I got an email yesterday from my clinical instructor this summer telling me that a patient of ours passed away. He was a war veteran who saw us 3 times a week for treatment of chronic low back pain. At first he was difficult to work with, but by the time I left he was telling us how much he appreciated his time in therapy. He would thank me repeatedly for caring about him, something he felt not many people did these days.
According to Alison (my CI), he didn't show up for a couple of appointments and so she contacted his MD to find out what was going on with him(he didn't have a phone). The doctor's office informed her that there was a note in his file from the VT Committee on Temporary Shelter stating that he was found dead in his apartment 3 days earlier. I don't think she knows the cause of death.
The email was very matter of fact and kind of lighthearted to the end, when she wished me a happy halloween, and I didn't know how to take the information. I guess she has had 8 years to adjust to patients not getting better or even dying. Well, this is my first patient to pass away, and I'm still a bit shaken up about it. I guess that makes me human, right?
Well, I'm glad I was able to make him feel better about himself and about life (which he told me often towards the end of the summer) in his last months.
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