NEVER SAY NEVER

In medicine, we are thought that there are no absolutes, no always, no musts and definitely no nevers. We are also warned not to play the hero card, no matter how tempted you are to do so. It actually saves some trouble in the end especially in a place like Nigeria. The patient’s relatives may just say you killed the patient with your hero move. Today’s story is one that continues to be surreal to me each time I think of it. Take a read;

Sometime last year, a patient is rushed into the hospital, in a very critical condition, and as usual, the ER doctor was called to see the patient while still in the car. This is done for 3 main reasons; to determine if the patient is alive or dead, to know whether the patient would be referred or if the patient would be taken in to the ER to commence treatment. The nurses were already whispering BID (brought in dead) among themselves, to tell yoou how bad the patient was. The doctor was actually being called to confirm the patient dead this time around. She got to the car, and during examination, noticed that the patient had a gasp. The next set of events happened in a blur.

She drew the attention of a senior doctor, who ordered that the patient be moved into the ER. Immediate emergency treatments (all them adrenaline injection into the heart, oxygen, CPR, name it) were instituted. Long story short, the man survived. He had just had a heart attack. Very rarely, infact, almost never have I seen a patient survive one of those. The funny thing about this story is that the very next day when he could walk, all the investigations done, showed no anomalies. (Don’t get that till today).

Moral of this lesson: never give up and give the very best of yourself that you have to offer. Never say never!

 Cheers…