A Hard Day's Night

You could see the compassion, concern, and love on everyone’s face last night.

Well, last night’s events were hard on us all, because the patient was “family.” He was a law enforcement officer, with family in the same profession. The family, in the widest possible sense, was everyone involved, from the first responders on scene, many of whom knew him, to his own relatives and loved ones.

He was taken to a local hospital and prepared for flight. He passed away despite all the efforts to save him.

You know, events like these make us all feel deep emotions. God created us in His image and commanded us to love one another. When I see so many effected by the events of last night, so many caring people, so much effort and love, I thank God for the blessing and the curse of that love.

The old cliché that “Love Hurts” is true and is the curse part of the gift of love. You could see the hurt on the faces of the crew who carried out CPR for most of the flight. You could tell that the nurses, the helpers, the doctors, the radiographers, the chaplain, the cleaner, the firemen, the policemen, and even the patient in the next bed were all at one with the patient, hoping and praying for the best.

That it was not to be is simply in the hands of God. It reminds us of our own mortality. We feel a profound sense of loss. That loss of someone I didn’t even know cannot compare to the loss felt by the family and loved ones, but is no less painful.

So I ask myself once again, “Why do I do this job?” Well, I know that it’s the same motivation and care that everyone I met last night feels. We are all driven by the same desire, to make a difference. Sometimes we do, sometimes we cannot, but we would all feel defeated, insignificant, a failure if we didn’t try.

I thank God for this patient’s life, for the dedication and motivation shown last night, and ask that He support us all in this work. I also ask Him to comfort the bereaved as well as the caregivers.