2 weeks Ago By Shawna Forester Smith
Nobody wants to live in an institution. Read this article for free: Already have an account? To continue reading, please subscribe: * Nobody wants to live in an institution. Read unlimited articles for free today: Already have an account? Opinion Nobody wants to live in an institution.
Whether it’s due to physical or intellectual disability, chronic illness, aging or mental illness, most people would choose to live in the community over spending their days in an institution. But unfortunately, that’s not possible for some, including myself. I don’t particularly like that I have to live in chronic care.
It’s really my only option if I want to exist. But I will also say, I am incredibly lucky I ended up in Lodge 7 at Deer Lodge Centre. I have been on many different units in many facilities, including other chronic-care units, throughout this near 15-year health journey.
I have never experienced the phenomenon I experience on Lodge 7. It’s unlike anywhere else. It’s truly special here.
Normally on a ward it’s a mixed bag, staffing-wise. You get some amazing people, some OK and some who should probably go back to school and do something else. Those are the people who clearly don’t like their jobs and make no effort to conceal this contempt.
“Crusty” is an apt description. But on Lodge 7, everyone is amazing. I like everyone who works here.
And nobody can be described as crusty. Caring, yes. Crusty, no.
Most wards have drama. It’s kind of like high school. There’s bullying and cliques.
People talk about one another behind their backs. It can be hard for people to work as a team and sometimes staff members even refuse to help each other. But here, they all are friends.
They are like family. They care about and assist each other. If one nurse has a patient who is sick, the other nurses rally around to help.
They celebrate each other’s birthdays and births. They visit people who are on sick leave. They share lunches.
They talk to one another, not about each other. There’s no bullying. Nobody is treated as lesser because they are a housekeeper or a health-care aide.
Everyone is valued and respected. It’s cute that they all call each other sister in Tagalog. Sometimes they call me that too.
But there’s zero drama here. The residents sometimes cause drama, but never the staff. We are part of this family.
We are also always treated with respect. The care I receive is exceptional. People try hard to accommodate my needs, wants and preferences.
Pain is a huge issue for me. I require injections of pain medication every two hours. They prioritize me for medication administration over everyone else on my team to make sure I get the medication on time.
I rarely have to wait and if I do, it’s likely just minutes as opposed to hours in a hospital setting. That is exactly the kind of thing Lodge 7 staff would do. Whatever needs to be done gets done.
Nurses don’t say “that’s a health-care aide’s job.” If my urinary catheter bag or ileostomy bag needs to be emptied, they just do it. They often ask if it needs to be done.
They will do little things like make me coffee. They will take a minute and sit and talk to me if I am upset. When I had a breast cancer scare this past spring, everyone was there for me in a big way.
Some were even praying for me. They were scared and worried. And they said whatever happens, we would deal with it.
That they would get me through it. I didn’t have cancer, thankfully, but I also know they would have been there with me. And that helped me cope with the uncertainty.
When I get sent to hospital, often people will call for updates. I ended up in hospital in July with fungal sepsis. I was in rough shape when I came back.
Everyone was worried because I wasn’t “Shawna.” When I started to recover, everyone said how happy they were to have me back chatting, cracking jokes and bugging people (I bug people a lot — it’s a form of endearment). They had missed me.
We do bug each other a lot. I get bugged constantly about not being a morning person (it’s true). About drinking coffee (I love my coffee).
About being complicated (also true). I bug them about being shift-grubbers always looking for overtime. About not calling in sick on weekends because of the super premium.
I nicknamed one of the nurses and the nickname stuck, and now everyone calls him that (sorry, but not sorry, Dr. Jason). We’re dealing with serious health issues but we use humour to lighten the mood.
I don’t mind being bugged and I love dishing it back. My doctor and I even tease each other. He jokes that he had better take good care of me or else I’ll end up writing a column about him.
(He’s also great, by the way.) I consider these wonderful people to be part of my chosen family — in fact, I see them more than my family. The intimacy we share is unlike anything I have with anyone else.
They see me at my most vulnerable. They see all the things I hide from everyone else — the tubes, the ileostomy, the scars. I rely on them to do what I can no longer do myself.
That’s not an easy thing to do — rely on others. But I trust these people and that they are doing what is in my best interest. Always.
When I count my blessings, I count the people of Lodge 7 twice. Shawna (Shoshana) Forester Smith is a 41-year-old chronically ill, disabled Ojibwe writer and health-care advocate who lives on a chronic-care unit at Deer Lodge Centre. shawna.
[email protected] Shawna (Shoshana) Forester Smith is a 41-year-old chronically ill, disabled Ojibwe writer and health-care advocate who lives on a chronic-care unit at Deer Lodge Centre.
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Thank you for your support. Shawna (Shoshana) Forester Smith is a 41-year-old chronically ill, disabled Ojibwe writer and health-care advocate who lives on a chronic-care unit at Deer Lodge Centre. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism.
If you are not a paid reader, please consider . Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
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