The Battle For Goodness In The E.R.
I work in a busy Emergency Room. This weekend, I had a patient who was very jittery and paranoid. After looking at his chart, I saw that he was seeking treatment for alcoholism. There is an immediate bias against substance abuse in my E.R. One - we do not have a detox facility. Two - persons seeking treatment for addiction are sometimes looked down on as being less worthy of treatment than, say, someone with angina or other serious "physical" ailments. At first glance, he was very emaciated, tattooed, pierced, and had a generally belligerent character. He could not sit still, and had a tough, "nobody messes with me" exterior. He had not had a drink in four days. His hands were shaking and there was a scared look in his eyes. He told me that he had been drinking for seventeen years. He had tried to quit many times before but had ... Read Full Story >>
- Posted by DeniseM
- Aug 30, 2013
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