Sensitivity in the Field of Health

Each Friday, I volunteer at a clinic that helps underserved people in my area. I take the usual vital signs and chief complaints that patients may have. My first patient was a woman whose son died of leukemia last week. She cried and cried and I all I could do to comfort her was to get her some water then prick her hand to take her blood sugar level. More and more, I am beginning to realize that patients are looking for someone who cares, who truely cares. We all want someone to care about us. It's human nature. I just wonder how much we reciprocate that feeling towards others. I vow that I will continue to be a compassionate person, to genuinely care about the welfare of others, and to continuously assess myself in my attitude towards others. Occasionally, you run into health care workers who have heard every tragedy known to man. These workers begin to see these tragedies as commonplace and a part of the circle of life. They lose the compassion and say the same phrase, "I am sorry to hear that," over and over again. It is when these workers begin to react this way that they need to take a good look in the mirror and ask themselves why they are in the profession in the first place. What goes around comes around. The way you treat people will be the same way they will treat you one day.