First patient back since the 23rd of December today, 9:30 in the morning, after a short Tuesday team meeting that we usually have.
It's a young person who's looking for some treatment to help align teeth, remove some teeth in the wrong place and replace them with something else, and then it isn't, then it's a CT scan, and it's something much more complicated than this, more emotive, more difficult, much more impactful on the young person's life going forward.
Loads of admin, loads of conversations, telephone calls, trying to figure out the right way to proceed for someone as you try to treat them like your children (as you promised to do when you saw them).
The following person is someone whose implant fell out during the healing phase (just at the end of the healing phase) just as I was finishing up my time off work. They're really p*ss*d off; really p*ss*d off at me because treatment's been going on a year, inferring that I've done it wrong or that I've not done it right or I've cut corners.
It's beautifully documented, it's just one of those things (I hate one of those things).
I'm very apologetic; I promise I'll do everything I can to get them back to the position they need to be in; it's just part of my work rarely, but sometimes this happens.
Next thing's a Zoom call, somebody that I know who's been seriously ill, who now would like to have an implant placed. I went through all the material, chatted, and had a laugh; it's good, but there's an added edge to this. I've known this individual (as a friend) for many years, and so it raises the stakes a little bit for the individual that you're looking after.
The next one is a person who is ready to have some implants after preparatory work but needs a scan, so I'm trying to help Lauren (my exceptional nurse) to learn how to use IOS and to do it right, so we spent some time on that.
The next one is a new patient, someone who's terminally ill, who is looking for a fast solution for dignity for teeth in conjunction with their oncologist. Even more emotive than the rest, an hour spent talking to someone who's looking down the barrel, asking me to help them before their time is up.
There's some admin associated with this (and I mean a sh*t ton of admin), but it's not the admin; it's the emotional load.
I can work freely and creatively and effectively leading a team of people going into the future, trying to make things better, but the patient stuff, it's really hard, and I don't think people really appreciate (especially when you get to the complex end of things) how hard it is, emotionally.
But the thing is, I can never stop it because as soon as I stop it, I would be detached from how difficult it is for every single person in this place who fronts up at the sharp end to caring for people, and that is why we are valuable, I think.
Welcome back.
Blog Post Number - 4073
Leave a comment