One of the best saves I've ever made.
In emergency medicine, split-second decisions rarely make the difference. When they do, the stakes are high, and the emotions are intense.
The difference between life and death rarely comes down to a split-second decision. This is the story of one of the fastest and memorable saves I’ve ever been a part of as an ER doctor. It happened within the last year. Even typing these words, I feel a rush of adrenaline, taking me back to that moment.
A bit of context: Usually, “modifiable outcomes”—that is, whether a patient survives based on the care they received—plays out over hours, if not days. Sometimes, minutes matter. So when seconds make the difference, it’s memorable. This case was one of the best days of my career as a doctor, and, therefore, of my life.
Here’s what happened (with details changed to protect privacy): It was a busy shift. A resident physician I’ve worked with a few times wanted to discuss a new patient she was a little worried about. The woman had come in to the ER for a feeling of fatigue. Now, she was having trouble moving her arms and legs. Was this a stroke?
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