The devastating case of Alfie Evans, has brought renewed fervor to debates surrounding end-of-life care and what happens when parents' wishes are at odds with those of the child's medical team. The case struck a chord with me: on the one hand, I have close friends who shared tweets and photos that plucked at my heartstrings and made me wonder why Alfie's parents' wishes seemed so utterly ignored. On the other, I am married to a surgical resident whose responsibilities include caring for the sickest patients who may live but may have no life. I knew there had to be more to the story than what most news outlets and certainly most politicians and celebrities were wiling or able to share.
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This week we have a special guest post written by my husband, J! We've spent a lot of time over this vacation talking about how precious our time has become with our families throughout residency, and he asked to write about it from his perspective. I hope you all enjoy!
Every May, J receives a “Vacation Request Form” to fill out. It lays out the 13 four-week blocks of the year, separated into segments of two weeks each. J and I discuss at length which of the two-week segments we’d prefer for his two vacations, taking into consideration such factors as holidays, our anniversary, my school calendar, and how best to time the vacations to avoid burnout. Some months are off-limits, like June, July, and the beginning of August because of the needs of the program as residents graduate and new interns arrive. Others we know will be hard to get, like the end of December when we celebrate our anniversary but many of his coworkers want to celebrate Christmas with families. The deliberations continue until we finally identify and rank four options, crossing our fingers and hoping for our top two. |
AuthorNashira is a music teacher and proud Small-Town Jew who, after surthriving six years in Brooklyn for her husband's surgical residency, is finally back in Wisconsin where she belongs! At least until the end of the two-year surgical fellowship, that is. It's a wild ride, and she's ready to tell you all about it! Archives
September 2019
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