Skip Navigation
Menu
On Being a Patient |5 June 2012

Big Incision

Jay Baruch, MD

Article, Author, and Disclosure Information
Author, Article, and Disclosure Information
Jay Baruch, MD
Alpert Medical School at Brown University
Providence, RI 02903
  • From Alpert Medical School at Brown University, Providence, RI 02903.

    Requests for Single Reprints: Jay Baruch, MD, Alpert Medical School at Brown University, 55 Claverick Street, 2nd Floor, Providence, RI 02903; e-mail, Jay_Baruch@Brown.edu.

×
FULL TEXT
The cardiac surgery team of fellows and residents was rounding on me the evening before my heart operation, and I wasn't comfortable being “rounded on.” Six months had passed since my near-syncopal episode during an emergency department shift on the cusp of my 41st birthday; 6 months of imperfect practice as a patient. Pneumonia, rapid atrial fibrillation, and a leaky mitral valve—all a surprise to someone who thought himself too busy to be sick.
“It must be hard being on the other side,” a surgical resident said.
I was learning that this wasn't a question but more of a shamanistic incantation by fellow doctors eager to ward themselves against my fate. No cardiac risk factors, exercised regularly, flossed enough. Yet, here I was, wilting before puzzled faces straining to fit my illness into an unaccommodating cautionary tale.
FULL TEXT
PDF
Not Available
Citations
Citation

Baruch J. Big Incision. Ann Intern Med. 2012;156:836–837. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-156-11-201206050-00011

Download citation file:

© 2019

×
Permissions

Published: Ann Intern Med. 2012;156(11):836-837.

DOI: 10.7326/0003-4819-156-11-201206050-00011

0 Citations

Related Topics
Humanities

Humanities.

CONTINUE WITH LIMITED ACCESS
Annals of Internal Medicine
To receive access to the full text of freely available articles, alerts, and more. You will be directed to acponline.org to complete your registration.
×
acp link acp
silverchair link silverchair

Copyright © 2019 American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.

Print ISSN: 0003-4819 | Online ISSN: 1539-3704

Privacy Policy

|

Conditions of Use

This site uses cookies. By continuing to use our website, you are agreeing to our privacy policy. | Accept
×

You need a subscription to this content to use this feature.

×
PDF Downloads Require Access to the Full Article.
Annals of Internal Medicine
To receive access to the full text of freely available articles, alerts, and more. You will be directed to acponline.org to complete your registration.
×
Access to this Free Content Requires Users to be Registered and Logged In. Please Choose One of the Following Options
Annals of Internal Medicine
To receive access to the full text of freely available articles, alerts, and more. You will be directed to acponline.org to complete your registration.
×