Last year, to get a sense of ER procedures for my book, I shadowed Dr. Deb Houry, lead physician at Grady Memorials trauma unit. Shes a highly regarded trauma doc and expert on partner violence, and she was very kind to permit my intrusion into their work that night. In between new incoming, we talked about the Batman shootings (Aurora), and her stint as a resident in the ER that took in Columbine victims. That night at Grady, there was only one shooting victim; I watched them intubate her bc the wound had collapsed her lung. The victim whimpered but made less noise than the drunk in the next bay....They say a bullet wound feels like being stuck with a burning hot poker. Movies and TV dramas have inured us to what it means to take a bullet — the damage done to the human body is lasting, even when its a survivable wound. To be caught in a rampage shooting while out running errands or attending school can create emotional wounds that last long after skin and bone and muscle have healed. I respect that guns mean more to some of us, but as long as bullet wounds are someone elses problem, well never really understand the trauma they cause.
Posted on: Sun, 20 Apr 2014 13:24:41 +0000
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