b'dum DSH

I've seen many patients who have harmed themselves on purpose, and I'm aware that we as medics are perhaps not as compassionate as we should be with them and with mental illness.

But let's not even go there.

I want to complain about stupid people.

The ones who have got through their life so far by pure fluke - the Darwin-dodgers who are guaranteed, some day, to lose their life in a totally avoidable way. On a technicality, Gloria Gaynor's song is not for you - you won't survive.

Some people just don't register quite how ridiculous they are - eg. when I was doing my Paediatrics elective in Canada, I talked to the parents of a little boy with possible cardiac problems and asked them "Has anyone in the family ever had any heart problems?" "No" was the definite reply.
But I'd noticed when his dad (clumsily) took off his jumper that he had a scar down the middle of his chest.
"I needed a heart transplant a few years ago" he told me. "Oh wait, does that count?"


I was recently called to see a man with lifelong severe asthma. He had an attack after he took his regular blood pressure medication that night. I looked at the box - instead of giving him his repeat prescription, the pharmacist had somehow made a (potentially lethal) mistake and given him aspirin, a potent trigger which every brittle asthmatic knows to avoid. Inexcusable error.

But what worries me is that the patient:

- realised that this tablet was in a completely different box to usual
(a box which had "Aspirin" written on it on all 6 sides)
- realised that this tablet was a different colour to usual
- realised that this tablet was bigger than usual
(he'd examined it carefully but somehow missed "Aspirin" embossed on it)
- realised that this tablet started frothing when he put it on his tongue
(oh yes, it was a soluble aspirin folks)
and yet despite the nagging suspicion that something was definitely wrong with this tablet,
HE SWALLOWED IT ANYWAY!

It wasn't a fear thing, or a faith-in-the-medical-profession thing.
It was a dumb thing.
I had to stop myself from rolling up a newspaper and tapping him on the head with it saying "No!"

Anyway, he survived.



This time...

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There was a teenager in her fourth pregnancy who had severe pain & vomiting.
She wouldn't let anyone put in a drip for painkillers/anti-sickness meds.
Because having a needle hurt.
This was a girl who had gone through childbirth several times.

GET SOME PERSPECTIVE!
(and some condoms)

(BONUS: Feel free to insert your own "not afraid of a little prick" joke here)