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First Do No Harm”

I. A Summary of the Work

The Reimuller family lives happily in a farm wherein they have a lot of animals including a horse
which was a prize of their father from a bet. One day, their lives turned upside down when their
youngest child (Robbie Reimuller) had several seizures caused by epilepsy. Everything has changed
starting this moment, they became broke because their insurance ran out and their child is still sick,
has a lot of medications and is always rushed in the hospital. Also, their house is being forfeited for
they were not able to pay their amortization and more problems continue to arose in their family.
But, they did not give up, especially the mother (Mrs. Lori Reimuller) in terms of her child’s condition.
She did a research about the case of her son and she discovered something which is ketogenic diet.
Based on her readings, Ketogenic Diet can somewhat be an alternative treatment for her son’s
condition. She is already not in favor of what the hospital specifically, the doctors are doing on her
child and the effects of the medications being given to him that’s why she decided to transfer her
child to Johns Hopkins hospital but due to financial constraint she can’t take her child legally so she
came up with a plan to escape but they failed to do so. However, a doctor which is a friend of the
mother talked to the child’s attending physician about the concern of the mother and volunteered
himself to go with them in Johns Hopkins hospital as well as a nurse from the hospital where Robbie is
admitted. When they arrived at the hospital, they were told that they missed their appointment and
they couldn’t be accommodated but the nurse fought back and told the receptionist that the child
should be admitted so, they were given the chance to be checked by a physician and they were told
that the child’s ketogenic diet will begin. After several days or months, they already went home and
Robbie is not experiencing any seizure and his ketogenic diet still continued.

II. Reaction to the Work

This movie has opened my eyes about several aspects including the field of medicine and family.
As a student nurse and aspiring doctor, I know that the work of physicians and nurses are not easy
and it is always emphasized to us that our top priority is the client’s wellness and doctors also have
their own oath to do no harm on their patients. But not every medical practitioner are able to fulfill
this. In my own opinion, some health care practitioner are doing their job not for their patients or for
the sake of humanity but instead for their own benefit specifically wealth or even power at times.
There are even some instances that they choose to do the wrong way that it could even harm other
people but they don’t simply care. Nevertheless, there are still people who have the heart to serve
that’s why my faith in humanity is still there. This people are the kind of people who are ready to
serve without expecting anything in return.
Today, a lot of people are not able to get the kind of service or care that they deserve just
because of financial reasons. Sad to say, not everyone are given the opportunity to receive a good
quality of service from health care providers. Just like the case of Robbie in the movie. However, he is
still blessed to have a mother who is strong and loving. Mrs. Reimuller never gave up until she could
find a treatment for her son despite of circumstances that came their way and with that, she was able
to find something that is of big help in the recovery of her epileptic child. This portrays the
unconditional love of a mother to her child. I believe that our mothers may not be perfect but their
love for us is always unconditional. This movie has greatly touched my heart for I could somewhat see
my mother in the character of Lori, that she is willing to do anything just for the sake of her children
and despite of everything that has happened to their family, they remained strong and faced those
challenges as one. Aside from that, this movie also talks about the importance of nutrition and diet in
a person, with the right kind and amount of food we can maintain a healthy mind, body or well-being.
That’s why, I recommend this movie for you’ll be able to learn a lot of things and these learnings
could help you in facing life’s challenges.