Jason Ard  |  Recruiting Consultant
(877) 456-2867 x4267  |  jard@deltalocums.com

Our agency is in the business of reaching out to medical professionals on a daily basis. In my case I talk to doctors on a consistent basis. The ultimate goal is to establish a relationship in which both parties work together to benefit a client. I cannot tell you how many CVs, certifications, background checks, and questions I’ve been asked throughout in my career. Because of the repetition I have not become necessarily numb to the process, but like any baseball player working on his swing, I have developed a callous or two.

My “business” mentality changed quite a bit in a very short amount of time on recent night. My wife and I were celebrating our anniversary recently at our traditional restaurant in downtown Ft. Worth. We were just finishing dessert and I received a call from an unknown number on my cell phone. It was from a neighbor of my father’s letting me know that my grandmother was in an ambulance on the way to the ER south of town and he did not know what her condition was. The challenge was that my father was on a trip in a remote location with not much cell coverage and would be difficult to contact. My wife and I immediately set off for the hospital and in my mind, I was playing out the scene as to what was taking place based on the limited information I had. What were they doing for her in the ambulance? Did they have an updated H&P in their system? Did they know what her medications were and how they were being managed? When was the last time they recertified in ACLS? Did I know any of the doctors working in this ER tonight, or do we know anyone in common? What is the staff like there?  Are they employed there full time? Are they locums docs? Are the nurses travelers here for the very first time? Had anyone called her primary care doctor of the last 20 years? Will one of his colleagues be on call, or do they hand off to a hospitalist group for inpatient management? Will the hospital have power during the thunderstorm raging through Tarrant County? Is this hospital even the best place to have her sent, because after all this is my grandmother?

As all of these questions ran through my mind as we arrived, checked in and were shown back to where her room was. My heart immediately tensed not knowing what kind of condition we would find her in as we weaved our way through the halls. Would she be on a ventilator? How many tubes would be sticking out of her? Had she even made it to the hospital? As I prepared myself for the worst, we rounded the corner of the hallway only to almost run into my Memaw, making her way back down the hall with her walker from the bathroom. She got settled in her bed and went on to explain about the chest pains that she had, the blood pressure check that seemed out of whack, and the shortness of breath that caused all of the concern. With that understanding the question then becomes what to do about it. After all of the questions I had going through my mind about how she would be cared for, I was immediately put at ease with her charge nurse when he re-entered the room. He was very thorough and attentive, as was the doctor that followed along with an assistant. To watch these people interact with my grandmother, to follow the training that had spent many years enduring, and to also see the sensitivity they had to her condition at this stage in life was just amazing to watch. I was ready to jump in at any time with background information, with further questions that I thought they should ask, even if we had to break out the paddles I was all for lending a helping hand (after all I talk to doctors everyday and have watched every episode of ER and St. Elsewhere ever made.) But they were in control, they assessed her, and then did everything they could do to smooth the transition to get her admitted for observation (even though she did protest and wanted to sleep in her own bed.) She did consent, stayed overnight for monitoring, had her medications modified a bit, and is doing just fine today.

I tell this tale to show that sometimes the tables get turned on us in various ways in life. This night I walked away with a further appreciation for the professionals that I try to reach out to for “business purposes. We should probably all stop on occasion and simply thank them more often. After all, it may be your grandmother, or your child, or even you needing their excellent care someday soon