result.

Here is one good reason why hours worked by docs must be shortened! How terrible that someone must die due to error brought on by sleep deprivation that results from the terrible greed of medicine being run as a business! Sure I know that it in fact is a business, money makes the world go round, but profit must not stand between proper care. These are people's lives, they are dearly loved by someone, and there is no price to be put on a person's life.

 

[Kuba]

In all seriousness, it is a very sobering thing; you are responsible for the very life of your patients. It is not something to be taken lightly, and as a physician, you must remain ever vigilant to not make a mistake that could have such a tragic result.

Here is one good reason why hours worked by docs must be shortened! How terrible that someone must die due to error brought on by sleep deprivation that results from the terrible greed of medicine being run as a business! Sure I know that it in fact is a business, money makes the world go round, but profit must not stand between proper care. This are people's lives, they are dearly loved by someone, and there is no price to be put on a person's life.

Hasselhoff for President!

 

[toothless rufus]

Hasselhoff for President!

Yaaaay! Lol!

Its not only sleepy docs, of course! I have worked in a freestanding psychiatric emergency and inpatient facility for four and a half years now, which provides services to the county's indigent population, and I have seen much that disgusts me regarding patient care. My eyes have been opened to how things are run not only where I work, but also by all of the local hospitals that we interact with. Witnessing firsthand the inequalities of society and those governing the disbursement of healthcare services has really bummed me out.

Of course there are good docs, who try to provide first rate care, but many are constrained by the hospitals they work for, and many others truly do not care. It is very, very sad. In whatever specialty I end up, I plan to aid and advocate underserved populations, and get involved in policy and reform. But after dealing with tons of viscious anti-social malingerers, staff who are just as f-ed up as the patients, and things like having to get staples in my head, it sure ain't gonna be psychiatry! Although I must say, I have seen and been through some incredibly off-the-wall stuff, and have some crazy stories, as well as some sad ones, and very happy ones too. I have learned much, and have been changed by the experience.

 

[Kuba]

I know exact;y what you are talking about. The ER I work in has a full emergency psych unit we call teh "purple pod" where I often work. The techs basically run that place(we have to call a nurse to come and administer meds.) But yea, a lot of the stuff that happens is crazy and sad, and a lot of those patients are treated like dirt.

 

[toothless rufus]

I know exact;y what you are talking about. The ER I work in has a full emergency psych unit we call teh "purple pod" where I often work. The techs basically run that place(we have to call a nurse to come and administer meds.) But yea, a lot of the stuff that happens is crazy and sad, and a lot of those patients are treated like dirt.

Yeah, I'm sure you know the real deal then. Well, at least we can try to make a difference! 🙂 You know, I actually like this population, or at least the genuinely sick ones, but the system is a mess, and is easily abused by a**holes, which administration is quite pleased with, as increased numbers=$$$. Although often fascinating, my heart is not in psychiatry. It can be brutal, physically and emotionally, but I do hope to maintain some contact with this population in whatever I end up doing. Not a lot of people can handle it; it needs good people. But I just don't feel that it is my calling.

Anyway, back to Dr. Death's Disco Machine-a-Go-Go!! 😛

BTW, that's a great Polish phrase! A lot of thought evoked from just a few words! I will remember it.

 

[DoctorMom78]

I disagree completely. I think docs probably kill patients more frequently than you'd think due to random mistakes but not usually as a result of some massive misjudgement. I doubt any doc would say they've gone through their entire career without botching something. Mistakes are natural.

I said they all made mistake, but most of them aren't lethal. If every doctor was making mistakes that were killing people then there would be a lot more law suits.

 

[DoctorMom78]

Yaaaay! Lol!

Its not only sleepy docs, of course! I have worked in a freestanding psychiatric emergency and inpatient facility for four and a half years now, which provides services to the county's indigent population, and I have seen much that disgusts me regarding patient care. My eyes have been opened to how things are run not only where I work, but also by all of the local hospitals that we interact with. Witnessing firsthand the inequalities of society and those governing the disbursement of healthcare services has really bummed me out.

Of course there are good docs, who try to provide first rate care, but many are constrained by the hospitals they work for, and many others truly do not care. It is very, very sad. In whatever specialty I end up, I plan to aid and advocate underserved populations, and get involved in policy and reform. But after dealing with tons of viscious anti-social malingerers, staff who are just as f-ed up as the patients, and things like having to get staples in my head, it sure ain't gonna be psychiatry! Although I must say, I have seen and been through some incredibly off-the-wall stuff, and have some crazy stories, as well as some sad ones, and very happy ones too. I have learned much, and have been changed by the experience.

👍 👍 👍 TOTALLY AGREE! I have witnessed a lot of what you have and it is one of the main reasons why I want to go into medicine and why I want to practice rural family medicine in a community that doesn't have access to quality health care.

 

[DoctorMom78]

I know exact;y what you are talking about. The ER I work in has a full emergency psych unit we call teh "purple pod" where I often work. The techs basically run that place(we have to call a nurse to come and administer meds.) But yea, a lot of the stuff that happens is crazy and sad, and a lot of those patients are treated like dirt.

It is sad. In my opinion it is the patients with psychiatric problems and a lack of resources that experience the greatest injustice.

 

[doc G]

I said they all made mistake, but most of them aren't lethal. If every doctor was making mistakes that were killing people then there would be a lot more law suits.

You would be suprised now often this gets documented as ....well lets just say not the doctors fault 😉

 

[KeyLime]

This really freaks me out. I hope that I have what it takes to always bring my A-game even when I haven't eaten or slept in 30 hours...

 

[DeetleMSU]

I'll be upset (a day, a week, who knows) then learn what went wrong and why that wasn't the best choice.

The first time I helped care for a patient that died, I was a nursing assistant on a hospital telemetry floor. I still remember her name was Mrs. Green.I was her NA for weeks. One of the sweetest grandma-like patients I ever met. I was in the room when it happened, then cleaned her up for her family to see her. After the family left, I took her to the morgue in the basement and said a prayer.

 

[toothless rufus]

👍 👍 👍 TOTALLY AGREE! I have witnessed a lot of what you have and it is one of the main reasons why I want to go into medicine and why I want to practice rural family medicine in a community that doesn't have access to quality health care.

Very cool! I myself plan on donating some time as a plastic surgeon to make very ugly people more attractive to those who must view them.

 

[DoctorMom78]

Very cool! I myself plan on donating some time as a plastic surgeon to make very ugly people more attractive to those who must view them.

That is very noble of you!

 

[tncekm]

I said they all made mistake, but most of them aren't lethal. If every doctor was making mistakes that were killing people then there would be a lot more law suits.

😀 ?

 

[toothless rufus]

That is very noble of you!

(With a heavy sigh, and a squinty look to the heavens with head tilt) Thank you, I try...I try....

 

[DoctorMom78]

(With a heavy sigh, and a squinty look to the heavens with head tilt) Thank you, I try...I try....[/QUOTE

LMAO!!! You are too funny!!!

 

[DoctorMom78]

😀 ?

? Not sure what you mean by your post, so I am responding with a question mark back to you.😀

 

[tncekm]

? Not sure what you mean by your post, so I am responding with a question mark back to you.😀

I just don't see how we could get any more lame lawsuits in the medical field 🙂 Just hasslin' ya.

 

[DoctorMom78]

I just don't see how we could get any more lame lawsuits in the medical field 🙂 Just hasslin' ya.

I know you were "just hasslin' me". LOL!!! I just didn't know what you were hasslin' me about!😀