Musings from a contributing dentist, Wade Hampton, tooth doctor.
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Dentistry the way that I practice is an interesting experience. I really only schedule one patient at a time and if they do not show, I am free to find myself something to do. Often this is because we require payment up front for procedures. This morning’s case was a girl that needed a root canal. She had come to us in pain last week and this was the first opening that we had on the schedule. Well, she must have gotten better and thought that parting with the fee would be more painful than the tooth ache …. We know the end of that story, and she will as well, all too soon.
Later this week I pass over into my 35th year of practice. Other than longevity, I am not sure what that really means. In ways it seems to be a long time, in others it is less than a heartbeat. Stepping back a bit, this must be what a life and a career really is. All in all, I am very satisfied. I do love what I do, really more now than at any time in the past. As I look around my world today, I realize that there is a good chance that I will live to practice in a style that would be more recognizable to the civil war era than 2011. I pray God that I am ready in every sense. I am doing my dead level best to see that happen.
This weekend we watched Egypt spinning apart. I want to point out two of the hundreds of headlines that speak to me. First, the internet and cell phones were squelched. Two way communications from a distance greater that line of sight were cut off. Let that soak in for a moment. Can anyone rely on one way communication to provide unvarnished truth? Will even your police scanner pick up much if the cops stay home as they are in Cairo today? I guess that the more different ways to pick up information the better off one will be. I am thinking CB and Ham. Does anyone know if there is a scanner for Military/National Guard Coms?
The second headline pop-out is the empting of the prisons. The idea of the turning loose those vicious wolves from confinement is a truly sobering thought. How many months, if ever, will it take to get those predators rounded up? I think that the US is a bit different than many countries, in that many of our Maximum Security prisons are away from major population centers. Not that this is any real insurance, but a mob is less likely to storm the Bastille in the country than one down the street. Local lock-up facilities are at risk, and their population is bad enough, but at least they are less likely to house the worst of the worst.
How does this apply to a medical blog? Does anyone think that Egyptian 911 is working today? How would one even dial 911 if the phone lines are down? Are we as individuals ready to set up a makeshift treatment tent if we are caught on the edge of a riot? Who would we treat? Would we be ready to provide initial treatment for a gunshot wound? How about tear gas exposure. Crush injuries are a real possibility. What if we are isolated and cut off either in town or the country and it ends up being days, weeks or longer till calm is restored? I cannot offer any answers, just pose the questions.
One of the reasons that a Blog like this is valuable is that we can pool our insight and experiences at least for a while longer.
Copyright 2011 © WH2thdr
