Doctor Grondal | Teen Ink

Doctor Grondal

December 18, 2008
By Anonymous

The medical career is an emotional thrill ride. Patients are lost and lives are saved. Days can go from jubilance to mourning in a matter of hours. Doctors have to be particularly strong-willed to pursue their career. This is the story of a Doctor who knows true joy in pain.
Becoming a Doctor is no small feat. It is a profession that requires dedication, years of education, sacrifice and mental stamina. To be a good doctor you have to learn to show pragmatic compassion. You need to learn how to care for a patient without growing too attached. All these traits are crucial in becoming a respected and admired medical professional.

Dr. ¬Grondal has been a medical practitioner for 34 years. He has seen almost everything there is to see in his private practice as well as in the hospital. He is also one of the most respected doctors in the hospital, for his compassion he shows for his patients. He always checks up on patients after they leave the hospital as well as consoles the family members in times of tragedy. He attends all his lost patients’ funerals.

Dr Grondal recently had a patient who had been suffering from Huntington’s disease for 16 years. He had to deal with the slow loss of all motor skills, speech problems, and constant spastic movement. Dr Grondal felt horrible that there was no conventional solution to this man’s problem, so he began to research potential cures for this man’s ailment. He discovered that there was a lesser-known remedy to this situation that involved an intensive surgery.

Dr Grondal sat down with Chris Ezra and his family. He discussed Chris Ezra’s life and how it affected his family. The Doctor explained the surgery and discussed all the risks and outcomes that accompany it. He explained it would be at least an 8-hour surgery. The treatment involved very intricate surgical procedures with a slim chance of success or survival. If Chris Ezra survived the surgery, it would be a long and arduous road to recovery, but if successful, Chris Ezra would have a vastly improved quality of life. Chris Ezra knew it was a serious risk he was taking, but was willing to take it in order to vanquish the disease ravaging his body.

Once the surgery was scheduled, a highly-trained surgical team was assembled. The surgery started off well. Midway through, Chris Ezra started hemorrhaging and no matter what Dr Grondal did, he could not get the bleeding to stop. Chris Ezra flat-lined and the medical team attempted to resuscitate him for almost a half an hour, but to no avail. Dr Grondal was in shock of how quickly things went bad.

He just sat there, stunned, immobile, and lost. He was empty, physically and mentally. He had lost many patients before, but none affected him like this. He had formed a real bond with this man. He truly thought the man would be better after this surgery, but now he was gone. His first thought was how he had another coffin on his conscience now, but as he processed the failure of the surgery and the loss of patient, he felt a wave of relief that his patient was freed from the shackles of Huntington’s disease. That was what Chris Ezra ultimately wanted. In his death, he had donated his body to science, in hopes that knowledge gained would help others to cure this debilitating disease. Although Dr Grondal was saddened by the loss of his patient, he ultimately was at peace with all of the decisions made through this journey.



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