Too long, don't read.
I know I criticize the West often, but objectively speaking, it is far easier and safer to advocate for human rights under the protection of a Western country. Certain privileges and opportunities ,access to advanced healthcare, freedom of expression, and legal protections, have been extended to me solely because of Canada. My life would undoubtedly have been more challenging without these advantages.
There is also something remarkable about the West’s general openness to innovation and reform, its capacity for introspection, and its willingness to learn, socially speaking. Not everyone, of course. I am speaking in broad terms.
And yet, there is a price to this privilige/progress
Ahhh
----
My work is relentless and often too brutal. Without specialized nurses trained in triage and acute care, the risk of désorganisation clinique and failure to stabilize critical patients increases dramatically. If I were to offer advice to a novice, I would urge them to develop mechanisms for managing high mortality rates, including advocating for structured grief breaks or implementing pauses psychologiques during prolonged shifts.
Still if one cannot process the unrelenting cascade of trauma cases, they must step away and someone better should step in.
I have seen experienced clinicians and emergency responders crumble under what might be considered ‘moderate’ clinical scenarios, while others with less technical expertise endure. Even the most gifted are not immune to the psychological toll. I remember an accomplished trauma surgeon who momentarily lost her ability to function during a procedure. It was psychological because she had to deal with too much that day.
I also remember a young neurosurgeon holding an injured child whose cranium had been shattered. Cerebral matter had spilled onto the floor, and he froze, unable to continue and determine what to do next, before collapsing entirely. Some things you have to handle defy the very nature of our species, we naturally recoil at the suffering of children. The normals of us at least. But it is the reality we confront daily. And we must confront it without overwhelming grief or fear. In fact , it is best confronted without any feelings at all. You can feel later. All your energy must be put in problem solving.
---
I need to address this pain. It gnaws at me, insidious. It is occupying too much of my potential. Unsure if I should medicate it or let it pass.
There is also something remarkable about the West’s general openness to innovation and reform, its capacity for introspection, and its willingness to learn, socially speaking. Not everyone, of course. I am speaking in broad terms.
And yet, there is a price to this privilige/progress
Ahhh
----
My work is relentless and often too brutal. Without specialized nurses trained in triage and acute care, the risk of désorganisation clinique and failure to stabilize critical patients increases dramatically. If I were to offer advice to a novice, I would urge them to develop mechanisms for managing high mortality rates, including advocating for structured grief breaks or implementing pauses psychologiques during prolonged shifts.
Still if one cannot process the unrelenting cascade of trauma cases, they must step away and someone better should step in.
I have seen experienced clinicians and emergency responders crumble under what might be considered ‘moderate’ clinical scenarios, while others with less technical expertise endure. Even the most gifted are not immune to the psychological toll. I remember an accomplished trauma surgeon who momentarily lost her ability to function during a procedure. It was psychological because she had to deal with too much that day.
I also remember a young neurosurgeon holding an injured child whose cranium had been shattered. Cerebral matter had spilled onto the floor, and he froze, unable to continue and determine what to do next, before collapsing entirely. Some things you have to handle defy the very nature of our species, we naturally recoil at the suffering of children. The normals of us at least. But it is the reality we confront daily. And we must confront it without overwhelming grief or fear. In fact , it is best confronted without any feelings at all. You can feel later. All your energy must be put in problem solving.
---
I need to address this pain. It gnaws at me, insidious. It is occupying too much of my potential. Unsure if I should medicate it or let it pass.
