All talk no action?

One of the first 'touchy feely' things we talked about in med school was how to doctor the doctor. That is, how to treat a colleague in need of medical attention.

I've been thinking a bit about that discussion and how applicable it really could be.

There's something terribly abstract about a lot of the discussions we have in our weekly groups. We talk big, things we would do in certain situations, but will we actually act this way?

I spent a large part of the last three weeks in the hospital with my parent who was having heart surgery. This was unexpected and very scary. My family was kept in the dark quite often about what was going on. Doctors would talk to the stoned patient who would then pass on incredibly strange interpretations of what was going to happen next/what had already happened. At one point, the staff had Dad wrapped up and ready to ship to another hospital while my mother and I were worried in the waiting room, oblivious to why the procedure had taken so long and wondering if anyone was going to come and talk to us. Apparently, they weren't.

Patient centred my large white bum.

Losing control of something as simple as how information is passed on to us was incredibly upsetting, especially for me. I had no idea I was such a control freak, but apparently no one else was surprised.

My father is now home and doing well and doesn't remember much of his hospital stay. All the more reason that his medical decisions and information should have been considered with a family member present. I'm glad he's doing well, but confused about how others dealt with the situation.

Apparently my entire family but one is afraid of hospitals and illness. They choose to ignore it and hope for the best. The one exception is overseas - I can't imagine how stressful that can be.

What bothers me about everyone being afraid of hospitals is the assumption that I will just take care of everything. I get that I'm in med school and can handle a bunch more and understand what's going on. I worry that when my parents are old and in need of help that I will be expected to be the one to take care of them. That worries me. A lot.

I was also thrown by classmates' reaction to me while this was going on. I am currently the epitome of depression. It's from being emotionally and physically exhausted and just so far behind in everything that I need to do. I know it will go away, but I really need support now while I deal with it.

One classmate who I consider a friend but wouldn't think of asking for help emailed me her notes to keep me in the loop on days I missed. I was surprised and very very happy that she cared that much and recognized that I needed a hand. A few others in the class have been very supportive. Ones I would and would not have expected. They noticed I was missing and wanted to know if I needed help. So fantastic.

Others that I consider to be friends are completely ignoring me. I guess they're waiting for the non-depressed me to show her face before trying to engage in conversation again.

This makes me worry about 'the person in our class who will develop mental illness during our 4 years here'. Apparently there's one in every class. I hope the person who notices the out of character behaviour is able to help and can act in the idealized way we discuss in our groups.