long run

today was my last long run of this training cycle.  thank the lord. that was REALLY tiring. 20 miles in ideal weather conditions, and it was still slow and painful. i wasn't very well rested, so i don't feel too bad about running it extremely slow.

worked at capital hospital north [read: wealthy area; wonder why they built that hospital there?] yesterday, and it reminded me of why i like working in the ER. well, not exactly because of the experience there. i really love the idea that anyone that comes into the ED will get care, no matter their ability to pay. no insurance? i don't care. i don't even know if you have insurance or not. if you're my patient, you're going to get the best care, whether you're rich or poor.

i realize that this is nuanced issue. medical bankruptcy is a huge problem. people without insurance can rack up some pretty horrendous bills in the ER. if you don't have some help paying, there are very few folks that won't be hurting after paying their ED tab.

but back to saturday. without getting into any of the specifics, i saw some wealthy, entitled people that day. most of my patients were lovely, but it made me remember how much i love treating folks who are just grateful for their care and don't want to call a plastic surgeon for a scrape on their kid's elbow.

i did love working my shift this weekend. i got to see some interesting cases, learned a fair bit, and got to interact with some terrific staff and very nice patients. in fact, i love the day to day of my job pretty much all the time.

these past few weeks have been a great reminder that work is great. in moderation. my schedule this month is dreamy. normal residency schedule: sometimes very tiring.

one more thing: i just discovered playmakers rep.  i'd known about them for a while, but i'd never seen one of their shows. turns out that this season's line-up looks fantastic. i'm going to see fences this weekend with my folks, and i'm interested in just about everything else they're doing this year: angels in america, big river, the year of magical thinking, exit cuckoo, even shipwrecked! looks good.