It has been awhile since I have had time to sit here and write. I have spent the better part of the last week sitting in a hospital room, not as a patient, but as a parent.
I truly believe there is nothing worse than having an ill child. And yes, they are always your little children no matter how old they get.
But if the feeling of helplessness is not enough to wear out your body and mind, there is the actual experience of not being able to find help on the hospital floor when you need it. I will grant that in the middle of the stay, the holiday occurred, but having spent ten years working in the medical profession in a hospital, I know that they are open 24/7, weekends and holidays included. Patients and family are not enjoying a day off, so if you work in the medical field, get used to it. Hospitals should be making sure that the patient is not suffering just because they did not schedule their illness at peak working hours.
Trying to buy a sandwich at the deli counter yesterday, I nearly had a meltdown. It took five people to get change out of a register. There was a very nice nurse at the counter who asked me what was wrong and then asked me to call her at home. What is wrong is that hospitals need to be better staffed. I have heard this same complaint from people who have been hospitalized recently at the hospital here in West Bloomfield.
Beautiful new bricks and mortar buildings are wonderful, but when you are on the inside, all you care about is having someone there when you need them. That being said, there were some wonderfully attentive nurses and aides, just not enough of them.
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