To See and Not See - Essay Example

To see and not see Question Do you believe Amy did the right thing in pushing for surgery? (Remember: the surgery was brand new at the time she learned of it and no one anticipated the potential problems that patients would have once they recovered their sight.)The eye surgery that Virgil underwent being a new concept, and one which had not been practiced by a neurologist presented unforeseen challenges even before it was conducted. However, by Amy pushing for the surgery to be performed on Virgil despite the danger, I believe that she did a good thing (Sacks, 2012).

Notably, by fronting for this surgery, the odds against the same appear to have been outweighed by the benefits to be derived from doing the same.For instance, Virgil is known to have lived in blindness for nearly forty-five years and when this surgery is fronted up, for him it does not seem oblivious of any worries given that he longed to see. Several reasons can be suggested as to whether the surgery was right or wrong, but, it is clear even before the operation that the success of the surgery would have meant a new hope for all cases of blindness like Virgil.

In essence, the success of the surgery would have appeared as start up for surgeries for the blind people in the future. According to Amy, there was nothing to be lost given that Virgil was already blind and not trying the surgery even if it would fail would have been detrimental (Sacks, 2012).Therefore, by pushing for the surgery, Amy was doing the right thing given that at the end of it all, it was successful and Virgil got his sight back despite a few challenges of confusion upon regaining back his sight.

Additionally, the case of Gregory’s patient who received transplant at the age of fifty years was an indication that the surgery could be successfully achieved regardless of age. Several other surgeries of similar kinds had been done thus, indicating that Virgil’s could succeed (Sacks, 2012).Question 2If you knew someone who was contemplating this surgery, what would you tell him or her?This type of surgery that was performed on Virgil in 1991, and since then, based on the technological advancements that have been witnessed in the field of medicine, it would be expected that the methods of conducting the surgery have been advanced.

Other than this, the advantages attached to the success of this surgery would be beneficial to a blind patient. Hence, I would gladly support someone I knew who would be contemplating this surgery. However, as Sacks notes in his book, the patients who have undergone through this process, just like Virgil, are commonly faced with the challenge of the state of confusion in which they are defeated to comprehend what exactly they see in their first instance (Sacks, 2012). However, for someone trying out this surgery for the first time, I would offer my advice which would be to ensure that they take time in getting used to the things that are associated with seeing.

Question 3Would you recommend it for some people but not others? Who?While this surgery seems to be fit for all blind people, I would least recommend it for those who were virtually born blind and did not have a chance at infancy to comprehend the identity of light because they are likely to suffer from objects’ identity when they regain their eye sights. As Sacks noted, Virgil had no major issues with identity because he quickly related the light and colors he saw to the voice and comprehended the images (Sacks, 2012).

The case of gaining eyesight is quite different for the normal people since they are accustomed to the same and their brains have neurologically developed in like manner.Question 4What would you say to family members of a potential patient?Family members of potential patients usually have the basic information in relation to the medical background of the patient. Suppose a patient has offered for the surgery, to the family members, I would only request them to allow the patient undergo the same for the outcome may be positive.

Just as Amy convinced the parents of Virgil, I would clearly tell them that there is nothing to lose as already the potential patient is blind and an opportunity to revive their sight should be welcome by all (Sacks, 2012).ReferenceSacks, O. W. (2012). An anthropologist on Mars: Seven paradoxical tales. New York: Knopf.