I know there have been times in the past where I have ranted and raved about the wait times and care I’ve received at the Northumberland Hills Hospital emergency department.  Just recently I was required to wait for over 10 hours. Dealing with the frustration of all that waiting when you are not feeling well is at times overwhelming.  From the initial triage in the red chairs to endless hours in the blue chairs before being moved inside to wait yet again.  But, in all fairness to the staff and the hospital, in the past three day I received a wake up call which told me that each of my previous visits did not put me in an extreme crisis situation. Hospital Emergency Services is really for crisis emergencies and during poor health we as individuals are so focused on what our personal  medical issue are in that moment, (which is a perfectly normal human response given we are not medical professionals and can’t fix ourselves) and all we know is that we don’t feel well.  We sometimes miss that emergency services is defined as “A serious, unexpected, and often dangerous situation requiring immediate action”.

Was I in need of seeing a doctor at the time, oh yes.  Could I have gone to a walk-in or my family doctor, no not really due to my many complications and the need to be seen as soon as possible,and/or the simple fact that it was a weekend, or late evening.   We baby boomers know our healthcare services  is in crisis, but that’s a topic for another day.  I had at the time of my previous emergency visits no alternative; I needed to be seen by a medical professional.  So I brought my book and prepared to wait.

Today though I am putting into prospective what Northumberland Hills Hospital, doctors and staff really do for real crisis emergencies and to say thank you to  Dr. Gibbons, Dr. Moorsom and the hard working wonderful nursing staff for being there for me this past Monday and Tuesday.  You saved my life or at least prevented me from losing mobility through my neck and spinal column and brought clarity to a very serious situation.

Dr. Gibbons whom I had never met before was able to go above and beyond my original diagnosis to investigate, analysis and research my symptoms for which I had previously received several scans over a period of months.  He used his powers of deduction and analytic skills to realize I had a potentially fatal situation going on in my neck.  His quick thinking and consulting with Dr. Moorsom resulted in a next day MRI and a rush to start treatment the following day at the Oshawa Cancer Centre.  His calm bedside manner, dedication and concern along with the aid of the nurses over those two very scary days resulted in my being here to write about it and say thanks because I know as medical professionals their jobs are tough and sometimes as selfish human’s it’s always easier to criticize then to give praise when it is due.

I now understand what emergency stands for.  I can’t promise that I won’t complain about my next long wait time, but I’ll know if I’m waiting, there is probably someone in your care in need of emergency services  with a capital “E “and that I need not worry that you will be there for me should I be in a health threat crisis again.  Here is a link to the Northmberland Hills Foundation.  

Thanks….