A surgeon recounts two instances where patients left lasting impacts through simple acts of gratitude and shared passions.
Every time I went into the exam room when she was there, she was knitting. I had never been a knitter, but I was really intrigued by the idea of making something with my hands. I loved watching whatever she was knitting grow with each passing visit, and then she'd be on to a new project. Sometimes the chemotherapy that she was receiving impacted her hands and her ability to feel the fiber. So, we had a lot of discussions about the practicality of it, but also it inspired an interest in me.
And now when I pick up knitting needles, which is not as frequently as it was in the years following, I can't help but think of her. I would not have learned to knit, or at least learned to knit at that time in my life, had it not been for what that patient shared with me during our visits. So even if I'm not thinking about the sadness or the sad story that surrounded that patient and her diagnosis, I'm remembering that person. And for me, that's really the gift.One was an individual who had— I don't recall if he had an injury or if it was something that got worse and worse over time, but it was preventing him as a world-class knife maker. He lives very far away. It was at least 6, 7 hours away from Chicago. And he was very concerned because he was underinsured, which, from my perspective, was not an issue, as I was still more than happy to take care of him. He didn't mention it until I did his surgery. He says,'Look, I'm just really grateful that you took care of me.' He sent me a beautiful note and said,'I'm going to make you a hand-carved knife that will be very specific to you and your personality and what you do as a surgeon.' It was probably almost 2 years later that I heard from him again; he actually came to Chicago and presented it to me. It was really beautiful. And it's a work of art. I have it in my home office on my mantle in a special holder. It took over 100 hours of work, I recall him telling m
SURGERY PATIENTS KNITTING GRATITUDE COMPASSION
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