As a Doctor, I See Aging Differently
When doctors talk about patients in the hospital, we so often begin with age. A 75-year-old man with shortness of breath. A 30-year-old woman with joint swelling. Knowing our patients’ ages allows us to focus on the most likely diagnoses and to develop a mental image of the patient before we enter the room.
But it also serves another purpose. Doctors find ourselves using age to frame the patient’s story and in effect to grade its degree of tragedy. A college student dying from respiratory failure after the flu is unacceptable, an end we must fight against with all that we have.… Seguir leyendo »