Ranjana Srivastava Melbourne Magazine November 2013
Transcript of Ranjana Srivastava Melbourne Magazine November 2013
7/27/2019 Ranjana Srivastava Melbourne Magazine November 2013
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Ranjana Srivastava’s book Tell Me The Truth: Conversations With My Patients About Life and Death is available at0penguin.com.au Also see0 ranjanasrivastava.com Contact Ranjana at feedbackrs
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Sunshine streams through her window
but she is oblivious to the light and her
visitors. I touch her hand gently as she lies
in bed. Through her drowsiness, I elicit that she
is in pain and a little confused.
“Why is she confused, doctor?” her son asks.
“A combination of illness and drugs,” I say.
“It’s not uncommon to see this as the body
winds down.”
After reassuring my drifting patient of better
pain management, I walk outside where her
five adult children have requested another
meeting. Concerned at their strained expressions,
I wonder which of them may have misinterpreted
yesterday’s talk about her grim prognosis.
Suddenly, the air feels smothered by hostility.
“How can I help?”
There are darting glances and uncomfortable
shuffling. I recall their mother’s proud words when
I had mentioned extra support as her health
failed. “You wouldn’t find a closer family”, she
had said. “We have never missed a celebration
in my 85 years.”
“I guess I will start,” a daughter says. “Is Mum
unconscious?”
“She is not entirely unconscious but, as you
saw, she is not alert either. I expect that the
periods of lucidity will diminish with time.”
“So is she mentally competent?” another
daughter asks.
“She recognised you today,” I say. “She is
calmer with you here and, though she may not
respond, she knows you are present.”
This is not new information.
“Can Mum sign stuff?”
A weight lands on my heart.
“Like what?”
“So here is the thing,” a son says. “Is Mum
competent to alter her will?”
They fall over themselves trying to diffusing
my visible shock. Then I watch in dismay as
a mini-war erupts. In snatches, I learn that my
patient had grown a modest inheritance into
a sizeable fortune. This week, acknowledging
her imminent death, she had shared details
of her will with all five children, trusting they
would appreciate her thoughtful selections.
One daughter appreciated art, the other loved
jewellery. One son liked shares, another antique
furniture and so on.
But no one is grateful. Each one accuses the
other of peddling too much influence; no one
considers their share to be fair. Above all, they are
troubled, even irritated, by her donation to charity,
although they are all comfortably settled.
“What can you do to wake her up?”
The question incenses me. More memories
of her heartfelt revelations come flooding back.
A widow for 10 years, all she wanted was to fade
away comfortably. “I am not afraid of death – but
make sure I don’t see it,” she had jested. I think of
her now, thankfully unaware of the conversation
that would break her proud maternal heart.
“Could the morphine be stopped?”
I am incredulous.
“Your mother is dying. Her pain relief is
inadequate and you have just heard me say we
need to do better.”
Feeling under siege, I remind them gently,
“We have a duty of care to your mother.”
Their mother dies that evening, surrounded
by five children who could not bring themselves
console each other. I learn later that the patient’s
will was uncontested, but the rever
that fateful day continued. A once h
content clan now spends its days r
unfairness of a divided inheritance
needed. Their mother’s greatest ho
across generations never had a ch
The subject of money divides th
families, in life and death. Some ca
the ongoing cost of care, others ne
and beg for a funeral. Yet others ob
of their inheritance. Money has a w
the basest of human instincts, mak
the very worst about those whom w
most loved. When there is so muc
even noble about human nature, it
that it could also be tainted thus.
Part of the privilege of being a d
witnessing problems that are beyon
remit to solve. Medicine has discov
antidotes but none for the problem
among family members. Observing
makes it no easier to get used to it
Watching a princess movie, my
with wondrous eyes. “Mama, is it re
to be super rich?” Thinking of my p
I can only manage a tired cliche.
“It’s complicated.”
Time to say thank you and goodby
that we’ve opened an important dis
discussing the relationship betwee
and society. I have been overwhelm
generosity, thoughtfulness and enc
Your shared experiences strengthe
resolve to write a book on helping
navigate cancer, due out next year
continued privilege of working as a
But when I witness something that
a promising column, I must remind
that it must wait for now. I am optim
enterprising readers may well com
a great suggestion about how to c
our conversation. I welcome your i
When money changes everything. By Ranjana Srivastava.
Doctoris in
Photography/Bonnie Savage
the
“Can Mum sign stuff?”A weight lands on my heart.
“Like what?”“So here is the thing: is Mumcompetent to alter her will?”
Dr Olivia Metcalf,
28, research assistant,
Australian Centrefor Posttraumatic
Mental Health
Your PhD looked at excessivevideo gaming?We know it’s a problem for
a small minority of gamers
but we don’t know what
type of problem it is – a
symptom of depression oranother type of disorder. My
research supported a finding
that excessive gaming is an
addiction. I hooked up gamers
to electrodes and measured
sweat levels, heart rates and
blood pressure during and
after gaming.
What did you find?We found that the way they
react physiologically is much
more elevated.
So, what is cyber psychology?It’s any way an individual
can interact with internet
technology – video, networking
or using the internet to get
therapy delivered. Technology
is so pervasive in our lives and
we know so little about how
it affects us. I’m interested in
what the risks are – so we can
be more informed and make
better decisions.
What do you do now?We synthenise trauma
research information. One
of the major organisations we
work with is the Department
of Veterans’ Affairs. One of
the consequences with a PhD
is that you get an extremely
narrow view of science for a
long time. It’s been exciting tolearn how science can be useful
in a more practical and policy-
driven setting.
What do you do outsidethe lab?I do a bit of gaming. But I’ve
lost my skills a bit. I’m also mum
to a four-year-old.
The Lab Report
This month’sscientist has
looked atthe brains of
video-gamers.
She also helps governmentsunderstand
trauma.