The article First Person is the experience of Dr. Laura Sang, a family physician in the Greater Montreal area, in which she simulates the reality of her daily experiences with patients and how to spend a workday as a doctor. The article includes the following:

I roll out of bed at six in the morning, trying not to disturb my sleeping partner. After throwing a hooded jacket from a pile of clean clothes, I prepare myself a cup of tea and a sandwich to eat, and as soon as the first drop of caffeine enters my bloodstream, I open my laptop to review patient charts in preparation for my upcoming clinic.

My inbox contains about 20 messages needing attention from the previous day, including a message from my secretary stating that my patient - a recently diagnosed single mother with breast cancer - was in distress because her insurance refused to cover her salary during her chemotherapy leave, so I request to book the patient during one of my lunch breaks this week to see what can be done to help her.

Next, I print a large number of driver's license renewal forms for elderly patients and insurance forms for patients on leave. After a brief exchange of "good morning" with my partner at 8 a.m., I drive to work to start my day actually seeing patients.

Then, at the clinic, I silence my busy phone, ignoring the endless stream of emails about epidemiological precautions, equipment shortages updates, and staff going on sick leave as I try to give my full attention to the 18-year-old young woman crying at my desk because she is struggling to return to school after being raped and her family does not know. I am the second person she felt comfortable telling after the teacher refused to grant her an extension on her term paper when she asked for help. She stared helplessly into my eyes while pouring out her heart, and I felt an increasing weight on my shoulders - a sense of responsibility to compensate for a system that failed her. Her appointment continues as long as I support her through her decision-making process about whether to take legal action against the perpetrator or not.

On the other hand, I usually spend the rest of my day contacting patients who have urgent lab results and talking to the nurse from the rehabilitation center where I work twice a week, trying to manage patients' high blood sugar and headaches remotely.