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Hi Mr. Johnson, It says here you came in for a Hysterectomy?
02.1.2008 by Christian
This would be one reason, among many, I don’t trust hospitals and their employees. Before I continue, let me say that hospitals, doctors, nurses, etc. all have important and vital roles in society. I use their services when I need to. I also appreciate the hard work that most (if not all) medical proffesionals put into their practice of medicine. There will also always be situations in which no amount of hard work, knowledge, experience, or testing availabe at the time will be sufficient. That being said, gross mistakes and injustices are done on a regular basis across the country in hospitals and medical facilities.
My wife and I had a poor experience a couple years ago with a local hospital emergency room when my wife had to go their three times over the course of a few days. Forgiving the ignorance and rudeness of various staff and professionals (we understand not everybody can be at the top of their game all the time, both in dealing with patients and their emotions as well as dealing with the problem) but during that time my wife’s female doctor was not contacted once, despite our specific request that they do that, until after my wife miscarried our little girl whom we had seen moving and heard her heartbeat only hours before by ultrasound. They got reemed by her doctor for that, as they should have been. (On a side note I wonder if there is a natural (unless combated against) devaluation or desensitization of human life that takes place as medical professionals deal repeatedly with death.)
I could also provide numerous stories from other patients where I witnessed errors, problems, etc. Some of those were corrected because family members were there and were on the ball. Others didn’t turn out so well: one lady recently passed away from widespread cancer when she was told for years by multiple doctors that she was fine and that her illness was in her head. As it turns out, her illness was in her head, she had a major brain tumor (in addition to cancer elsewhere).
My experience (personally and professionally) has been that nurses are the most on the ball of anybody in the hospital. Be good to them, because more often than not they will be responsible for helping you to get the care you need. Also, listen to advice that tells you to communicate with medical persons providing you treatment. Along with this, if you have to go to the hospital to be treated, have a family member or close friend with you as often as possible (especially during times of treatment and drug administration) if not the entire time so that they can do or say what needs to be done for your proper treatment. Unless your doctor is House (a wacky, unorthodox, medical genius), if you have a serious or life threatening illness or condition, don’t hesitate to ask for a second opinion (or third).
February 2nd, 2008 at 4:29 am
Christian,
Good points. I think you know our feelings on the subject- even after a year has gone by… I still have strong emotions thinking about the birth and the first week home. The 16 different ways I was asked if I was being abused, the way I got treated like crap for not breastfeeding, how my lovely pediatrician made me cry after being out of the hospital not even a whole day.
I feel your frustration and agree about nurses completely.
February 2nd, 2008 at 12:07 pm
Having spent the last 14 plus years dealing with a debilitating medical condition I can easily understand your frustration.
As a Christian……….how do I respond?
I decided to be an SOB, in Jesus name :)
I refuse to let the medical profession ignore me. I want to know what is going on and why.
I told my doctor that I do not expect him to fix what can’t be fixed. (Fibromyalgia, ms) I do expect him to listen to me and treat what can be treated.
Not contacting your wife’s doctor borders on malpractice (IMO) I have found emergency room visits to be a crap shoot. Several Years ago I ended up in the local ER with severe numbness. I told the guy I was on blood pressure meds. To make a long story short…..he should have checked my potassium level and didn’t. A month later my doctor did some blood work and found I had low potassium.(which causes numbness)
My brother-in-law is a cardiologist. Busy. Over worked. Patients must be proactive. Ask questions. Question EVERYTHING! Your life may depend on it.
Bruce
February 2nd, 2008 at 9:41 pm
Mandy,
I didn’t know about your pediatrician making you cry. It’s good to find physicians that you like. Jenny’s doctor is great (so is Adeline’s pediatrician). I’m sorry your overall experience was so rough. We get to go to St. Louis next week for the High Risk Clinic at Barnes (Jenny’s pregnancy is considered high risk). I imagine I’ll be asked to leave the room so they can ask Jenny if I’m abusing her. But really, that stuff is nothing compared to improper or lack of treatment. I’m going to have Jenny start bawling when they ask her that and tell them she feels abused by hospital professionals who keep asking her that.
Bruce,
Definitely ask questions and question everything. That should have been in my post. As far as the Christian response, it is assumed in this article (and in a sense this site) that Christians are making an effort to live holy and righteous lives. Therefore it is good to be gracious in our words and facial expressions, forgiving in situations that would normally make us lash out, and proactive in kindness towards others (both employees and other patients). That doesn’t mean that we sit back and do nothing letting others determine what happens to us. All of my advice can be practiced in such a way as to give honor to God and be a witness to those around us. Thanks for your thoughts.
February 2nd, 2008 at 10:22 pm
Christian,
Have fun with the whole pregnancy. Yes, the doctor made me cry, but since we don’t have insurance they wouldn’t let me switch (they are all connected to the same network unless we drive out of town.) Plus she charges us half price… Most of the time I just don’t go anymore :)
Try not having insurance, it makes the medical profession treat you even better. (sarcasm.)
I can’t believe you’re pregnant again! I may be a tad bit jealous ;) Tell Jenny I say Hi!
February 2nd, 2008 at 10:47 pm
Jenny says you may think that now (jealousy of being pregnant) but if you actually were you’d be terrified. I guess it’s kind of like buyers remorse that way (j/k).
February 2nd, 2008 at 10:48 pm
i would be terrified/overjoyed, just like last time :)
February 2nd, 2008 at 10:48 pm
You know Mandy, this would be alot easier on an instant messenber program. Besides, aren’t you and her on myspace or one of those websites?
February 3rd, 2008 at 5:05 am
yeah, but we don’t talk on that.. and i was commenting on your post. :) she needs to update her pics on facebook. i still think your daughter is the size of a doll!