“You said my mother’s kidney function was stable and she didn’t need to come back for two months, but someone called the other day and said her kidneys were really bad and that she’d need a kidney transplant,” the email accused. “So which is it?” it went on to demand.
He's just not that into you
the hardest
Funny, when asked why they became doctor, most would probably say something along the lines of “to help people.” But the implied ending is “get better.” I would be surprised to learn that anyone became a doctor “to give bad news” or “to help people die.” Yet I find this is much of what I do in my clinical practice as a nephrologist taking care of patients with chronic kidney disease and end-stage kidney disease.
a stranger's advice
She was nearly a year from her 50th birthday, but her brown Samoan skin was smooth like her hair, coiffed just so. A low pompadour was slicked into place with gel. I walked into the clinic exam room to find her face was clenched like she was silently counting down the seconds until she would get up and leave because she didn’t want to be there in the first place.