As both a physician and a patient, I get this on both sides. I remember distinctly the trauma of my own hospitalization. How I never wanted any of my patients to feel the way I felt. How absolutely dehumanizing it was and how I left feeling as if more harm than help had happened.
Now, as a hospitalist, legit the primary doctor for most hospitalized patients, I still recognize that there are some traumas to patients and families that cannot be undone because the treatment that saved your life is also the treatment that will haunt you forever. It sucks. It’s horrible. We have medical advancements beyond anything previously seen in history, but those advancements also come with a price on your mental health and psyche.
I’m always graphic when I talk about code status, meaning if a patient wants CPR and/or intubation. I say your ribs will break if we do it right. That there are no guarantees of resuscitation and even if we do resuscitate you, no guarantees about coming off the vent or what recovery will be like. It is a yes or no question, where you either want us to or not because there is no nuance if your heart stops or you stop breathing. Running a code is traumatic for the patient and the team. Just because we remain calm and know what we are doing doesn’t mean it isn’t also an awful experience. I wish I could explain to people how horrible that experience is so they knew what they were agreeing to before we are in the position of having to resuscitate a body that cannot come back.
It’s hard to recognize it if it isn’t talked about. But I promise there are people in healthcare who care and want to help.
amandla
