A 70-Year-Old Unit

Uncle John had brain surgery last July to remove a benign tumor. The fact that this type of surgery was available to him under the former communist socialized medical system was a miracle. The fact that he survived the surgery was another miracle. He was 69 years old at the time.

For two months after he emerged from surgery, he confused past and present, living and deceased, angry with himself that he could not remember important things, words, or recognize loved ones such as his children. He lived in his own confused world while my aunt nursed him back to health. Although communism has long been gone, the corrupt medical system and the way they operated lingers. Around the clock nursing care is still provided by family, including food, linens, baths, and expensive meds bought in private or public pharmacies and administered in the hospital. Bribes to medical staff are expected even though salaries have risen from the paltry communist era when everyone was paid equally low salaries. I visited him in September. It was my first stop after we left the airport. John was happy to see us even though he thought I was my daughter. During the two-hour visit, we noticed the milling about of patients and their families in the hallways, no doctor or nursing staff in sight. His wife was administering medication and his diabetic shots. His son brought him lunch from a nearby restaurant who had been preparing his meals for the last two months, following the prescribed diet.

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The only indication that we might be in a hospital was the bed with rails, everything else looked like a motel room with sparse amenities. There was no indication of any sterilization and the common bathroom for the entire floor had no toilet paper, the windows were wide-open for all upper floors to see inside, the tub was filthy, and an elderly lady was doing her laundry by hand in the sink. We tried to take the tiny 4-person elevator down to the lobby but it was out of order. I wondered how they transported patients up and down the stairs. Stray dogs were roaming around the hospital courtyard. The gate sentry was happy with his 5-euro mandatory bribe to let us into the hospital. Images were flashing in my mind of the luxurious lobby of our American regional hospital, the gift and coffee shops, the spotless and shiny-to-perfection linoleum floors, the professional staff milling about, the comfortable rooms with private, disinfected, and well-stocked bathrooms, the nutritious food prepared with care and served three times a day, and round-the-clock expert care from the medical staff. Do Americans really understand what socialized medicine provides? Do they really want to have what my Uncle John has under socialized medicine? Are they willing to give up the best care in the world they have in America right now? Why? Do they really believe Michael Moore’s lies about the “excellent and free” medical care in Cuba? Do they not understand basic economics that nothing is free, somebody has to pay for it? As Margaret Thatcher said, “The problem with socialism is that sooner or later you run out of other people’s money.” At some point, rationing of care and drugs kicks in, no matter how old the person is. Even briberies no longer work. The patient has to be placed on a waiting list, prioritized by age. After a few months of improvement, John developed fluid on his brain. All progress reversed. This development required surgery and the placing of a shunt to drain the fluid. He was added to the waiting list for MRI and then another waiting list for surgery. Meantime, his condition worsened. He talked very little and slept constantly. John had become a 70-year-old “unit,” he was no longer a human being who needed immediate care. Palliatives were his only options after the age of 70 because his worth was deemed small by the medical “death panel.” I suggested more bribes to the doctors and nurses in order to move his name up the list. It seemed to have worked. They moved up his MRI this week. He is having surgery next week. His life is in God’s hands and the skill of the doctors. People used to speak of the golden age, traveling, and enjoying life upon retirement, now it is the fear of being killed by our fellow citizens who have lost their humanity and are dismantling our excellent medical care in the name of insuring more people, particularly those who are here illegally and should be cared for by their countries. I do not know of any hospital in the U.S. who refuses emergency care to anybody, regardless of financial status or national origin. It is illegal and unethical to do so. Yet such rhetoric helped pass ObamaCare. I do know doctors who have stopped taking government insurance. I also know that Tricare, medical insurance for our soldiers who sacrificed so much will skyrocket, while civilian government workers who sacrificed nothing for our country will continue to benefit from their unchanged stellar insurance. People are fighting about contraceptives, ignoring the real issues, the loss of control over one’s health and body to an omnipotent government that can take all rights away on a moment’s notice. If we live long enough, we are all going to become “units” like Uncle John.