A Fever of Lists

When a list overwhelms, you might think the trouble is the work itself. But that’s not always the case.

On my first days as a resident physician, I worked on the inpatient medical floor. It was a terribly overwhelming experience. Something goes wrong somewhere, all eyes turn to you, and it doesn’t matter that you did well on some book exam. Now, it’s real.

A patient of mine spiked a fever.

The impulse, even encouraged my some of the staff, was to give acetaminophen. Doing so would likely decreas...