Cork Prison

The other day I was reading this patient's notes before calling him into the examination room, and I noticed his previous address was the Cork Prison. That immediately heightened my interest. Not that I'd treat him differently or anything (from a clinical perspective) but I was curious to see if I could pick him out of the ~20 people sitting outside in the waiting room. [I couldn't]

So the test for me was how I would treat this man in my heart.

Upon reflecting afterwards, I think I did very well in the sense that I did not think of him any lesser in God's eyes than the previous or following patients. The standard of care provided by the doc I was shadowing was very consistent as well, regardless of who came through the door. There were the good patients with diabetes who dutifully monitored their blood sugars, ate a healthy diet, and did regular exercise; and then there were the non-compliant morbidly obese patients who eat fry-ups for breaky, lunch, and dinner, don't keep track of their sugar levels, don't take their meds, and whose arms are so fat I can't even fit the blood pressure cuff on them.

But no matter who the client was, my doc was always courteous, patient, and performing at his best. That helped remind me that the standard of care and the expression of love I carry out for all situations needs to regularly reflect 1 John 4:7-8.