A Life-Saving Decision with Consequences

I switched my patient's medication without telling anyone. My attending had prescribed the wrong

dose. I knew it. The pharmacist knew it. But protocol said

wait for approval. My patient was crashing. Heart rate spiking. Blood pressure dropping. I had maybe ten

minutes. I made the call. Changed the order myself. Forged the signature.

My patient stabilized within minutes. Saved her life. But when my attending found out,

I was pulled into his office. He said I violated every rule. That I could lose

my license. That saving her doesn't justify breaking protocol. Here's the thing

though. She went home to her three kids. She's alive because I acted.