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My second experience with the Nova Scotia Health Authority, and in general my local hospital, occurred over the past week.  This is not a post looking for sympathy but to acknowledge how grateful we all should be to have the Strait Richmond hospital in our local area.  

On Thursday, March 25th I woke with an extremely sore neck that got progressively worse over the next 24 hours.  It was so bad that I was not able to lie down to sleep on Thursday night.  I sat up in a chair dosing only for a few minutes at a time.  I went to work but by 9:30 I knew I’d have to leave.  I called my GP’s office only to be told I couldn’t get an appointment for about 2 weeks.  I decided just before 10am to go to the hospital.  Now, understand I do not go to the hospital unless it is something very severe.  Other than routine bloodwork, I can count on one hand the number of times I have gone to emergency.  As I walked through the door of the Strait Richmond Hospital I arrived at the Covid desk, where I was asked all the usual Covid questions.  From there I went to the registration window where I was processed quickly and told to have a seat and someone would be with me shortly.  I no sooner sat down when I was called by a nurse (Pauline) who guided me to a room and took all my information about my neck and did the usual blood pressure, temperature, heart rate, etc. tests.  She was a lovely person and said “on paper you are perfect”.  It was 10:20 when I emerged from seeing her.  That is amazing service.  I was soon being called by Pauline and ushered to one of the emergency rooms to wait to see a doctor.  

A little background information is needed.  The Strait Richmond Hospital is undergoing some major renovations in the emergency area.  I was being escorted through a tunnel-like hallway, made by temporary walls, to the emergency department.  I could hear hammering, sawing, talking, and general construction noises throughout.  They are down 4 beds in the emergency department, which makes it even more difficult for the staff.  I was taken to a room that had 2 or 3 beds in it, with only a curtain separating the beds form one another.  Not much privacy but that wasn’t an issue for me.  There are other rooms that provide more privacy.  I waited for about an hour, or a little more, for the doctor.  Again, I didn’t think this was a very long wait, as I could see that the rooms were full and they were quite busy. He ordered x-rays.  As I was waiting for the next instructions, I was moved from the room I was in, to another room, as someone had come in by ambulance and the room I was in was more convenient.  Pauline arrived with a wheelchair and a johnny shirt.  I didn’t want to go by wheelchair and asked if I could walk.  Pauline said ‘it’s a long walk and it’s best to use the chair’.  BTW the johnny shirt was beautiful.  It was light blue with dark blue snowflakes.  I loved it.  

It was indeed a long journey to x-ray.  We went back through the tunnel, past the waiting area, past the front entrance, past where the gift shop used to be located, past the first nurses station for inpatients and all the way down a hallway to x-ray.  The x-rays were done very quickly with no delay.  Then the long journey back to emergency.  As we were going through emergency, one of the construction crew that was up on a step ladder started to come down.  Pauline reached out and said “don’t come down”.  The poor guy was just about to land in my lap.  The congestion in the emergency department was chaotic when I arrived back.  A stretcher was in the middle of the hallway, other apparatus against a wall, all blocking our way through, but between Pauline and the construction guy, the path was cleared.  I want to reiterate that through all the abnormalities of an emergency area; construction workers, lack of beds and lack of easily maneuvering patients, the staff ware caring, concerned, comforting and smiling which goes a long way to those in discomfort.  The doctor soon arrived telling me I had a sprained neck, more than likely caused by a biking incident a couple of days before.  He had already given me a pill to help calm the pain, which hadn’t yet kicked in, and prescribed some anti-inflammatory’s.  When I got home the pain had somewhat lessened and I was able to lie down for about 3 hours.  This was the last actual lie down/sleep I’d have for several days.  

Friday night came around and I was once again unable to lie down.  I sat up, on a chaise, trying to prop my head up with a pillow, dosing for only minutes at a time.  The muscle spasms were like nothing I’d ever experienced before.  On Saturday I tried ice to help relieve the pain but that made the spasm worse, although it probably helped the inflammation.  I tried heat, to help with the spasms, but that made the inflammation flare.  There was no relief no matter what I did.  When the spasms were at their worst, I’d pace, hoping to get some relief, which at times did help.  I knew it would be another night of sitting up.  And I was right.  

I spent Saturday night propped up on the chaise again.  We had a thunder and lightning storm, which I never like, but I watched as the sky lit up and the trees became silhouettes.  I prayed the lightning would come in and hit me, to put me out of my misery.  The pain was radiating up into the back of my head.  My Dad had a brain tumour, and my mind started playing games on me.  Did I have a brain tumour?  Was I misdiagnosed?  If so, I hoped it wouldn’t last too long.  I knew I was becoming depressed.  I thought about my bicycle and my kayak, and that I would list them for sale the next day, as I would never be using them again.  I wondered who would look after the yard for Mom this summer and plant the garden.  One’s mind can really take over and cause chaos during difficult times.  In my mind I wrote a goodbye letter to my brother (Sandy) and his partner (Greg) and to my Mom.  I know what some of you are thinking; you have a sprained neck.  It’s not like you are going to die.  Honestly, this is the worst pain I have ever experienced.  

