Danielle Ofri
👤 SpeakerAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
And so I'm doing the exam, running the scut list.
And the grandson says, I think that Abuelita is no longer with us.
What was he talking about?
With his free hand, the grandson crossed himself and murmured something in Spanish.
I'm still frozen in the middle of the exam.
Mrs. Rodriguez is dead?
Abuelita lived a long and wonderful life.
She didn't want any heroic measures or machines.
She just wanted to drift off in peace.
We just need you to pronounce her dead, doctor, and then we can take her home.
And I'm staring at the grandson.
Suddenly, my mind begins to race.
I tear the glove off, and I'm thinking, OK, OK, how do I declare a patient dead?
And I'm running through the file cabinet in my head, thinking, OK, OK, ah, ah.
Pupillary reflexes, that's it.
So I whip out my handy penlight, and I shine it to Mrs. Rodriguez's eyes.
To my dismay, she has huge cataracts and probably wouldn't have had reflexes anyway.