Doctors are a special breed of people. Whenever I speak to a physician, I can’t help but think of all the years of training that this individual has gone through. Everyday, filled with hours of reading, memorization, practicing of techniques, writing and on top of all that, working. I find it amazing that they can endure all that they do and still be able to keep focus.

A human life is very delicate and precious. The human body is an extremely complicated machine, that I’m sure, even doctors don’t fully understand. Yet, despite this, they are able to work on the body and mind and make repairs. That’s a huge responsibility!

I understand that it takes a great deal of time to learn just enough to be able to help people with their illnesses, but we are always learning new things about the human body. The learning never really stops.

In medical school, sleep is almost unheard of among the students. From there, it only gets worse. When they begin their internships, these doctors get even less sleep. This scares me. The people who are supposed to be taking care of the ill are also becoming ill because of the demands of their profession.

The schedules of interns revolve around the needs of the hospital. So, if they are short handed, which seems to be the norm, these physicians are on for up to 36 hours straight! Their meals are taken when there happens to be some spare time and even then, there is barely enough to finish a full meal before they are back to work. The combination of sleep deprivation and poor nutrition have become a way of life for these people.

I know what its like to work with 2 to 3 hours of sleep. It’s no picnic! I make more mistakes and tasks take longer than normal to complete. Concentration becomes hard to come by and judgement becomes very clouded. And I work with inanimate objects! The responsibility is also great when working on a $60,000 race car (as a race mechanic), but that’s not even close to the responsibility of working on a human being.

So, when I see a doctor playing golf or driving around in a Porsche, I can’t help but understand that he/she feels like they deserve it. And they do. After all they have gone through, reaping the benefits is the very least they can do for themselves. They have given so much, time, blood sweat and tears, that what they get in return, however great, seems like its still not enough.

Being a "techie", I can relate to the intricacies of bodily functions. I can understand, in a very basic way, the "repairs" and techniques used by doctors. But, I cannot fully relate to the dedication of these amazing people. Doctors have given their lives to a profession at the cost of their own health and family in some instances.

So, I tip my hat to all the doctors in the world. You are all truly amazing in my book.