ABSTRACT
The professional has a plan. They have been there before. They understand the continuum of disease affecting the patient. Whilst it is not always possible to know where on the continuum each patient will be, a professional understands the prognostic indicators that a layperson does not see. This chapter presents the story of Paula who was taking care of her partner's mother at the ICU. The knowledge that Paula felt as a burden in her personal life had taken years of experience to acquire and when it is there, it never leaves. A professional can never be less than they are. A good professional is a kind professional and a kind professional does not sympathise: they empathise. All the skills and characteristics mentioned entail the professional sharing themselves, being human, negotiating with and connecting to a person in need, using both informal and formal styles that display compassion and friendliness in equal measure.
