On the 1st day of February five years ago I was laying in a hospital bed in the Queen Elizabeth 2 in Halifax Nova Scotia. I was waiting for heart bypass surgery, I had four serious blockages. The successful operation took place on the 11th February and ten days later I was home in my own bed. This was without doubt the most scary and indeed the hardest recovery from a surgery of my life. I felt so fragile and weak for months after the operation. I left the hospital with approx sixty staples in my chest and another 15 on my left thigh where they harvested the veins needed for the by passes. Without Linda to care for me during the lengthy recover time I don’t think I could have survived. Just getting out of bed was a major operation requiring her help, I couldn’t use my arms to push myself up for fear of opening my chest bone. I became breathless very easily because my lungs were not fully open and it was painful to take a deep breath. My bedside table looked like a pharmacy counter and keeping track of which pill to take and when, wasn’t easy. I can now look back on those fearful times and give thanks to God for my survival. However, more importantly I give thanks to Linda who brought me through many long and frightening days and nights. I give thanks to the amazing surgeons who preformed the operation on my heart so deftly. I can’t imagine the difficult and delicate heart surgery they preformed , just amazing talent. Today I lead a normal life, perhaps a bit slower and with a little more care, but normal nonetheless. I have been granted five plus more years of life because of the wonderful healthcare provided to me by the doctors and nurses of this great nation of Canada.
So folks, I don’t write this to impress anyone with my personal story, but rather to remind those of you who complain about the health system. Who moan about having to travel off island for treatment, who complain about wait times, about doctors, nursing staff etc. Please take a step back and think, we may not have a perfect health system but it is the best that can be provided under the difficult and trying circumstances. That is for me enough, and I’m proud to have received care from the hands of such hard working and caring health professionals. Next time you see a doctor or nurse, thank them.
God Bless and keep reading.
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