Brian’s Column: Comforting the Sick

… or the temporarily out of commission
(initially posted 8/15/11)

Providence Park HospitalIt occurred to me the other day, after visiting a neighbor who is hospitalized, that I may have acquired a certain penchant for this sort of modest gesture. Many seem to consider a willingness to visit the sick—especially those who are not good friends or kin—a hallmark of sensitivity. Reading the Bible, Matthew 25:36, Jesus says, “Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.” Which I remember from Sunday School many years ago. Well, I don’t consider myself overly sentimental, but looking out for others does bring a profound (even selfish) satisfaction. Continue reading

Brian’s Column: Omamacare III

Mama Bear’s 3d modern-hospital encounter …
by Brian Wright


Omamacare III[Omamacare II]
Will it be the charm?

More or less keeping track of ol’ Mama Bear as she struggles with her later-in-life medical issues. At the beginning of her dialysis treatment for polycystic kidney disease (PKD) I made some observations that as bad as the existing corporate system is, nationalizing it via Obamacare will make it ten times worse. Then about a year ago, Mom had a medical emergency that entailed a weeklong stay at Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, which I documented as O-mama-care II (OMC2). Get it? Omamacare. Ha ha. Continue reading