trauma [m.s]

xxvi.

- - -
as surgeons we are trained to fix what's broken. the breaking point is our starting line... at work.
- - -

"hey, uh... can we talk?" chloe clears her throat as she approaches mark who is leaning back against the nurses station, looking down at his phone. but he doesn't bother to acknowledge her presence at all. "mark? this is some kind of joke. you're not even gonna look at me?"

"torres..." mark calls, stepping away from the nurses station and over to the passing resident. "i have a hip decubitus ulcer i need you to check out before this presentation about the new rules."

"mature," chloe rolls her eyes. "really mature, mark."

"what happened to being an adult?" callie furrows her brow.

"i thought about it," mark shrugs his shoulders and callie shakes her head at him.

"you have to at least talk to her, mark," callie tells him and he scoffs, causing her to roll her eyes.

- - -
but in our lives the breaking point is a sign of weakness and we'll do everything we can to avoid it.
- - -

"hey, you hear anything about what the new rules are?" erica's brow is furrowed as she sits in the auditorium amongst the residents, interns and other attendings.

"last i heard, you were at hand holding, foot rubs and lots of late-night gab sessions," mark leans forward resting his arms on the back of the empty seat in front of him, his voice lowered.

"excuse me?" erica raises her brow.

"oh! no, you were talking about the, uh, chief's new rules. i thought you were referring to you and torres," mark shrugs his shoulders, holding his hands up in defence as he leans back and erica clenches her jaw. "i've been wrong before."

"listen up, everyone!" richard's voice bellows from the stage, grasping the attention of those sat before him. "we're busy people, so i'm gonna try and be brief. i am implementing a new teaching protocol here at seattle grace. now some of these rules are new, and some are old and are going to be newly reinforced."

the murmuring of doctors begins to pick up again slightly, following richard's words, but it quickly dies down again when he begins reciting the new rules.

"first, second, and third year residents will no longer be allowed to de facto specialise. the practice interferes with the development of fully founded surgical education," richard announces and cristina groans, quietly, leaning back on her chair. "no more."

"personal relationships, personal loyalties and personal favourites will no longer be a factor in our training program," richard warns as mark briefly glances to chloe across the auditorium, but as soon as her eyes meet his, he returns his focus to the front of the auditorium. "attendings, you will spread your wealth of knowledge equally among all residents."

"in addition, we will refocus our attention on patient communication and bedside manner. for some of us, this means learning the lost art of humanity and compassion. for others, this means learning how to treat patients without becoming emotionally involved with them," as richard speaks, izzie rolls her eyes and sucks her teeth. "this is a surgical program. psychiatry is on the fifth floor. let's not confuse the two."

"in addition, residents, your interns reflect on you. if they fail, you fail. if they succeed, you succeed," he adds and chloe exhales deeply. "attendings, that goes for residents as well. teach with enthusiasm. learn with enthusiasm. we are surgeons. we cut out malignancies. let's start at home, people."