day-to-day operations

if only
the stock the blood the labs
the sterilization
the discharge the surveys
the personalized health record
the clinical outcomes
the meaningful use
we never forget

if only
in the middle of the critical
integration
amidst all the clinical
navigation
quality control
everything clinical clinical
the critical is critical

if only
the mergers and acquisitions
the financial
the daily realization
we come to our census

we shall meet the need

if only to remember
the soul
the soul
the soul
the soul
the healing
the dignity of all souls

Lesson in 307

Says the frail, dying doctor on the deathbed to the resident, never forget what matters. If not, nothing would. If I weren’t once a doctor here, I’d still be here looking up to you for help. Let me not lecture you because I’m special. See how the white coat takes on many shapes. Be wary of a pedestal, your own. Know a close cloud is just as likely to pluck even you up and drop you into a sea of white sheets such as these, soon no longer so clean.

Delirium goes to the heads in the many beds. May there be no mistaken belief on any part, thinking the cure, the treatment, is the killer rather than the disease. Be genuine with them about what to expect. Let there be no cause of death as hubris over bad communication on your part midst pricked arms at their sleeves. I hope you’re able to hear me, unless this is all just a delirious dream.

Clock spins. Game of chance. Clock crawls. Much debris. Every day is a cliché. Or not. And repeats. Life is a chimera of faces with undeniable attributes to each.

It’s an art, says the frail, dying doctor. Being smart. It’s paradise. Being wise. So much to know, and not enough. Not enough to know and not enough competence to know what could have been known.

But it’s more than enough to believe.

Lilies soften the air, and they are back to the fragrance of a stair, hands soft in each other’s. No matter the loss for words, the finding of more than enough air to share for everyone here to breathe, well, that’s more than anyone can ask for.

Says the frail, dying doctor on the deathbed to the resident, if I weren’t a doctor I think that maybe I’d be a bus driver. What if, then? You’d be here, and I’d be here. All of us are somehow together here, everywhere shared. Going somewhere. And when you step off this bus, please give me that bedpan over there. In the end, all that matters is simple. That we cared.

Vacancy Sign at Your Deluxe Resort

What if yours was a hotel by the sea? Tourists would flock to be near the boardwalk, the amusement rides, the breeze. It’s not that you want more visitors to your destination. There are enough as it is. The beds are always occupied. The carousel ride. The merry-go-rounding. Sometimes your pony goes up and down. Sometimes stationery. Sometimes, you just make your way about in the spin. One of your colleagues just asked how you stand on the intravenous fluids. How do you stand?

Hmm. It’s a hospital. How do we all stand? You give that thought and think what it would have been like to be in any other profession. You realize you’d still stand on your legs, if you’re blessed to have legs. Some of the tourists here are not as fortunate. The kind lady in 302 just finished an admirable round of PT. Round her room. Hard not to admire that swirl.

This is no amusement ride. Just a 5-star wannabe in the middle of the fairgrounds where you try to keep people alive. And you know your outside light is on. That’s a sign. Of destination. Yours. You’re opening the heart here, while finding out what your heart is for. All night tonight you’ll be walking on the water up and down the corridor, surfing the waves, and then on and off the log flume because, well, you just can’t get enough of this place.

Joe Bisicchia writes of our shared dynamic. An Honorable Mention recipient for the Fernando Rielo XXXII World Prize for Mystical Poetry, he has written four published collections of poetry. He also has composed over three hundred individual works that have been published in over one hundred publications. The former broadcaster is director of public affairs for a health system in New Jersey and is a Practicing Excellence certified clinician coach. He earned his BA at La Salle University and is currently on the MFA track at Lindenwood University. Visit JoeBisicchia.com. Follow him on X @TheB_Line.