BLOODLETTING & MIRACULOUS CURES

In the second last story of Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures , Dr. Fitzgerald and Dr. Chen are kept in quarantine as they have contracted SARS. In his report, Dr. Fitzgerald asked for a Do Not Resuscitate order, because he knew ultimately he was going to die, and he didn’t want his friends as doctors contracting the disease, putting their life at risk for a very low chance of saving his own.

 

As doctors, the three characters have to face decisions that morally affect them, and they go through life and death almost daily. Sri must use his own judgment and draw to his morals and beliefs when dealing with a patient with severe psychosis. When Fitz must deal with a violent prisoner as one of his patients, his judgment and decisions must also be carefully crafted. Sometimes doctors have to make their own decision, and the fate of the patient lies in their hands.
 
Vincent Lam displays a deep insight into the lives of doctors and their moral decisions they must take with each live put in their hands. As a physician in Toronto, Lam has a very good idea of what this is like, and can attest to the morals of the doctors. Because this book is set in Canada where assisted suicide is illegal, there is no instance such as this that the characters are faced with. However, when a life or death is thrust towards one of the characters, Lam pulls from his own experiences as a doctor to provide solutions for the characters.