Beep…Beep… Beep… Beeeeeep. The patient undergoing triple-bypass-surgery is leading to heart failure because of all of the blood he’s lost. The doctor’s stress level went from a five to a strong ten in such an instant. Trying and trying to her patient alive, Dr. Yoder does everything in her power. Whether in surgery or fileing out papers and/or cases, doctors have one of the most disputing jobs. Being a doctor is challenging because of the high loads of patients and the fact they have people’s lives in their hands.
Many hospitals are beginning to get higher levels of work and patients. For example, primary care doctors are typically supposed to care for around 15-20 patients a day. Recent studies have gone to show that many panel sizes include 2,000-2,500 patients-that’s way too much. Primary care doctors have no political power, so when they get loads of patients dumped on to them, they can’t really say no. They tend to care for around 24 patients with ten or more medical problems daily. In addition, doctors seem to have loads and loads of other work to do besides surgeries or taking care of people. Checking lab results, answering countless amounts of emails and phone calls, and handling all the pop-ups on their computer screen are just some of the challenging responsibilities a doctor has to do on their own time. In all, the patient and work load of doctor’s seems to be never ending, making it a challenge on them.
Being a doctor can also be challenging when they know they could be the reason someone lives or dies. For example, a young doctor is in surgery and the patient ends up dying because of the blood clot they couldn’t find nor stop. Crazy families file lawsuits for millions, blame the doctor instead of God or fate , and act as if the doctor didn’t try anything and everything to save their patient. In addition, some doctors can’t always be like the superheroes and save everyone when in in danger. If they can’t stop a patient from dying, they get to hold the weight of failure on the shoulders for a while. That challenges their minds and self-consciousness and makes them think, “Am I good enough at my job?” Being the reason someone survives or dies is a tough and challenging job to have.
Dr. Yoder’s patient died and she had to carry on with life, proceeding on with many other surgeries, continuing busy work, dealing with possible lawsuits, and on top of all that, carry the “weight of shame” on her shoulders. Being a doctor can become challenging at times, but looking back knowing you saved a life, has got to be a great feeling.