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Hospitals

As someone who is not a health-care provider I count it a blessing not to have spent much time in hospitals. I've visited friends and loved ones from time to time there but that kind of interaction is pretty focused---these are the visiting hours, here's how to get to a cafeteria, etc. My wife and I have two children and I would count hospital time for their births as when I first spent substantial time in hospitals.

And it was very traumatic the first time around. Our first child was born 6.5 weeks early. He is healthy and strong now but he was in the "special care nursery", i.e., the ER for preemies, for 23 long long days. Family took turns supporting us but that was a rough time.  Our second child was only two weeks premature and came home with us swiftly, happy and healthy.

I've had three elective procedures; I had my nasal passage enlarged (examination had confirmed that it was unusually narrow), I had a closed tear duct reopened, and more substantially I had my knee replaced. The first two procedures did not require me to stay overnight; as I developed pneumonia after the knee replacement I stayed four days for that one.

More seriously I had gallstones removed that had been blocking a duct, essentially taking my digestive system offline for a few weeks. I was surprised not to have pain but could not keep any food down and after a decent time for flu symptoms to come and go I was diagnosed with the stones. I spent a week in the hospital, mostly after the surgery trying to get my digestion to work again.

I've had two overnight outpatient procedures done related to my sleep apnea, both sleep studies where I was covered with electrodes and monitored as I slept while air was gradually pumped into my lungs at greater pressure.

Cumulatively I think that my experience with my first child's 23 long long days in the hospital as well as my own stays (and occasional visits with my kids to the ER, etc.) have given me more of a sense of a hospital as a system. I've been to fewer than thirty hospitals over time so I'm no expert, but here are a few observations.

  • Like many large cities, hospitals consist of many small villages with only limited interaction with each other.
  • Outsiders are only interacted with in the context of their being outsiders. Who we are, what we do, what matters to us, only comes through in filtered form in our interactions with the locals.
  • Medical protocols are the religious rites of the culture. They are not followed faithfully at all times but everyone acts as if they are. Wherein the protocols don't match reality reality loses.
  • Compassionate and empathetic folk tend not to end up in positions of power nor do they seem to wish to.
  • Night staff have an introverted style of interacting, similar in many ways to how early morning diner staff interact with each other and customers.
  • Signage is woefully inadequate for outsiders. If we make it out it can be random which direction from the center of the complex we end up in.

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