Worst Case Scenarios

I have grown weary of worst case scenarios in the medical profession. I understand that medical providers must protect themselves from liability. Consequently, they have to give you all things that could possibly go wrong. I have first person experience from working as a practice administrator for the majority of my work experience. I remember lamenting with the physicians where I worked over the cost of malpractice and having to deal with the threat of frivolous lawsuits. I understand that it is a real threat and a legitimate concern for anyone working in the medical field. However, I think there has to be a way to temper the worse case scenario with grace and concern for the patient's emotional well being.

My parents and I spent most of my young life in and out of clinics and hospitals. I remember hearing I would not be able to give birth to a child before I understood how children were conceived!! The doctor said my fragile condition would not be able to sustain someone else's life. To this day, I can remember worrying for weeks that a baby would somehow appear in my little girl tummy and that baby would cause me to die. Praise God I grew up and realized that God writes my future and not the worst case scenario given by a physician.

Ironically enough, I ended up being a mama to two children with chronic conditions. They have lived their lives hearing worst case scenarios. I'm not talking about the kind of scenario where you are told this medication might cause a rash. I'm referring to the kind of worse case scenario where you might lose your leg or you might be on the verge of a stroke.

It was such a worse case scenario that my son, Alexander, was given recently when he went to physical therapy. He broke his leg a few weeks ago and is just now starting to recover. The PT told him he might never regain the feeling in his foot. For a diabetic, this could be a catastrophic problem. He also told him he had concerns about range of motion and regaining the full use of his leg. Its not surprising that tonight when his ankle started to swell a little bit, Alexander became very alarmed. He was afraid that there might be something awful and significant going on inside his ankle.

People who grow up hearing so many worst case scenarios often live with a sense of foreboding. They expect to become wheelchair bound because this was a worse case scenario once given. They expect to lose a leg because it was predicted. They often expect the catastrophic. Its almost a self fulfilling prophecy when you live your life with this kind of fear. Worry brings forth depression and depression brings illness.

I think it would be so much better to give people the optimum outcome first. Let us dance in the belief that the best-case scenario is possible. It would be preferable to indicate that other worst case scenarios have happened, but there is no reason to visit the negative at this time. Perhaps, in and of itself, hope is the best medicine.