A Story about Blood
I know I am posting this at Cine, and it is perhaps not an ideal Cine content, but please stay with me because I think I might be able to establish that it is worthy of Cine content consumers. This is a story about an audio content. I like to call it "Television for the Ears". Why I say it, well you must listen to it to understand why I am saying that.
Please who know me, they know that I love to walk. I typically walk 3-5 miles every day. It is not much, but with my torn achilles tendon on both heals, it is a substantial effort for me. Majority of my study, which is not work related is done through spoken content these days. I listen to audiobooks and podcasts.
One of my favorite repository for podcasts is definitely This American Life, which is long lasting weekly hour-long radio program produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media and hosted by Ira Glass. If you haven't listened to any I must request you to listen to a few popular ones. Ira's voice is magical and he can make the most mudane of the topics interesting.
On this particular episode, the first act is about a phlebotomist named Adele Levine. First of all, I had no idea what the word phlebotomist meant when I first heard it. It is very common with my experience with This American Life, as I frequently learn new things. It is described and I immediately understood...oh I know that..the person who draws blood from us for testing and blood culture work. I just didn't know the term and also I had the impression, just a general nurse who does it. It could be true, but this is a specialized training. It doesn't matter than much in normal circumstances, but for extremely sick people, say who are in ICU, it is not easy to find the right vein to draw blood from.
Tough Job
We all say that, oh man! I have a tough job. I had a hard day a work. Or, Man! I am having a terrible week at work. This story follows a physical therapist, who was turned into a phlebotomist almost overnight! Why? Guess... During Covid times, there is reduced need for a physical therapist, and much increased need for a phlebotomist. Guess where the highest needs are. Yeah. At the ICU!
I have several friends who are doctors and nurses. Last summer in Houston, some of them had 6-8 patients die on them each day. The numbers were higher in NYC area, where this story is from. I don't want to get too much into the story, as I like for you to make your own judgement call. But all I can say, I am so glad Adele was doing that job and not me!
I do a desk job mostly these day. Over the last year, I am mostly working from home. We are from a state, where for better or for worse there was minimal lockdown. Actually, for people familiar with European lock down, what we had in Texas, even during the worst of the pandemic, is barely a lockdown. I mean only bars were close. Eating places were closed because no one will go there, but that about it. So I imagine, when I say I am bored, or I have a tough day at work; I should really stop and think and reconsider how hard some of my fellow humans are having their work day.
I hope you enjoy this television for the ears.
