Still lungs.
Silent heart.
Time of death: 2:40.
CPR starts at 7:02.
Eight minutes later,
alive with a breathing tube.
All seem to happen in the same room.
The one in the corner,
just out of view.
With each admission,
we all look around.
We all think the same,
without making a sound.
“New admission in 604.”
Eye contact shows fear,
of what is in store.
The best job we can,
is all we can do.
For the patient in front of us,
at 7:02.
Author’ note: Times and room number were changed to protect patient privacy.
Image credit: Hallway (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) by Brave Heart
Resident Physician Contributing Writer
Thomas Jefferson University Hospital
Dr. Jennifer Geller is a general surgery resident at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA. She completed medical school at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School with distinctions in bioethics and medical humanities and during that time served as both Managing Editor and later Editor-in-Chief of In-Training. She is a graduate of Brandeis University with majors in Biology and Chemistry. In her free time, Jennifer enjoys baking, hiking and spending time with friends and family.