"Gracias Doctura"

It amazes me the power of the M.D.  I admitted a patient to the ICU a few months back, she was a very sick, young Hispanic lady.  It was around the time we saw some nasty sick folks affected with H1N1.  Well that's what she had and she was intubated, sedated, and on the vent.  I remembered that we kept fluctuating her vent settings and  attempted twice to extubate her but without success.  I couldn't figure out exactly what was wrong with her, and none of the other docs had a clue either.  It baffles me how many consultant physicians are usually in one ICU case, and for me that seems to complicate things even further.  Anyways, I was writing my notes when the case manager comes up to me and said "Dr. ChiChi it seems like she isn't getting any better" and I said "no, I am praying hard for her."  I use prayer all the time, whenever I need more guidiance from God in other to better care for my patients.  And then she said "since we are not getting anywhere soon can you write for a permission for her family to cross the Mexican border.'  I was very confused and asked her "can I do that? what exactly do I do?" and she said "write it in a prescription pad and sign your name, with M.D." Wow! I thought just because I am a doctor, well I did it anyways and in a few days her family was in the hospital; they were allowed to cross the Mexican border.