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A physician recounts how he went through the agony of seeing his own wife suffering from postoperative pain after undergoing a diskectomy, lumbar fusion and instrumentation. He relates the ordeal he suffered from worrying about his wife's condition while taking care of their three children's needs at home. He was sure that he would draw a lot of lessons about himself from the one-week experience but that would come after he has healed from the traumatic experience., It's when the patient is your wife - and you can't help. You learn a lot about yourself - some of it not so pleasant. A Tuesday in January, 11:30 [...]

The medical profession entails hard work, but it could also be a rewarding experience for physicians. Physicians often times feel prone to feelings of depletion and depression due to their hectic work schedules. The rigors of patient visits, consultations and referrals also take their tolls on physicians' physical and mental stamina. However, friendships gained through patient encounters are enough to uplift their spirits and make all their efforts worthwhile., A difficult day this doctor tired and discouraged. The next though, he experienced a renewal of hope and energy. Adele, a high-school student, was interviewing me for her senior project [...]

A doctor's thoughts and feelings after a conversation with a dying patient as recounted. During a session of their physician support group, a colleague narrated a similar situation. After a brief argument with his colleague the doctor then realized that his disposition towards death and dying were so implanted that he refused to appreciate other point of views regarding the issue. He had learned then that doctors should recognize their own values and not impose them on their patients., It's frighteningly easy for doctors to subconsciously impose their own values on others. There is an ancient Eastern adage that says, "When the student is ready, the teacher will appear." [...]

Illness sometimes is the only way for people to slow down and take a long hard look at their lives. In a hectic world driven by competition and back-breaking schedules, many people find that the only time they can relax and meditate on their lives is when they are ill and bed-ridden for a number of days. After the period of illness is over, people resume their busy schedules, thus failing to maintain the calm they had when they were ill. Meditation is one way people can remain at peace with themselves in the face of all the troubles that come their way., I have never liked being a patient. During my 15 years as a family physician, I have delivered health care with far more grace than I have received it. I [...]

The 1501/1401 vibronic two-photon cross section ratios are reported for a series of isotopically labeled benzenes in the A(1B2u)←X(1A1g) electronic transition. Predictions derived from the B2u force field are found to be in close agreement with the measured ratios. These ratios are shown to provide an excellent test of the B2u force field and mode forms as evidenced by the large variation over D6h labeled benzenes. In C6H6 the 1501/1401 cross section ratio is measured as 0.249±0.008 (equivalent to 0.180 for the theoretically testable ratio: 1501/1401[<1|Q14|0>/<1| Q15|0>]2). The corresponding ratio in 13 C6H6 is 0.44±0.04 (equivalent to 0.36). The 13% disparity found between the measured and predicted C6H6 ratio (i.e., 0.206) is attributed to anharmonic coupling between the b2u modes: 2χ15,15=-9, χ14,15=4, and 2χ14,14=-4 cm-1. Two-photon intensities are proven to be useful in determining anharmonic interactions. The relatively small effects of the hydrogen motion provide an approach for solving the bifurcated B2u force constant problem in ground state benzene. The approach utilizes the contribution of harmonic C–C–H bending motions to the two-photon tensor controlling the 1501 and 1401 vibronic cross sections. This requires knowledge of the sign of the hydrogen motion term in the tensor. However, large anharmonic effects coupling the two b2u modes mask the small harmonic hydrogen contribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harmonic ground state frequencies for the a2g mode, ν3, in C6H6, C6D6, and 13C6H6 have been determined by application of the Teller–Redlich product rule to b2u mode frequencies obtained from two-photon fluorescence excitation experiments for the D6h symmetry molecules and a′2 frequencies from 1,3,5-C6H3D3 determined at rotational contour resolution. The a2g harmonic frequency values are 1366.6 cm-1 for C6H6, 1063.0 cm-1 for C6D6, and 1355.4 cm-1 for 13C6H6. The anharmonic correction to ν3 in C6H6, estimated from the difference in product rule and infrared frequencies is -17 cm-1. The b2u mode frequencies, ν14 and ν15, respectively, have also been significantly modified from those obtained from lower resolution spectra to 1309.4 and 1149.7 cm-1 in C6H6, 1286.3 and 827.9 cm-1 (harmonic value) in C6D6, and 1269.8 and 1138.1 cm-1 in 13C6H6. The anharmonic correction for ν15 in C6D6 is estimated as -4 cm-1. The B2u←A1g electronic origin of 13C6H6, has been determined for the first time as 38 105.5±0.3 cm-1. The B2u←A1g electronic origin of 1,3,5-C6H3D3 has been redetermined to be 38 187.5±0.3 cm-1, 3.5 cm-1 higher than previously reported. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

On a humorless day, the author concocted a plan to make his nurse smile. She was soon laughing, but he sure wasn't. At first it felt as if a bomb [...]