Yesterday was the last clincal day of my first year in med school. What have I learnt during this past 10 months or so? Other than the obvious clinical skills, I have also come to realise that somtimes medical practiioners are so caught up with diagnosing what's wrong with the patient and treating them that they forget that behind each disease, there is a face. A face which sometimes leave you in stitches from laughter and at other times, leave you feeling like a dried sponge...
Follow up:
I remember one particular patient very well. He was reluctant to talk to me... So at the start of my history taking with him, he was rather non-communicative (his answers were one word syllabus). I was thinking to myself I won't be able to take a detailed history this the patient but I thought I should persist on. As it went on, I chould see that he is opening up and then I asked about this wife and whether he has any children. Then for some reason, he started to stammer.
He mentioned that his wife just recently pass away and that he feels alone and that no one cares about him. It kinda surprised me for a moment and then I decided to put down my notepad and pen and took his hand into mine and told him that I'm sure that is not true. I told him that his daughter still cares for him cos' she was the one who suggested that he satyed with her and her family. And I'm sure his grandkids loves him as well and would like him to get better...
It's amazing how much a patient can affect you. At times, you would be cursing and swearing why the patient don't want to talk to you about his/her conditions and at other times, you would be amazed that the patient who has multiple problems and was basically waiting for time to be up to be remarkedly cheerful and can still crack jokes with you. For me most of my experiences with the patients have been positive.
After hearing stories as to how patients will refuse to talk to medical students, I'm surprise that this is utterly untrue. The patients are more than willing to talk to you. I guess some of them felt that it's a way to pass time easily in a hospital especially when you are confined to the bed.
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