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On Being a Doctor |1 June 2010

Final Visit

Elizabeth Toman, MD

Article, Author, and Disclosure Information
Author, Article, and Disclosure Information
Requests for Single Reprints: Elizabeth Toman, MD, 1501 San Pedro Drive Southeast, Albuquerque, NM 87108; e-mail, elizabethtoman@msn.com.
  • From New Mexico Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Albuquerque, NM 87108.
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Requests for Single Reprints: Elizabeth Toman, MD, 1501 San Pedro Drive Southeast, Albuquerque, NM 87108; e-mail, elizabethtoman@msn.com.
They weep when I tell them I am leaving. Mrs. Aguilar and her sister both dab at their eyes with the rough paper towels I offer them. The box of tissues is missing from the examination room, a sign that the day will not go well. Weeping is another. These goodbyes are slowing me down, and I have a full schedule today.
But you have always been my doctor, says Mrs. Aguilar. You take such good care of me. Neither statement is true. Mrs. Aguilar's chronic illness began years before I came to this clinic. Her problem list was already extensive and during my tenure has become much longer. Under my direction, she has had worsening heart failure; a stroke; numerous hospitalizations; and, most recently, a below-knee amputation.
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Toman E. Final Visit. Ann Intern Med. ;152:749–750. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-152-11-201006010-00014

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Published: Ann Intern Med. 2010;152(11):749-750.

DOI: 10.7326/0003-4819-152-11-201006010-00014

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