On Sunday I thought the spasms had calmed a bit and that maybe I was getting better.  I was anxious for bedtime to come so I could try to lie down.  As evening began I felt my neck tightening and sure enough by 7-8pm the spasms were back.  Another night would be spent pacing and propping myself in a chair.  This repeated itself on Monday and Monday night as well.  

From Thursday morning until Tuesday morning I had only 3 hours of sleep in my bed.  I was unable to do anything.  I could not cook or even help Mom with meals.  I could not knit or read.  I couldn’t wash my hair in the shower, as I couldn’t get my hands up to my hair.  Although my throat was not sore, swallowing was painful.  It’s amazing what things you do that affect your neck muscles.  I won’t go into detail but let your mind wander.  I watched copious amounts of Corner Gas.  It doesn’t involve much concentration, as I could not concentrate.  I listened to friends playing live sessions online.  I walked around the house, gazing outside, and seeing the beauty in everything, and I’m thankful I could do that.  I worried endlessly about my job.  I started a new job just 5 months ago and here I was missing work.  My co-workers are my bubble, and I missed my bubble.  I’m not one to miss work.  I have never just taken a day off or called in sick for no reason.  But I could not work in my present state.  I finally had to give in and have someone take me back to the Strait Richmond Hospital.  

I’m so glad the Strait Richmond is only 15 minutes away.  Although there are lots of potholes, Donna did her best to avoid most of them.  I could not imagine having to drive any further in my condition.  I arrived at the Strait Richmond around 11:30.  The process was the same; check in at Covid desk, proceed to the registration window, have a seat and wait.  This time I didn’t even have time to sit down when a lovely young nurse (Lerue) called my name.  I met with her, had my vitals done again, and again on paper I was perfect.  Told her the story of the neck and having been there on Friday and that I could not lie down and had not had any sleep.  She led me through the tunnel-like corridor to one of the emergency rooms.  I sat down and waited.  I listened to all the sounds of the emergency area and wondered how the nurses and doctors can remain so calm and so friendly.  Again it was busy, although  this time I saw no step ladders and it didn’t appear anyone was crawling around the ventilation system.  But the hammering and sawing were going strong behind the temporary walls.  

The doctor arrived, asked me questions, got me to do some very light exercises, etc.  He had looked at my x-ray and explained what he saw and said I did indeed have a sprained neck and arthritis in my spine.  I knew I had arthritis, so that wasn’t a real surprise.  He said I needed a muscle relaxant and wrote me a prescription.  He took me to his work station, brought up my x-ray and explained what he was seeing, in great detail.  It was like I was the only person needing attention.  He let me ask questions and he answered them very patiently and thoroughly.  He said this acute injury will settle down in time, but that I mainly needed to get some rest.  I was out the door by 1pm.  I don’t consider 1.5 hours anytime to spend at a hospital, to get a diagnosis and treatment.  Both my visits were totally reasonable as far as I was concerned.   

I am happy to report that it is now a couple of days since I started the muscle relaxants and I’m coming along well.  I’m able to sleep in my own bed now.  I still have a way to go before I’m totally back to where I was before but seeing improvement daily now.  

My purpose for this post is that we need to appreciate what we have.  We have a small hospital, located in Lower River, that doesn’t always get the recognition it deserves.  How many times I’ve heard it referred to as a “Band Aid Station” or a place people go to die.  It is much more than a band aid station.  The facility has saved many lives, has stabilized many before transporting to other healthcare centres,  and provided trauma care for so many people.  They have a staff of amazing individuals, who go above and beyond their duties, to make sure you feel comfortable, and your needs are looked after.  Yes, many of our friends and family have passed away at the Strait Richmond Hospital, my Dad included, but I’d far sooner have had him at the Strait Richmond, then in Antigonish, Sydney or Halifax, which are all so much further away.  When there is nothing more that can be done for someone, it is comforting to know they can be in a first class facility and closer to home.  Anytime I have had to go to the Strait for anything, I have been treated more than adequately.  I expect there to be wait times, but never have I had to wait excessively.  Perhaps I’ve been lucky.  Also, it isn’t easy for the nurses and doctors to work in a more confined space, while the emergency department undergoes renovations, but they go about their day like there is nothing in their way.  These renovations are much needed and will bring this hospital even more opportunity to treat sick and injured people.  They will be able to bring in  more specialists, and actually have an area where they can work, separate from the emergency area.  We need to realize that we are very lucky to have this facility in our local area.  Hopefully it will be able to provide additional treatments, that we now must travel much further to access.  Having a facility like this, closer to home, when family are sick, is a godsend. 

Special thanks to Donna MacMaster, Nurses Pauline ? and L. Lerue, Dr. Tehrani and Dr. Hanspal.