Learning from an IV drug users?!?

2016 is coming to an end! What a year! It is a year filled with many strange events.

Once, I had a conversation with an iv drug user who was recovering from an infection. It was one of those strange moments in my life. We spent a good 30 minutes discussing about illicit drugs and their associated risks; I was asked by the doctor to learn from him more about illicit drugs. But, what gave me a slight uneasiness was the amount of excitement and enthusiasm he showed as he talked me through the process of preparing the IV drugs. He was visibly excited and went as far as writing down the steps and drawing out diagrams to illustrate things such as how he would remove impurities from his drugs. At one point, (as I was learning more about venupuncture technique) I asked him how he would tell if a vein is ‘good’ for the needle. I definitely got more than what I bargained for. I was extremely surprised at how much he knew about arteries and veins.

Photo via Buzzfeed

Being a medical student is a strange privilege; we get to speak to patients and enquire about their lives as if we were doctors. At the same time, we are protected (almost, shielded) from the responsibilities of a healthcare professional. At times, it can be difficult to maintain our identity as just students. We yearn to do more and learn more as we continually ask to be a bigger part of the team. Learning on the ward is not just limited to medical clerking where we ask patients about their presenting complaints, medical history, and other things. Personally, I feel that a big part of on-the-ward learning is understanding how to behave as a professional and ultimately learning how to communicate better and be a more empathetic doctor.

On hindsight, I was surprised at how I approached that conversation. I would have thought that the phrase “drugs are not good for you” would pop out sometime during the conversation. But, it didn’t.

If it were possible, I would want to see my own facial expression throughout that conversation. I would want to know if my face had been somewhat judgemental, shocked or expressionless.

Anyway, that is going to be mylast post for 2016. And I wish everyone a very merry Christmas and Happy new year!