Mercy

Mercy Hospital, Oklahoma City

Mercy Hospital in Oklahoma City, OK is an extraordinary place, full of extraordinary people.  Unlike other hospitals I’ve been to, where eye contact was avoided lest you be looking for assistance, eye contact at Mercy could not be avoided!  I was there on May 29, 2013 to undergo a craniotomy for the removal of a tumor in my right temporal lobe that had been diagnosed two weeks prior by Dr. Eric S. Friedman.  In the hands of Dr. Friedman I was not the least bit concerned for my welfare as he was highly regarded in his field of neurosurgery.  Dr. Friedman also epitomizes the upbeat, professional, and Christian culture that permeates Mercy Hospital and everyone within its environs.

The first day, prior to undergoing another MRI and other pre-op activities, Reverend G. David Johnson paid me a surprise visit with an offer of prayer that relieved me of any misgiving I might have had left over after the comforting countenance of the admitting clerk, the admitting nurse who showed me to my room, and the nurses who undertook the task of getting me settled in and comfortable.  Every move, every word, was imbued with feelings of true caring and concern, with constant reminders of “God Bless you” and “The Lord is with you,” something that is missing in most health care centers today.  Reverend Johnson delivers his message from the heart and is sublimely gifted for the role he plays in the healing process at Mercy Hospital.

By 9:00 am I was in the capable hands of the anesthesiologist, Dr. Darrell Heck.  For five hours, Dr. Heck walked the tightrope that held me in that narrow space between here and there.  Without Dr. Heck’s constant attention, any unexpected event or one oversight could have caused me to careen off into a deep irretrievable sleep or a sudden awakening on the operating table, either one having catastrophic results.  With only a few pieces of monitoring equipment to guide him, I cannot imagine the pressure of that responsibility.

Likewise, Neurosurgeon Dr. Eric S. Friedman’s responsibility was no less formidable.  Dr. Friedman (he sometimes refers to himself as the fixit man) must know where to start and where to stop based only on his education and experience to help him delineate between the good tissue and the bad he must carefully attack the invading tumor.  If he takes too little the patient is likely to have to undergo this dangerous procedure all over again and if he takes too much, well, I think we can all guess the results of that disaster.  Lights can go off, memories can shut down and bodily functions can be irreparably compromised, or worse.  For three hours Dr. Friedman worked with steady hands carefully removing the growth that had been putting pressure on my brain and causing me to have seizures.  Who of us can keep steady hands for even half an hour while doing any kind of detailed work?  And all this under the extreme pressure of holding a life in your hands!

These two men are far more than the years they spent learning their craft.  They are an unusual mixture of science and art that allows them to use their finely honed education with a talent that can only be gained with experience, like a Pavarotti or a Baryshnikov.  Knowing that “Time” is probably the most important asset any of us possess in this life, I thank God that these two men were willing to take on the enormous responsibility and use their time, science, and talent on my behalf.

With the help of Urologist Dr. Richard Herlihy and several highly trained nurses, this team brought me through my ordeal in good shape.  I am looking forward to a follow-up appointment with Dr. Herlihy since he is the first Urologist I have met who not only knows about another rare malady I have been dealing with for several years, but also listened intensely to my questions and has some suggestions for improvement.  Thank you Dr. Herlihy.

Recovering in the Intensive Care Unit I was blessed to meet Michelle whose Bassett Hound barely escaped from the recent rash of tornados, David Hackett whose constant assurance and attention lightened this patients load considerably, and many more folks who were assigned to other patients but whose activities I watched and heard while they were all busily attending to their charges.  More than just attending to the usual duties of monitoring vitals, administering medications and seeing to other comforts, these people were just as adept attending to their patient’s emotional needs.  I surmised it was an offshoot of the Christian values and culture that underpinned the entire operation at Mercy Hospital.

While it was comforting to be surrounded by people steeped in Christian values and culture, it was sad to realize that it only exists in lone bastions of enterprise that resist the general trend of our society today.  At an ever increasing rate these principles are disappearing from our, no longer, hallowed halls of government and even worse, from the venerable halls of our school system.  It is comforting to know that it is alive right here in Oklahoma and I pray that, one day, with institutions like Mercy Hospital we can provide the seed material to reinvigorate this country with its founder’s ideals.  The Founding Fathers knew what they were doing and we should not stray too far from the culture they established.  In their own words, “Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes.”

If the sign of a good manager is one who surrounds himself with the best and brightest then surely Mercy Hospital is guided by a world class manager.  I am still not sure whether all these talented and gifted people were brought in from other places or whether many of them were manufactured right on the premises.  The Christian based culture is very infectious and it is easy to see, with the help of folks like Reverend G. David Johnson and Dr. Friedman’s “Chief Surgical Nurse,” Teresa Avery, how this can happen.  It is my belief that Mercy Hospital is a place where the spiritual body as well as the physical body are given equal treatment and if my rapid recovery is evidence, then I am living testimony to the importance of the Mercy Hospital culture.