Over the past week several media channels, including CBC, have covered Debrah's story as the word has gotten out that she died of C. difficle, one of the awful superbugs that can threaten patients in hospitals and other health care facilities. This following a routine surgery about six weeks earlier.
In husband Don's words, Debrah was "a bundle of energy and the picture of health" as she was a yoga instructor, health and wellness consultant and coach. She practiced what she preached, including healthy diet, exercise and self-care, and was truly an inspiration to others. The most common terms used to describe Debrah at her memorial were "luminous" and "radiant".
The fact that she gave birth to twin daughters in July - at the age of 46 - was a testament to her vitality. And so it has been a shock to all that Debrah could succumb to a health crisis. How could this happen? Although medical terminology may describe how it did happen, it seems unacceptable and unfair. Is it simply a random example of the state of our health care?
This has resulted in many saying we should all stay away from hospitals and surgery unless it's absolutely critical. This, on top of Debrah's untimely death, makes me very sad as I fervently believe in Canada's universal health care system.
I truly hope that the awareness generated by Debrah's story, and of the many others struck down by mysterious infections, will result in the better understanding and prevention of these viruses. It is no secret that the shortage of personnel, training and funding are affecting the standards expected and required in hospital wards and operating rooms across our country.
It is difficult to reconcile how someone who practiced a holistically healthful approach all her life has become the victim of a system that's there to care for us all.
3 comments:
Part of me thinks that if it's your time to go, it's going to happen, regardless of what you do. At some point you just have to let go and trust life, the only other option is to be paralized by the fear of what might happen - which is the exact opposite of how your dear friends lived her life.
My Dad's in the hospital right now and he has a compromised immune system due to chemo. I constantly think that the hospital is both the best and worst place for him right now.....the best winning out though. Thankfully, all we have to worry about is that he recovers, not how we're going to pay for everything that's been done. He's had MRI's, CT scans, x rays, chemo, lumbar punctures....whatever they need to do to figure out what's going on with him they can do, and we the family NEVER have to think about how much it'll cost in the end.PLUS we have the best neurologists,hematologists,working together....not the Drs that the insurance company has on their payroll. We're soooo lucky.
Dawn, this entry is so beautifully written. It's possibly the silkiest (that's right - silk-y-est) piece I've read on a blog.
We've been debating these 'routine' or exploritory procedures requiring time in a hospital since hearing of Debrah's passing too. Certainly, it should be a serious consideration when weighing up pros and cons of elective surgeries and procedures. I too am proud our health care system can treat everyone, but believe the free market (privatization) should be allowed. The wealthier you are, the more chances you have to stay out of the hospital in the first place. And yet, it's the concept of a 2-tiered health system that's said to be discriminatory. Health starts at home. If we are going to discriminate by affluence, we may as well follow it through to the end.
B is going to VGH for a scope on Wednesday, and we're wearing plastic suits!
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