Children should not be permitted to sing Christmas carols in the intensive care unit. People who have yet to lose all of their primary teeth do not need to catch glimpses of unconscious people who require mechanical ventilators to breathe. People who still have several years before they experience puberty do not need to witness people groaning with pain and discomfort while nurses pull bloody gauze packing out of a gaping surgical wound. People who do not (theoretically) understand what death fully entails (but then again, how many of us truly comprehend all the details of the cessation of life?) should not be allowed into the intensive care unit which is so often the antechamber that leads to death's door.Technorati Tags: Doctor Stories, Intensive Care Unit, Medicine
Thursday, December 22, 2005
Doctor Stories #10: Three Opinions
From Intueri:
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1 comment:
I have to disagree with the original author regarding this subject.
My 3 year old daughter's favorite television show is Trauma, Life in the ER. She loves the medical shows on TLC.
When my wife got into a fender bender when I was on call, they came in to the ED so my wife could get some lumbar films. I was on call and managing a non-ST elevation MI. So I had to juggle babysitting with acute managment of a sick patient.
My 3 year old daughter was absolutely fascinatated with what was going on. Her disarming charm even helped put the patient at ease.
I think that under the right circumstances, these experiences can be a positive and formative influence.
She, for some time, has voiced to me that she wants to be a doctor like her pediatrician who takes care of babies and eats ice cream, as our Childrens Hospital has a Ben and Jerry's
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