years ago, i had this funny idea that i was going to be carried away by men in white coats....

i am a man in a white coat

i love my white coat.  it tells you that i know what i'm doing.  it tells you that i care about being a professional, healthcare employee.  it tells you that i've been trained.  on my white coat, i have "RT(R)(CT)".  this tells you that i've had formal education, and that i abide by regulations.  my white coat just looks cool.  i love my white coat.

rarely do i take off my white coat.

i love my white coat, but some people don't.  kids are the number one group of people that don't like my white coat.  that's why i keep a teddy bear keychain in my white coat pocket.  i go to see my child patient, the bear comes out, and the coat comes off.  no matter what education i have, or how profesional i may be, or how many times i've performed the particular examination, kids don't like the white coat.

we had a kid come into the er last weekend.  6 years old on a scooter without a helmet.  of course, murphy's law, the kid fell and hit the dickens out of her head.  the father was ok, but the mother wasn't doing to hot.  a little on the terrified side.  i walked in, saw the girl, who was also terrified about having a cat scan.  i greeted the parrents, said who i was, and took off my coat.  i sat down on the stretcher, and got to know the kid a little.  i found out that she likes bears.  heh, i guess that's why i keep one in my pocket. 

we went to ct, and pushed some buttons.  kids love pushing buttons, even if it doesn't do anything.  we layed on the table, and went up and down, in and out, watch the big donut box sway back and fourth.  did the scan with no problems.  mom was still terrifyied.

on the way back, i showed mom that the girl was still smiling, and everything will be ok.  even if something happens, we're in the right place, and anything can be taken care of. 

back in the room, i asked for my bear back, because i like bears too.  with a sparkle in her eye, she told me that she took really good care of him.  i put him in my pocket, and put my white coat back on.  i looked at mom, and asked if she was doing ok.  that's something most people don't check out.  their child may have a head injury.  "i've got a girl her age, so i just want to make sure that you're also doing alright," i said buttoning up my white coat.  she assured me with a half smile that she'll be ok in a little while.

:)

i love my white coat..  pockets and all.

papa