a/n: physicians cannot fix everything...

POV of John


Unfixable


You take a detailed history,

Examine what is relevant,

Then list your differential diagnoses,

Make a plan.

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Remove improbabilities

To narrow down the options,

And formulate an answer to the problem

If you can.

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You may not cure entirely,

But you hope to make a difference.

To treat, or ease, or comfort is the goal

You have in mind.

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This makes it so much harder

When you're in a situation

Where the stakes are at their highest, and you're

Miles and miles behind.

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When you've missed some vital elements,

Been blind to signs and symptoms,

And your list of possibilities

Is not complete at all.

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And you haven't got the answer,

And you cannot fix what matters,

And you're simply left to be the helpless witness

To a fall.

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