Indexing Title:

MDGALVEZ’s Medical Anecdotal Report [05-01]

MAR title: ARROGANCE

Date of medical Observation: March 2004

 Narration:

 A patient of mine consulted at the clinic for vaginal bleeding. She was a patient of mine when I was still a resident. I operated on her for breast cancer and is on her second year of being free from any recurrences or metastases. I accompanied her to a friend of mine who was a Gynecologist and advised TAHBSO for her myoma uteri. She of course was shocked but as always she’d listen and trust my decisions. I was like a son to her. Anyway, she would only go thru with the operation if I will personally perform the operation. I agreed but I informed her that a consultant of mine will assist me. She agreed and was soon prepared for the operation.  

The operation was uneventful but she died 20 hours after the operation. She stayed in the recovery room for 4 hours with no urine output and with unstable vital signs. She woke up combative and very thirsty. She was transferred to the ward in the same condition.

I received a call from her niece that she became restless and combative. She had no urine output and she kept on complaining of thirst. I rushed to the hospital but she was already disoriented. To my surprise she would calm down on hearing my voice. I was the only person she knew at that moment. She died a few hours later.

I was invited to the wake and the burial. I was introduced to all her relatives as the doctor who rid her of her cancer. They never questioned me of her demise. One relative claimed that they were all against it but had to give in because she would always brag that I could never let anything harm her and only I can make her well again.

For a long time I had been blaming the clerks, the anesthesiologists and the residents for her death. I felt short changed. If it were their patient I’d make sure nothing would go wrong. Then why was my patient not treated the way I treated their patients. It was unfair.

A senior of mine called me for she knew about the incident. She was not kind nor was she sympathetic. She sternly said that it was my fault. Who am I to demand such attention she questioned. If I were responsible enpugh, I could have checked up on her when she was in the recovery room. Knowing the situation I shouldn’t have let other people take on a responsibility I knew they could not handle.

Things were never the same between us after that conversation. She was right.

INSIGHT (physical, PSYCHOSOCIAL, ethical) (discovery, STIMULUS, reinforcement)

From this experience, I have learned that the next time you want something to be done right, do it yourself. You wouldn’t be spending a lot of time blaming yourself for the problems. I have always hoped that I would be treated the way I treat other people. I’m still hoping.