The room was a chilling purgatory filled with tired, hungry, slumped masses of human flesh waiting for their number to be called. You would expect this in a war-torn third world country with aching supply lines and battered social workers struggling to keep up with the demand for human services. But, this was the scene on August 28th, 2023 in the ER at Akron City Hospital.
Several people were complaining of the cold. There was also the boredom—the sheer boredom of just sitting there without anything to watch. The TV’s weren’t working. According to the man at the desk, the remotes had been stolen. Apparently no one thought about ordering a few $4 universal remotes on Amazon and some of those chains connected to pens at the bank. Sure, there were common sense solutions, but apparently no one in the ER had either the initiative or authority to make changes. So, the masses sat there—frozen, bored, and waiting hours to be seen.
A man was grumbling about the price of a drink from the vending machine. I thought I heard him say three dollars and twenty cents. But, that can’t be right, can it? It looked like he had a ginger ale. No, it couldn’t be right if, IF, decisions were made with compassion. What kind of monster would hijack exorbitant fees from some poor fellow seeking a drink in that freezing purgatory?
Why was it so cold? This was an ER. You expect people to come in battling illness and injury. Some may have a fever. Some may have the next pandemic. Some might not have planned to bring their winter coat, because they slipped while in their robe. So, why so chilly? The whole situation begs the question, “Why?” And there was an answer.
The grumbling from the masses finally led to the grumbling from a worker. Mention was made about the CEO closing 160 rooms and how things in the ER had been slow ever since the pandemic. I only heard pieces of the story, because my phone rang. It was my brother calling to check up on Mom. I had taken her to get her head checked after she may have taken a tumble. The top of her head was significantly scarred.
I’m guessing between when we arrived and when she finally had a room that we were there around five hours. It took five hours to figure out what to do with an 82-year old woman who may have fallen, didn’t remember the fall, and who had significant scarring on her head. I don’t know what happened. Mom doesn’t remember what happened. The events or series of events that led to Mom being there was a mystery. Don’t you think such a mystery would require speeding things up a bit?
She had been taken back into the triage areas several times. The first time they asked some questions and took an EKG. Then, she was sent back out into the chilly waiting area. Later, it was some blood work and then back out to the chilly waiting area. Later, they took her back for a CAT scan. The results were supposed to take about 30-45 minutes. It took hours before we heard anything.
That comment about the CEO has me thinking that he may be the problem. It’s usually the CEO that is the problem. While I can’t say for sure, many companies I’ve worked for have had a useless CEO. They basically cut corners so they can make a little more scratch. According to Propublica.org, the CEO of Summa Health, Cliff Deveny, made $1,659,225 in 2020. All that money for a guy that can’t even run an organization with proper heating and working TVs in an ER waiting area. All that money for a guy that can’t even run an organization that provides speedy care for an 82-year old woman with scarring on her head. All that money for a guy that can’t even figure out how to supply a decently priced ginger ale to an ailing man in need. Let’s call him Can’t Even Cliff because he can’t even do his job.
What us common folk are stuck with is the ER of a third-world, war-torn country because Can’t Even Cliff can’t even do his job. What us common folk are stuck with is the danger of having our mother or grandmother not getting the urgency of care needed because Can’t Even Cliff can’t even do his job. What us common folk are stuck with is an ER staff that have lost their fire for treating patients—it was evident in the muffled grumblings of the worker—because Can’t Even Cliff can’t even do his job.
I wonder what would happen if Can’t Even Cliff came in with the same injuries as my Mom. Well, being this is America, I’m betting Can’t Even Cliff’s staff would find a can-do attitude. I suspect Can’t Even Cliff would get the care my Mom deserved even though Can’t Even Cliff can’t even do his job. This is what I’ve seen in our country. The Can’t Even C-levels get the can-do and the rest of us are stuck in a freezing, boring, wait-your-turn purgatory. Maybe it’s time we stand up, because we can’t even take it any longer.
