Tuesday, January 28, 2025
D+82
2021 Bernie Sanders' mittens that he wore to Biden's inauguration raised $1.8 million for Vermont charities after the images went viral
Prednisone, day 284, 5 + 2.5 MT., day 21, Vezana, day 7/14 5 mg. prednisone at 5 a.m. Other meds around 2 p.m. 2.5 mg. prednisone at 4 p.m.
A Brief Encounter. After Geri and I had been in her room at the Emergency Department at CSMO yesterday, a staff member asked me to move my car from the entryway. On my way back into the hospital, an old Black lady on her way out waited for me to come through the doorway. I said 'Thank you kindly' and she said 'You're very welcome.' I said 'How are you doing today?' or somesuch pleasantry and she replied "I'm doing fine. Today's my birthday. I'm 83 years old.' I said "I'm 83 years old too. We have something in common. Actually, we have much in common.". Then I said "God bless you" and she said "God bless you" and we hugged each other. I proceeded back to the ER to rejoin Geri and she went on her way, each of us blessed by a stranger in a moment of Grace.
CSMO ER; Ascension Health Care, The disinformation, hype, & spin:
ABOUT ASCENSION
Listening to you, caring for you
From the moment you walk through our doors, you’ll hear the sounds of hope, health and strength, because we’re more than just hospitals, ERs and clinics. Ascension care teams start by understanding you, your health and your life to deliver care that’s right for you. The compassionate, personalized care you’ve come to expect is close to home and connected to a national network of care and the expertise of a wide range of doctors and specialists. So, you’ll be connected to all the care you need for you and your family.
The real experience.
(1) Geri was in the ER from about 10:30 a.m. until about 4:45 p.m., more than 6 hours. During our 6-hour stay, neither of us was offered a drink of water, a cup of coffee, or food of any kind. There were vending machines in the waiting room from which one could purchase, e.g., a small bag of M & Ms for $2.25.
(2) During those 5 hours, she never saw a doctor. The closest she got was occasional visits from a Physician's Assistant.
(3) A CT scan of her abdomen was taken at about 11:30. The 'read' from an off-site radiologist wasn't received until almost 5 hours later. It was the 5-hour delay in obtaining the results of the CT scan that mostly contributed to our 6-hour residency in the ER. After a while, it felt like we were prisoners.
(4) The private room in which Geri was treated and where we waited for 6 hours was cold, indeed very cold. I had left the house wearing a hooded sweatshirt but no coat, hat, or gloves, thinking I would be either in the warm Volvo or in the warm waiting room of the orthopedic surgeon where we were headed. Twice we asked that the temperature in the room be increased and twice we were told that it would be, though it remained uncomfortably cold.
(5) Geri pushed the "Call" button for assistance from a nurse. A nurse didn't arrive until 10 minutes later.
(6) When Geri alerted the nurse that she had to use the bathroom, the nurse asked her if a urinalysis had been ordered, then checked the chart and saw that one had been ordered, and then provided Geri with the bonnet to collect a sample.
(7) The electronic device that monitors blood pressure, blood oxygen, and heart rate beeped audibly, very audibly. After a few hours of listening to it, Geri asked that the sound be turned down or silenced since the only ones present and listening to it were she and I. One nurse tried, but soon the annoying beeping returned, heard only by the patient, Geri, and me, attending her.
The hospital administrators at Ascension Healthcare have earned some national and local notoriety for increasing the company's net revenue by reducing staff levels. The headlines are revealing:
How a Sprawling Hospital Chain [Ascension] Ignited Its Own Staffing Crisis, N Y Times, December 15, 2022
ER docs in Detroit strike over long wait times, low staffing, Michigan Public Org.health, 4/18/24
Texas [Ascension] nurses plan strike over low staffing, recruitment Statesman, June 2, 2023
Physicians union at Ascension St. John on verge of strike , msn.com
4 Updates on the Problems at Ascension Columbia St. Mary’s, January 27, 2023, January 27, 2023
Ascension Healthcare is a Catholic organization, at least in its marketing. "As a Catholic health ministry, Ascension has a unique obligation and calling – reflected in our Mission – to advocate for a more just and compassionate society in words and actions." "Ascension" refers to the Christian doctrine that Jesus of Nazareth ascended or elevated into Heaven after he was crucified and rose from the dead. Cynics might say that the business corporation Ascension pimps the Catholic religion to sell its product, health care. In the lobby of CSMO is a lifesized statuary of a Daughter of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul with small children. The Daughters of Charity founded Milwaukee's St. Mary's Hospital on Water Tower Hill in 1946. The last of the sisters left Milwaukee in 2012. My children were born there. I briefly dated a student nurse at St. Mary's Nursing School as an undergraduate at Marquette. Our children's first babysitter was a student nurse at the Columbia Hospital Nursing School. Both hospitals were respected institutions before becoming a part of Ascension. Alas.
Dan Goldberg called Geri today and offered to go to the store for us or to do anything else that needs doing. He's a blessing, as is Caren.
Karoline Leavitt, Trump's Press Secretary, held her first White House press briefing today. I caught the last part of it and saw that she is (1_ a younger, prettier Sean Spicer, and (2) as gratuitously willing and eager to insult Joe Biden and his administration as her boss is. Like so many Trump aides, she is a Roman Catholic, having attended Central Catholic High School in Lawrence, MA and St. Anselm College. According to Wikipedia, "She advocates for private education and credits her Catholic schooling for instilling pro-life values, discipline, and the importance of public service." In the first Trump administration, she served as an assistant press secretary under Kayleigh McEnany, another Roman Catholic product of Catholic education, graduating from the Academy of the Holy Names in Tampa and the Jesuit Georgetown University in Washington.
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