About 2 months ago, while playing basketball I felt some pain in my shoulder. Having dislocated it 5 times in the past, I wasn’t too worried about it. I took some normal precautions of rest, ice, antiinflammatory medicine and PT exercises to strengthen my shoulder. After a month, it was still hurting me, and so I started to wear a sling on my R arm while at my house for some relief from the pain. The sling did help at night, but my shoulder was still bothering me during the day while working. I tried to rationalize that I needed my R arm to work, but finally, I broke down and started wearing the sling full time and have now become a one handed doctor with helpers. We have a volunteer family here and their 19 yo daughter wants to be a doctor, so she has agreed to be my scribe. Marissa joins me on rounds and in the clinic, writing my notes for me. In payment for being my scribe, I try and teach Marissa a little something about medicine – what I am hearing, doing, feeling, and thinking. She seems to be enjoying the chance to be in the hospital and learning about medicine, and my shoulder is enjoying the rest of being able to be immobilized throughout the day. Ben and Jim have also volunteered their surgical services to cover my C-sections when I am on call, which is a blessing as well. I have had…
Source: When one hand is not enough from Erin Meier – Asia Pacific
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