Polite Dissent

15 Responses to “ Thor #602: A Medical Review ”

1. Dean
   April 14th, 2010 at 11:36 pm
   

   In reference to the first picture, the hospital is obviously having funding problems, and has to split one IV bag between two patients.

2. Rob
   April 15th, 2010 at 4:54 am
   

   I just have to say, that is an awful strained attempt to get some cleavage in the second panel. If that is supposed to be Dr. Foster, the outfit does not match up with the previous panel. If it is not, who would wear a plunging neckline that terminates below the bust in an emergency room?

3. Keith
   April 15th, 2010 at 7:16 am
   

   Wasn’t “Inside Mrs. Chambers” a porn movie from the 70’s?

4. Alberto
   April 15th, 2010 at 8:14 am
   

   Maybe “falling” was a typo for the supposedly intended “failing”. Could a “failing EKG” be interpreted as an EKG where the patient is failing her struggle for life?

   And as for Rob’s comment on the cleavage, +1. Enough with the unnecessary (aren’t they all?) fan service.

   I would also advise against the long and polished nails for an ER professional. Asking as layman, isn’t that risky for infections or accidental bruises and so?

5. Bryan L
   April 15th, 2010 at 8:59 am
   

   Perhaps Dr. Foster was on her way to/returning from a costume party where she dressed as a naughty nurse when she stopped by the ER to see if she could lend a hand ….

   Never mind. I got nothing. No No-Prize for me.

6. mike.
   April 16th, 2010 at 9:17 am
   

   This, for some reason, reminds of the time when Rimmer, disguised as Kochansky, tells Lister that she’s having her “woman’s period.”

7. MrBuddwing
   April 16th, 2010 at 3:35 pm
   

   “Myocardial arrhythmia” – I’m guessing the writer was influenced by the term “myocardial infarction,” which apparently is *not* redundant (because there are other types of infarction, no?).

8. Your Obedient Serpent
   April 18th, 2010 at 3:52 pm
   

   Shifting the focus a bit — just how common is it for an RN to go to med school and become an MD? I can think of at least two examples in pop culture — Jane Foster and STAR TREK’s Christine Chapel — but I’ve never encountered a real-world example.

   I know the trope is an attempt to “update” female characters, and move them out of what was perceived as a subordinate, stereotyped role. To me, though, the trend implies that a nurse isn’t a REAL medical professional, and that a fictional character requires an MD to be taken seriously as a real contributor to an ensemble cast. Moving from Nurse to Doctor isn’t a “promotion”, it’s a CAREER CHANGE, and the Fosterrs and Chapels of the fictional world don’t reflect that.

9. carol
   April 18th, 2010 at 4:41 pm
   

   Actually, I went to medical school with at least one RN (also a pharmacist and a PhD physicist). Also, one can get a Doctorate in nursing…

10. MrBuddwing
    April 18th, 2010 at 7:00 pm
    

    [J]ust how common is it for an RN to go to med school and become an MD? I can think of at least two examples in pop culture — Jane Foster and STAR TREK’s Christine Chapel …

    Well, I was never a fan of “ER,” but didn’t Maura Tierney’s Abby Lockhart go from being a nurse to being a doctor?

11. Your Obedient Serpent
    April 19th, 2010 at 11:27 am
    

    Thanks, Carol!

    “Myth: Confirmed”, as Adam and Jamie would say.

    I confess I wasn’t aware of the Doctorate in Nursing. That does make sense, though I suspect that Drs. Foster and Chapel are intended to be presented as MDs.

12. jlupine
    April 19th, 2010 at 1:07 pm
    

    I don’t think that “EKG” has anything to do with German. I inferred that the profession drew on Greek (heart = καρδία) to avoid mishearing “ECG” as “EEG”.

13. Scott
    April 19th, 2010 at 1:59 pm
    Official Comment

    Einthoven, who developed the EKG, spoke German, and named his invention the “electrokardiogram,” hence EKG.

    I’ve seen other mentions of the fact that it is called the EKG because ECG is too similar sounding to the EEG, but I don’t buy it:
    1) A good chunk — if not most — of the world calls it an ECG now, thus defeating that whole line of thought.
    2) There are few, if any, situations, where an EEG and an ECG would be confused.
    

14. jlupine
    April 19th, 2010 at 2:18 pm
    

    Sorry, Scott. I was thinking that ‘heart’ in German is ‘Herz’.

15. Vedran
    August 27th, 2010 at 12:37 am
    

    Einthoven, who developed the EKG, spoke German, and named his invention the “electrokardiogram,” hence EKG.
    The machine is called “elektrokardiogramm” in Germany nowadays; I assumed that’s what he named it. Didn’t he?

    A good chunk — if not most — of the world calls it an ECG now, thus defeating that whole line of thought.
    I assume you mean english-speaking world, as other languages read letters differently. But even if you do, this doesn’t defeat the whole line of thought: it still might have been the reason for originally choosing K instead of C.

Leave a Reply