You know you’ve made some difference when you hear things outside of work that directly connect to what you do. When I was a family doctor in a traditional office practice, I would sometimes be out with my family at a restaurant, a grocery store, or some other public place, and a patient would stop us and say hello.
I was always a bit embarrassed when they would say something to my wife about how much they loved having me as their doctor. Honestly, my wife got tired of hearing it, and rightly so.
It’s been a few years since I was in an office practice, and while this still happens to me sometimes, I had an experience recently that was just as heart-warming to me. Listening to some nurses talking before a meeting, one said she had learned that one of her friends had been through a health scare.
That friend did not have an advance care plan, and wasn’t really interested in doing one. This nurse said that she went to her friend, put both hands on her hips and said she told them that they had better get an advance care plan done before the next time we see them in the hospital!
Knowing this nurse, I can just imagine the response of the patient, and I would be very surprised if they haven’t done this by now!
I am proud of how our folks are recognizing the importance of having this conversation with not only our patients, but with their own family and friends. I just love that, not to embarrass you all in front of your family or anything…
Last Updated: November 6, 2018