Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Recollections of Christchurch

2012; Wiley; Volume: 109; Issue: s3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1111/j.1464-410x.2012.11033.x

1464-410X

Lydia Johns Putra,

Disaster Management and Resilience

Since Christchurch. That phrase passes through my head from time to time now. The experience of being in Christchurch during its earthquake in February 2011 had an effect on me in ways I could never have imagined before. I am not alone in experiencing a life-changing event and I am lucky that I have no physical reminders or emotional trauma. However, I have become attuned to stories of tragedy, probably because, on a small scale, I identify with its survivors. I now realise that many people I know personally have stories of their own involvement in accidents and disasters. Some have overcome obstacles. Some have helped others. Some have been helped. Most choose not to talk about this, their stories only being told as an aside, and there is dignity in their silence. Some choose to share and this sharing can in itself be helpful. Christchurch was a personal watershed and, like it or not, I sometimes see my life as ‘before Christchurch’ and ‘after Christchurch’. In the minutes after the earthquake, I found myself outside the convention centre and, with the help of a local urologist, made my way to the middle of the city. Once there, I found other urologists who had already made themselves known to the local police. A few of us were asked to help at a building that was badly collapsed. There, after many hours of watching emergency crew work to free people, I was able to assist with the rescue of one man. Although seriously injured, he survived, and I have since been able to confirm that he is continuing a long recovery process. I subsequently found my way to Hagley Park, where others from the conference had been placed. Then thanks to the initiative of others, I spent the night on a comfortable bed in a motel, a short distance from the city centre. The next day I, along with others, was evacuated from Christchurch. It was there that I learned that while we all respond slightly differently to adversity, many of us have the capacity to put our own requirements aside to help others who are more in need. Fire-fighters, police officers, Red Cross volunteers, air force crew, airline pilots, nurses, engineers, doctors and plain ordinary folk, all worked for no personal gain to save others. I saw the best of humanity in Christchurch. My view of life is now in sharp relief. Most things we consider problems are, really, inconsequential and we waste time worrying about them. I think, as surgeons, we see enough suffering in our work and, so, we probably all have a tendency not to ‘sweat the small stuff’, but this way of thinking has now become accentuated. I see this attitude in patients who live with chronic illness too. They appreciate that life can be all too short and, as a result, spend much less time dwelling on petty matters. There are important things in life and we all have to work out what they are for ourselves. The broken tail-light and wine stain on the carpet, are not important things. For me, like most, the important things involve family and friends. Another important thing is harder to explain and it is to do with how I live my life. Conduct, dignity, professionalism, kindness. It probably all boils down to attitude. At the end of the day, when I look in the mirror, I would like to be proud of what I do and how I do it, and I am sure most would understand. An extension of this thought, of what is important and what is not, is that we cannot control all aspects of life and another unforeseen, life-threatening experience may be around the corner. When Warren Zevon was dying of mesothelioma, his advice for others was to ‘enjoy every sandwich’. I remind myself of this as often as I can. Finally, I am constantly aware of how much still needs to be done in Christchurch. A few days after the earthquake, I made the mistake of telling someone who lives in Christchurch that I would never return. After a painful silence, he reminded me that some people still live there. Since that conversation I have changed my mind and I will, one day, return to Christchurch. The events there were quickly overshadowed by other news stories, not least of which was the tsunami in Japan. Our attention spans are short and because we cannot fully grasp what happened in that beautiful city, we prefer sound-bites and news grabs. At the time I write this, many in Christchurch are still without basic amenities and much of the city centre is still cordoned. I have no doubt the Kiwis will rise above this devastating event, as I saw first-hand what a strong and resilient race they are, but there is a long road ahead. Urologists have a reputation for being pretty good folk. Generally, we do not take ourselves too seriously and, while we often treat people with some serious troubles, most of us have the good sense to know that there are forces at work other than ourselves. The urologists of New Zealand and Australia have been personally touched by this tragedy. We also, in a sense, have our ‘before Christchurch’ and ‘after Christchurch’ times. As a group, we have the means and the incentive to help. We should not forget the people of Christchurch.