And How Do We Feel This Morning? (standard:Inspirational stories, 933 words)
Author: Godspenman	Added: Mar 13 2005	Views/Reads: 3809/2339	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Without question, going to the hospital is teamwork from the time you arrive until you are wheeled out the front door. Everyone is working together for the common good of the patient, or at least a crack at his bank account. That is as it should be in suc

Without question, going to the hospital is teamwork from the time you
arrive until you are wheeled out the front door. Everyone is working 
together for the common good of the patient, or at least a crack at his 
bank account. That is as it should be in such mercenary endeavors. 

Spending a few days in the hospital recently reinforced this in my own
mind. Although my time in the hospital was brief, I was given the full 
treatment. 

The hospital staff left no bed unturned in the holy quest of my
recuperation. No matter what time of night it was, each nurse 
cooperated in awakening me and asking, "And how do we feel tonight?" 

Teamwork is good for a number of things in life. Peanut butter and
jelly, ham and eggs, and bologna and cheese are a few things benefiting 
from cooperation. In each example, one element compliments the other 
and the combination is greater than each individual part. This is 
coordination at it finest. 

There is a limitation to the so-called cooperation, especially in the
environment of the hospital. I don't want to complain, but now that I 
am out, I feel a little freer expressing my opinion, without fear of 
any needling from the hospital staff. 

I will grant you, nurses are some of the most wonderful people in the
world. The job they do is simply marvelous. It is absolutely true that 
patients could not get along without these nurses. 

On the other hand, what would these nurses do without patients? 

I don't want to brag here, but if it were not for patients like me (if
there are patients like me), nurses would not have a single thing to do 
in the hospital. Essentially, they owe their job to me. The level of 
their significance is in direct proportion to the patients they serve. 

Not one to belabor a point, (it's hard to do any labor in my condition
right now) I think it's about time someone stood up for patient rights. 
Since I have nothing to do for the next week except recuperate here at 
home, I am the perfect person to say something about this crucial 
issue. 

The major complaint I have is with the "we-disease" rampant in hospitals
across the nation. This "we-disease" syndrome has gotten out of hand 
and despite all the research, no cure seems looming in the hospital 
corridors. 

Every morning, around 5 o'clock, my nurse came bouncing into my room
with the cheeriest of dispositions, completely disregarding my 
condition at hand and boldly asked, "And how do we feel this morning?" 

Even on my best day, 5 o'clock in the morning is not a good time to ask
me any question, especially how I'm feeling. If there were any chance 
that I was feeling good, I certainly would not be in the hospital. 

The thing most disturbing to me is the sense on the part of the nurse to
personally identify with my pain. Hence, "And how do we feel this 
morning?" 

I object to this vehemently. It is my pain, not "our" pain. I believe
each nurse should go and get their own pain. I'm paying a lot for this 
pain and I deserve all the credit. I do not choose to share my pain 
with anyone, especially someone with a bubbly orientation so early in 
the morning. 

It's my ailment and I have the right to not only enjoy it but also tell
everyone about it. One reason it's so hard to tell people about my 
ailment is everybody wants to tell me about their own ailments instead. 


My hospital room that I'm paying for should be the one place I can
indulge my ailment. I should not have to compete with nurses concerning 
my prevailing ailment. From a casual perusal of medical journals while 
waiting in the doctor's office, there are more than enough ailments to 
go around. 



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