Interrupted rhythm

Wiry, weathered rancher for a simple bladder
biopsy. Near emergence: it’s unmistakable, start
chest compressions, call a code. So many
colleagues, crash cart, what happened, line him
up. We circle and circle the algorithms.

Clot bouncing in the PA. Large hemothorax.

Chest tube, thrombolytics. He bleeds. We circle.
We stop.

It was an easy case.

Elizabeth M. Thackeray, MD

Associate Professor, Department of Anesthesiology

Elizabeth is part of the UUSOM Class of 2003. She’s a joyful mother, committed knitter, voracious reader.

Voices from the Faculty:
2020, "White Girl Can't Jump"
2020, "Interrupted rhythm"
2020, "Heart Tones" View more for Elizabeth M. Thackeray, MD