We recently posted an update (Crash Cart Completes Documentary) on PRN about the Crash Cart Productions documentary film titled “The Vanishing Oath.” The film tells of the challenges of being a doctor and the reasons why many individuals are leaving clinical practice. We just learned today that the film has been accepted to appear in the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival this October.
Here is Ryan’s story, as told by Nancy on the Crash Cart website:
“Only the humblest of us would drop the title of physician at first introduction. That’s just what Dr. Ryan Flesher did when I met him. It was disarming, yet telling.
The youngest of 6, the world of film was woven into his family life. From an early age, Ryan saw life from the lens of both observer and participant. Able to see both sides, he developed an insight that allowed for him to see beyond one’s outward appearances and into the heart of one’s emotions. This keen understanding, combined with his academic talents and altruistic nature, were a natural fit to becoming a physician.
Soon after leaving the nest of his residency in emergency medicine, he would discover a surprising truth: being a physician in United States means that you stand alone. Having realized a dream, only to discover its harsh reality was, to say the very least, a deep disappointment. Staffing cutbacks, angry patients, bed shortages: each night, a speeding train. Every single day, he felt forced to practice medicine with his hands tied by upper management, insurance companies, systems problems and the like. Ultimately, what it demands of Dr. Flesher is something he cannot give. To know him is to understand that which he holds most sacred: integrity.
I would come to understand why, when I first met him, his eyes were hollow. The practice of medicine had carved a wound in him that only his love of film could begin to heal. Ryan is a trailblazer with courage that is buried deep in his bones.
Rare is the person, let alone a physician, who risks its all; brave is the one who believes that achieving one goal can be the blessed start of another.”
Making this film has been a rewarding life experience for them. “To the greater good, Nancy and Ryan have had the privilege of meeting hundreds of people across the nation. There are physicians and others in the healthcare field who have been willing to share their innermost thoughts and welcomed the film crew into their homes and into their families. It is these friendships made throughout this film that Ryan and Nancy cherish most.”
Crash Cart was featured in earlier PRN articles (PRN Founder Filmed for Documentary) and among our companies and physicians profiles.
The festival runs from October 22-29. We will continue to post more detailed information about the festival schedule and the film itself as it becomes available. For more information about Crash Cart, please visit their website.
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