Today is all too familiar to me bringing back horrible memories of the most tragic event I ever witnessed 13 years ago. I started my practice in NYC at NYU one week before 9/11. I was sitting down preparing a lecture for the orthopedic residents when my mother called asking if I was OK as a plane just flew into the WTC. That same second my beeper went off calling me emergently into Bellevue hospital to attend to the crisis. I ran I to the hospital where groups of us waited for the hundreds of patients that were expected to arrive for emergent medical care. Unfortunately that day there were few patients as most victims were dead. Later that evening I went with a medical team to the site as one of the members capable of performing an amputation if necessary to free a trapped victim. When I got down to Ground Zero everything was covered by inches of dust. Debris was all over. Cars were wrecked. Firefighters were putting out fires. Amongst all this chaos and noise I felt surreal as though I was walking desolate on the moon. All I could smell was the smell of death. That evening there were no patients to treat other than minor injuries and smoke inhalation. For two to three years after mourners posted wanted posters of there loved ones and created shrines along the streets and walls of NYU Medical Center and Bellevue Hospital where they stood praying and crying and offering rewards for anybody who could find there husband, wife, father or sibling. There was no way anybody could bring peace to these devastated families. All I remember seeing for years were photos of the victims with their beautiful children with them during previous happy times. I couldnt help but ask myself Why Why so much hatred and death? Why so many innocent people, children and families?I felt the grief everyday I went to work. I found myself however becoming more and more committed and dedicated to becoming the BEST physician and surgeon I could be so I could help other innocent, vulnerable people stricken with disease get better, be cured and find comfort. This is how I found solice moving forward from the devastating effects of 9/11. Today my thoughts and prayers go out to the thousands of victims and their families on this awfully memorable day.
Posted on: Thu, 11 Sep 2014 22:06:22 +0000
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