code blog: tales of a nurse

One night, a neurologist was called in to consult on a patient that we had. I'd seen this doctor before; he's mostly business-like, but friendly enough. He was writing up his consult notes when I noticed his tie. It was a muddy yellow-green color, with rows of jaunty-squiggly black lines across it.

I just kept looking at this tie, thinking about how unusual it was. I then figured it had to be some sort of "medical necktie"... it was understated, but definitely not Corporate America.

The more I thought about it, the more convinced I became that it was V-fib - Ventricular Fibrillation. A lethal arrythmia. "How odd," I thought. "Maybe he's wearing it as sort of an inside joke for his colleagues." I was amused. Then a little disconcerted. A normal heart rhythm would have been appropriate for a necktie... maybe a little geeky, but endearing nonetheless. But VFib? That's just creepy.

I finally decided that I couldn't stand it anymore. I had to know why he would wear such a weird tie. I waited until he was finished writing up his notes, then said, "That's an interesting little VFib tie you have there, Dr. B."

He gave me a look that could only be described as quizzical and glanced down at his tie. Then looked up at me again.

"This isn't VFib. This is supposed to be an EEG tracing."

Ooooops. That certainly seemed more appropriate, seeing as how he is a neurologist. Duh.