A Smile

I work in an emergency room. It's the 6th or 7th busiest ER in the nation. Yes, the nation. We are a level 2 trauma center. Not that this should mean much to people other than those who work in trauma centers. I just want to stress how busy we are and the level of sickness we get on a daily basis. It can be utterly chaotic. I've worked nights when the traumas come in one after the other. I've literally danced musical chairs with patients and families trying to sort through everything that has taken place in a matter of a couple hours. I'm not a nurse or a doctor. But I see just about everything that comes through the ER doors on my shift. And through all of what I see, I need to be compassionate. Sometimes I wonder where it comes from. Some nights, when the pager is beeping nonstop...another gun shot wound, another stabbing, another unhelmetted motorcyclist, another drunk driving car crash, another baby thrown to the ground by an impatient parent, another child drowning. The list can go on and on.

Don't misunderstand, some nights can be completely uneventful. Many a time these nights are cherished quietly by the staff for fear that if anyone says the obvious out loud we will be jinxed with mass casualties. EMS/paramedics know all too well not to mention what is seen on those days when things are "quiet" or "slow". Dare they utter the words aloud for fear of repercussions from the ER staff.

Whether the day is busy to the point of exhaustion or mundane to the point of boredom we will still see those patients that probably don't need to be utilizing the services of an emergency room. Sometimes these people are just lonely. They may not have family or what family they do have doesn't care about them anymore or they never did. Sometimes these patients just come in as something to do to pass their already endless days of nothingness. It's a chance to interact with someone who for a brief moment seems like they may care soley for that person's well being. Albeit brief, it's still something better than the treatment they may or may not receive outside the walls of the ER. I have certainly learned that loneliness is a far greater epidemic then what I may feel from time to time when I'm having a moment.

Whatever the situation may be that has brought these people to the ER. Possibly a trauma, a heart attack, a stroke...maybe pain that just won't go away and has become unbearable enough to seek out treatment from an ER physician. Or maybe it's just because they need attention that they just don't get elsewhere. There's really no medical reason to be there other than some personal attention. Whatever it is...as I walk the ER hallways looking in on the rooms of the patients. I always smile. As I peruse the computer looking to see the various reasons people have presented to the ER today, whether they are awake, asleep, or sedated with family at bedside. I always approach them with a smile. It's amazing what smiling can do. Even though these people are in an ER and mostly not feeling well. When I smile, I will almost always be returned with a smile. It's either the patient or the family/friend. It's a way of calming people. Asking if I can get them a blanket. The most basic of needs. Can I help them with that. It's as if I was able to cure whatever it was that was hurting them. Mostly I listen. I take the time to listen and hold someone's hand. And it all begins with a smile. Even on those days when I don't care about anything in the world. When I'm feeling selfish and cold. Like my problems are all that matters right now and I don't give a shit about anyone else... Somehow I muster that damn smile and after a while, I find that even I can feel better. Something so simple. Yet so rarely seen today.

I grew up in a small town. I grew up naive to the different cultures, trials and tribulations of the world. Although I have since lived in cities a majority of my adult life. I have become somewhat hardened to life as one would need to be to survive in this world today. I consider myself street-smart for the most part. Yet I've still never lost that small town "smile". Even when I moved to my first city after college as I strolled down a busy street and looked people right in the eye and would say "hello" and smile. They would return this with odd looks and sometimes a scowl. But even in the city I would most often than not get a smile back. Almost surprisingly they would smile and say "hello" back. I still do it. I've even had people say to me that I'll talk to anyone. And, yes, I guess I will if they seem open to it. I'm outgoing in that regard.

Next time you're out and about, take a look around. See what happens when you just smile. You just may make someone else's day. If not their's than maybe your own. Besides...it's free.