We lost our daughter to cancer 12 years ago today, and it still really hurts
Twelve years ago today, our eldest daughter died of cancer. It was the most horrific moment of my life.
I knew that, one day, I was going to bury her. She had a genetic condition to which most of those afflicted ultimately succumb. Yet, despite playing the movie of her death in my mind a million times, the day I finally faced it was the absolute worst day through which I have ever lived.
Twelve years later, the pain is still fresh. The grief is still suffocating. The deep-seated ache in my heart has never resolved.
As time goes by…
They are more than just a donor. They are a gift-giver.
We had a patient who suffered brain death after cardiac arrest. He had previously signed up to be an organ donor, and so when he was declared brain dead, the organ donation network (called Gift of Hope here in Illinois) came and arranged to have his kidneys donated to two people. His other organs, unfortunately, could not be donated.
Prior to his leaving the ICU to the operating room, we all gathered together to honor him and his gift of life to another person. I was distinctly honored to read a poem, and I then led the group in a…
Lock Down Was Hard…Even Though I Wasn’t Locked Down
I so miss the ocean
The water crashing on the sand
I so miss the ocean
Where the water ends the land
I so miss the ocean
Lock down was very hard
I so miss the ocean
The death has left me scarred
There is something about the water
Dancing and prancing about
It has always called me to gather
Calming when I want to shout
The ocean is always in flux
It is never the same each day
It’s power and grace is the crux
Pointing to The One Who…
If this is not a reason to get vaccinated, I don’t know what is
This past weekend, my extended family had a long-awaited reunion. Almost all of the adults — but for a few intransigent members not wanting a vaccine — were vaccinated. It was outdoors. There were family members I had not seen in more than a year.
We hung out, ate, drank, and laughed together, without any fear of giving COVID to each other or to vulnerable family members. We argued with those remaining few who just adamantly refused to be vaccinated. We played sports and had a genuinely amazing time. It was so awesome.
If this is not a reason to…
We should expand the concept to other patients, such as those with Covid and beyond
It seems counterintuitive, but the hospital is sometimes the worst place for a sick person. It is an unfamiliar environment; there are numerous interruptions to one’s sleep; the bed is uncomfortable; and — especially with the Covid pandemic — family is frequently unable to be present the entire time. That is on top of dealing with the illness which landed the person in the hospital in the first place.
As a result of this, there are many possible complications of hospital stays: hospital-associated infections, pressure ulcers, delirium and disorientation, and long-term, there may be cognitive deficits well after the hospital…
The repeated crush of death has become much too painful
With every patient we see in the Intensive Care Unit, we have hope. We have hope that they will survive their critical illness. We have hope that they will recover and walk out of the ICU alive and well. We have hope that they will survive their ICU stay intact: physically, mentally, and spiritually.
Then came the scourge of COVID-19.
In the beginning of the pandemic, we had that same hope for our COVID-19 patients. We had hope that they would survive their critical illness. We had hope that they will recover and walk out of the ICU alive and…
PUBLIC HEALTH
Those who recovered clinically but still tested positive didn’t transmit COVID according latest research
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) currently recommends discontinuation of isolation 10 days after symptom onset or first positive test result. And it does not require a negative test after the ten day isolation period.
But what if a person who has clinically recovered from Covid still tests positive? Is that person infectious? A new, large cohort study of the 2020 NBA season in Orlando helps shed light on the answer to this question, and it is good news.
3648 NBA players, staff, and vendors participated in the NBA’s regular and postseason occupational health program in Orlando for…
Cases are going up, and it is much younger people who are dying
As of today, April 19, every U.S. adult is eligible to get a COVID vaccine. Please, get your COVID vaccine. Please. Do it now.
Coronavirus cases are going up in my hospital. They are going up in my county. They are going up in my state. They are going up all across the country. This is most likely due to the B.1.1.7 variant, the so-called “UK variant,” and it is wreaking havoc across the United States.
Please. Get. Your. Vaccine.
And you know what? The patients who are getting admitted to our hospital, and getting admitted to our ICU, and…
On April 8 and 9, our hospital held a memorial service to honor all of those who died from COVID-19. For each patient, we had a candle and a card with their name on it, handwritten by one of my colleagues. It was a wonderful we can honor those who we have lost. I wrote this poem as my contribution to this effort.
The Light comes down from On High
Descending calmly like a dove
With each breath and sigh
A sign of Undying Love
Affliction strikes from afar
Oceans do not keep it out
Disease is wide and far
Fear is around…
PUBLIC HEALTH
With universal masking, is an influenza vaccine even necessary?
Every year, as a healthcare professional, I am mandated to get the influenza vaccine. In past years, if I did not get the flu vaccine or could not get it for whatever reason, then I was forced to wear a mask in the hospital throughout the flu season. That was before COVID was even a twinkle in a bat’s eye.
Fast forward to the 2020–2021 flu season, and there has been almost no flu activity. According to the CDC, there have been a total of 1,639 cases of flu since September 27, 2020. That’s it.
Compare that to the previous…
