Breaking The Good Doctor

|C H A P T E R O N E|

"Incoming 10 patients! There is one little boy who needs immediate care," someone shouted as the stretchers with patients were rolled into the room.

I point at them and said, "We will talk about this later. Go grab the gloves on the table and split yourselves into two groups of five, and follow me or Dr. Michael."

After the hectic scene, I went to visit one of my patients, a very cute little boy, since his MRI scan just came out.

He was a 10-year-old boy but here he is so small and fragile yet very lucky.

I held the clipboard in my hand and turned to my residents. "So, from the scans and reports that you have for Jerry, what can you expect from here?"

Arthur raised his hand up and I nod my head in response, allowing him to speak first.

"From his reports, he has a head injury that caused a rupture of blood vessels in his brain from his accident."

"Okay, next person."

"I agree with Arthur. Due to his vital signs showing abnormally high reading of blood pressure and pulse rate causing him to be distressed." Eli said.

I nod my head and point with my pen to the last resident and asked, "What is your opinion, Ginna?"

Ginna looked at the report and said, "Upon arrival, we were told by the paramedics that Jerry was not wearing his seat belt. The car accident caused him to hit his head forcefully on the front and the side of the window. Dr. Ruby, you assessed his GCS level which turned out to be 8 but even until now there are no signs of improvement. He is suffering from haemorrhage in the brain causing him to have a stroke as he shows severe weakness in his left leg and arm."

"Well spoken, Dr. Ginna! Seems like someone passed my mini test. Boys, good try but take this as a learning opportunity because when you have to diagnose someone you need to know their case history, reports, and scans thoroughly. You cannot afford to skip any steps. Understood?"

"Yes, Dr. Ruby." The three of them nodded.

We walked into Jerry's room and there stood the parents with bandages over their heads as well as plaster on their hands from the cuts of the glass window.

Deep breath, you can do this.

I shook hands with them and said, "Good afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. Will, Jerry's report just came out."

"Well, how is it? He still hasn't woken up."

"I am sorry to say that your son is suffering from a stroke as the MRI scan shows bleeding in his brain and increased blood pressure. Upon my assessment, he did not wake up even after a small test on his nail bed and he also has severe weakness on his left arm and leg."

The mother starts crying while her husband is supporting her, trying to be brave for his son.

I understand how that feels.

Mr. Will asked, "Is there any treatment available?"

I signaled Ginna to explain the treatment available and she slowly started explaining. "For now, we will be administering IV drips for him to stabilize his condition. We will be monitoring his vital signs and his GCS score for improvements every two hours. When he wakes up, we will assess him again and we will have a physiotherapist to train his motor response. He is not allowed to eat orally till he gets better so we will be inserting a nasogastric tube for him to ensure that he is still receiving nutrition."

I asked, "Any more questions?"

Mrs. Will says, "Will he get better, Doctor?"

I placed my hands on her shoulder and said, "He is really lucky, ma'am even though he suffered a huge impact. But I am sure your son is a fighter and with you two encouraging him, he will get better fast."

The two of them hugged each other and I took that as a signal to leave the room to give them some time and privacy to absorb the information.

Once we came out, Eli asked, "How are you so sure that he will get better, Dr.Ruby?"

I stopped walking as I remembered I asked the same question to a doctor years ago.

I looked back at the three of them and responded, "Sometimes all people need is hope. If we lose that hope, everything can break. We are doctors; we are responsible to save as many of our patients we can. If we fail to save as many lives as we could, how can we call ourselves doctors?"

I felt like I opened up an old wound again because I could feel my fears crawling into my skin and tears threatening to spill.

I pushed it deep within me again and said, "Ask your other friends to report to me immediately after they are done with their rounds. I am yet to tell you all what your punishment is."

With that, I walked away leaving them behind to figure out what kind of doctor they wanted to be.

In the medical field, there are only two types of doctors.

The doctor who does their best or the doctor who abandons everything knowing the consequences if the patient dies.

I miss working in Neurology department but hopefully, I get to have another chance in the future :)

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See ya soon....

💉W H A T  I S  S T R O K E?💉

Stroke occurs when the blood supply to the brain is interrupted or reduced which prevents the brain tisue from recieving oxygen and nutrients. When a part of the brain tissue dies from lack of oxygen and nutrients, it cause changes to a person physical and mental state.

🚨W A R N I N G  S I G N  O F  S T R O K E🚨

1. Sudden weakness on face/one side/ both of the body

2. Slurred speech

3. Sudden walking difficulty or loss of balance

4. Sudden vision problems