Ian C. Ellul

When I came to write this editorial I considered several topics. The projected influx of immigrants on this rocky island, with their baggage of possibly forgotten & not-so-treatable medical conditions which could further stifle our stretched medical resources, or possibly the oocyte vitrification debate which is being discussed … to mention just a few. But in this issue I will simply resort to penning a personal event which occasionally resurfaces every now and then much to the detriment of my serotonin levels …

When I graduated (8 years ago) I joined a couple of friends for a go-karting session to celebrate the home coming of a friend who was studying veterinary medicine in Italy. I ended up with a bimalleolar ankle fracture. This has made me heavier with 6 pins & a metal plate, costing 3 operations and the equivalent of €4000. To add to all this no-one of my course-mates called to ask how I was or how I was recovering. The reasons could be manifold … being abroad, being busy gearing up to the first employment, and so on … However thankfully many other friends called on me to help out … which more than compensated the shortcomings of human nature.

At this point many of you are querying whether I have mistakenly included a guest editorial for Flimkien for this magazine’s editorial. However I can assure you that I have not mistaken any submission. I have written this simply as a testimonial of how us fragile human beings depend on others. Being a healthcare professional does not mean that we are immune to life’s events. And that is why when I remember this event I re-commit my allegiance for the various patient support groups which are formed from time to time (I am fortunate in this respect because this is perfectly in line with The Synapse’s Editorial Board’s position). We pledge free advertising for any patient support group which contacts us.

With the risk of sounding rhetorical, I have a dream, that one day a support group for healthcare professionals will be formed to precisely support those healthcare professionals who are in need, who are suffering from some serious illness, formed by healthcare professionals who are intent to do this job seriously without falling victim to social loafing or nepotism, and without being individuals who are jack of all trades but master of none (which incidentally I know a few).

And not forming this support group simply for the sake of forming it so that we can proudly say that we head a support group and that we can get EU funding. I will conclude this editorial by the following reflection. In philosophy there is a paradox known as the Ship of Theseus.

If, over time, all the ship’s planks are replaced, does it remain the same ship? How many times have we seen such mirror images in our life with people changing headship hats but still implementing the same ideas over and over again? God help us steer away from all this if we were to form the aforementioned support group …