The Docks, Fremantle, Western Australia Photo by Barry Epstein
Probably the most bizarre situation was when the emergency department called me for an echo on a young man who had a motorcycle accident and presented with a head injury. The specialist emergency doctor requested an echo to determine if the patient was alive as he was unable to hear a heartbeat.
I was not comfortable with this request so I called in one of the partners of the cardiology practice. A seasoned medical specialist with 30 years experience listened to the heart and could not determine if the patient was alive. So both doctors now wanted me to look at the heart to see if it was moving. I quickly performed the echo and immediately saw that the heart was clearly pumping however the output( function) was decreased. This was highly disconcerting to me and even today, I wonder how many misdiagnosis are made on a daily basis by less trained doctors on a worldwide basis. I do believe that many patients are actually alive but are declared deceased by lesser trained doctors. Very scary indeed.
I gained valuable experience as a manager of the cardiology practice over a ten year period. I was able to publish some articles in trade media which had a national distribution.
Genesis, Fremantle, Western Australia Photo by Barry Epstein
Although we moved the practice from Fremantle to a more inland town of Murdoch during my 10 years, I always liked to go to Fremantle for photography as well as dining at the many Italian restaurants in this quaint town.
BARRY STEVEN EPSTEIN- PhotoAutobiography DRAFT 70 of 156