By: Chuck Miller
Health

Panic at the hospital.

I’m here at the hospital. They’ve already taken enough blood from me to start a Dracula film study. I’m just waiting for information on the surgeries, which may take place today or tomorrow.

And if you think that’s nerve-wracking in itself …

You should have gone through what I did yesterday.

I was told that I would be contacted as to what time to arrive at the hospital for check-in and all that other stuff. So I’m sitting at home, waiting for the phone call. 9:00 a.m. Nothing. 9:30 a.m. Nothing.

By 12:00, I decided to watch some TV. Maybe I’ll get the call in the afternoon.

At 12:30, my phone beeped. It’s an electronic message from my health portal. I log in.

It tells me I need to be at the hospital by 11:00 a.m. 

That’s right. I received the message to get to the hospital NINETY MINUTES after I was supposed to check in.

FUCK.

I tossed some clothes into a travel bag and hot-rodded it to the hospital. I arrived at 1:15 p.m., and I’m already freaking out. What if my being late made all the necessary prep work and procedures get delayed? What if this causes more complications? 

I get into the hospital and reach the check-in desk. I provide my information.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Miller, we don’t have you in our system.”

FUCK FUCK FUCK. Now I’m thinking I’m so late that they basically passed over me. 

I call the number on my health portal. They explain that I was supposed to wait until I received a phone call from them to arrive at the hospital.

“But then why did you send me a message through my health portal to get to the hospital now?”

“Oh, you shouldn’t have read the health portal message, you should have waited for us to call.”

Eventually someone figured out what had happened, and got me to the correct floor. There, a kind-hearted nurse (who will earn one of those “DAISY” awards by me) took my information and got me into a room. And then came all the procedures necessary to start whatever surgeries I’ll need for today or tomorrow.

I have to tell you, though … my emotions were all over the place. I felt overwhelmed and exhausted and confused and frightened, all at the same time.

And the only reason I’m still trying to keep a brave face throughout this bullshit…

Is that after the surgeries, I hope to get back to some semblance of health. 

Some semblance. Ugh.