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In an episode of Untold Stories of the ER, there was a doctor who was treating a patient for some mysterious bleeding around the pelvic region of her body. Now you think that the medical team would just be able to do the necessary tests and move forward with the examination. However, there was an additional challenge. The Patient’s husband was the director of the emergency department and as a doctor himself, he thought that he knew exactly what was going on with his wife. The husband kept arguing with the doctor taking care of his wife and saying that the tests were not necessary because it was a GI bleed according to his experience. The problem with the situation is that the husband is creating noise that is interfering with the doctor’s ability to talk directly with the patient and find out further information with her problem. This barrier negatively impacts the patient because it doesn’t allow things to be done in a timely manner and could result in possible fatal consequences. It also doesn’t allow the patient to be involved in their own care and could make them feel as if they’re not valued. The situation could make the physician frustrated to the point where he can’t focus and thus delay getting results on a possible diagnosis. It may also give the physician a reputation for not listening and valuing the patient, which could impact his clientele and livelihood. However, it was clearly seen that the doctor valued the patient and had her best interest in mind because her kept telling the husband with all do politeness, the husband needed to let him talk to his patient to get a better understanding of what was going on, so that the could come up with a solution to treat her. Finally, the husband complied and it turns out the patient just ate too many beets as part of a new diet.

On Wednesday I went to a local coffee shop and started observing the people around me to see how they react with others in today’s technologically advanced society. I wondered is it possible to still give someone your full attention and time when there are the constant distractions of social media and texting. It seems that in today’s world we focus more on our phones and other devices than those around us. It seems as if in person interaction is slowly disappearing. I thought that I would see people  paying less attention to the person they were with and more attention to their phones. However, there was one couple who barely touched their phones as they were engaging in casual conversation. This couple looked each other in the eyes when the other was speaking. They nodded at each other from time to time to show that they understood the other, and that their attention was soul focused on them. I also noticed the couple subtlety holding hands as they talked. This action solidified that the couple was actively listening and engaging with one another. Watching this couple interact gave hope to the idea that media and technology haven’t completely taken interpersonal interaction away. It was apparent that this couple had been together for years and had developed this level of listening over time, but what about people of a younger generation? The possibility of young adults or even teenagers interacting with each other without technological distractions seemed few and far between. I then saw something that I thought I would never see today. Sitting across from me were to young men no older than twenty having a conversation with no phones in sight. They were casually sitting and talking to each other as if phones and media didn’t exist. Although they were not using phones and looking at each other when the other spoke, one of the young men was constantly tapping his feet while they talked. I don’t know weather he was nervous or excited about something, but there was something else on his mind while this conversation was going on. In the coffee shop that day I learned that there still is such a thing as interpersonal interaction and that it can even be seen in young adults as well as those with more life experience when it comes to  active listening.

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