A blessing in the North End

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/12/2021 (1107 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Many changes in our health-care system have affected this end of town. Serious ambulance cases are directed to Health Sciences Centre. Other catastrophes, such as falls, broken bones and more, head to Seven Oaks Urgent Care.

 I was recently sent there by my doctor. He felt secure that they would solve my sudden problem. While I was awaiting the many tests they do on-site, I absorbed the rhythm of  the place and watched the ebb and flow of nurses, aides and doctors. I sensed a close-knit family that consults with each other to discuss and make important decisions. Having  dedicated their lives to healing, they seem happy to be fulfilling that challenge.

However, as I lay in bed and listened to the group gathered around the desk area, the  talk wasn’t always serious. A lot of joking and teasing went on. The easy everyday camaraderie is pleasant.

It makes life feel normal, although patients are hooked up to beeping machines, waiting for test results. They wonder whether they will be sent home with pills, selected for a more sophisticated treatment in the hospital upstairs or scheduled shortly for elective surgery.

Speaking of machines, they appear to be technical marvels. Attached to your finger by a wire, each tall apparatus displays your body temperature and blood pressure on its face top. A cuff affixed to your arm, automatically tightens from time to time to tally your personal numbers. When intravenous lines are interrupted, these tall contraptions complain loudly and often .

Most interesting is the travelling X-ray machine. You can sit up in bed and have your internal pictures taken. It’s over in seconds, and the bulky machine on wheels moves on, pushed by a nurse, to keep working far into the night.

Yes, it was a long night for yours truly too, but as I left at about 11 o’clock, the waiting  room had refilled. I felt sorry for the night team. Many diagnoses would have to be made and reams of paperwork filled out.

My visit was an eye-opener. It was heartwarming to see so much kindness and dedication in one place. Although each doctor or nurse treats everyone the same, I felt special.

My daughter-in-law says its because I’m a cherished person and her personal role model. I make it a point to never argue with my daughter-in-law.

 

Freda Glow is a community correspondent for the North End.