In the field of medicine, doctors see a variety of cases each day. Sometimes they are fairly easy to treat, and sometimes miracles are the only way to life. Out of numerous such ordeals, some scenarios touch their hearts. That’s when they can’t help but feel truly deeply for the patient. Dr. Sandeep Satsangi writes about one such incident –
I had a heartbreaking experience today when I got a call to see a patient with a fracture neck of femur with a liver lesion. Expecting an old frail person, I went to the trauma centre. Instead I was shocked to see this young woman, merely 32 years old lying down with her two small daughters by her side. At first look I noticed an extremely cachexic lady with just bones and hardly any flesh with a skin traction applied onto her left leg. She greeted me with a smile, though her eyes seemed to be drenched in sorrow. Just then a man came rushing towards me from a distance, he was her husband. With a tired look on his face he wished me and bent down to touch my feet. Taking a step back I placed my hands over his shoulders and asked him about his wife. In a sad voice he started narrating – Her ordeal began 5 years back , when she started loosing weight drastically. He consulted many doctors near his hometown and to his despair, he never got an answer. Her condition took a turn for the worse when they were told that her kidneys had some problem and were probably permanently damaged.
Listening to all this, I was simultaneously looking through the huge bunch of reports he was carrying with him. I was sure that this was TB or HIV.What could get this bad?
Due to extreme weakness , she has been bedridden for a year now. And he was not only managing her food and daily routine needs but also was striving hard to bring up his daughters. Despite a loan exceeding fifty thousand on his shoulders, he just wanted one thing – a cure for his wife.When he thought things couldn’t get any worse . His wife threw a convulsion at night and fell off the bed leading to this fracture. He kept saying one thing to me, “Sir I am scared in this place. There are so many people here , what if I lose my children ? I have no relatives to help me now, no one wants to take care of my kids when I am fighting hard all these years to save my wife !”
His love for his wife and family stands out in my eyes today. I don’t know if it’s too late for her to survive this ordeal, but trying for the best is all we can do as doctors.
If I could wish for something today, it would be for the speedy recovery of this patient. I salute this man for his love and courage to endure the atrocities life has showered on him.
Indeed – TRUE LOVE SEES NO DISEASE !
About the author – Dr. Sandeep Satsangi is currently working as a senior resident in the
Department of hepatology and liver transplantation at PGI Chandigarh. He writes about events which strike him in his practice and enjoys travelling amongst his other hobbies.
Edited by – Sreya Banerjee
Be the first to comment