From the Other Side of the Fence: Stories from Health Care Professionals

From the Other Side of the Fence: Stories from Health Care Professionals
Edited by Dr. Jeff Nisker
Anthology196 pages$19.956" x 9" PaperbackISBN-13: 978-1-895900-98-9ISBN-10: 1-895900-98-0
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"It is only with the heart that one can see truly, for what is essential is invisible to the eye." So writes Antoine de Saint- Exupéry in The Little Prince. Stories can help all of us see with our hearts. Stories of health care can help the public to understand the full human dimension of both patients and health professionals, fostering a better understanding of what patients and health professionals feel and face.
Fences represent the confines within which patients and health professionals find themselves. The stories, plays and poems in this collection - written by nurses, physicians, physiotherapists, social workers, and occupational therapists - are representative of experiences in all Canadian hospitals.
This important volume portrays the desire in the hearts of Canadian health care providers to give compassionate care to those who need it. It also brings into focus the limitations on both sides of the "fence" for the medical professionals and their patients. The writings in this book, resonating with wisdom and honesty, will help validate your concerns with health issues and confirm your resolve to push for the need for compassionate care.
"The paramedics had Wally bound and masked on a stretcher on his way to my familiar territory, the hospital. I felt relieved that he was soon to be treated with the modern medical ways I knew so well. That relief was short-lived when I arrived and was told to sit in the waiting room not knowing what lay beyond that hospital "fence." Alone, I sat breathing deeply, praying for some news. I found the sterile antiseptic smell from this side of the doors seared my nostrils. Every beep, buzz, or whistle had me deciphering what it could mean in Wally's case... I had never actually been in this waiting room for more than a few moments. Is this what my patients' families feel like? I wondered." - Michele Ivanouski
Jeff Nisker is a Professor of Obstetrics-Gynaecology and Oncology and Coordinator of Medical Ethics and Humanities at the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario. Jeff uses narrative forms, particularly theatre, to bring to the surface health care issues for the general public, medical students, and clinicians of many disciplines. He has received many teaching awards. He was chosen by the CBC's Peter Gzowski as one of the 13 "Best Minds of Our Time." He also co-edited In Our Hands: On Becoming a Doctor for Pottersfield Press with Linda E. Clarke.