Back in December, I wrote an article, entitled “A Prescription For Compassionate Healthcare” that highlighted what medical professionals can offer to patients who are facing health crises. I mentioned a nurse friend named Ondreah Johnson who was anticipating hip replacement surgery. She came through the procedure with flying colors and established a support system of friends and family to aid in her recovery. She is ambulating with a cane and is still not 100% but getting there. She reflected that her body was going through changes that were sometimes disturbing as she ages, but never expected to be in this situation in her 50’s. She knows that healing is an ongoing process.
No sooner had the dust settled post-surgery, then another tidal wave hit. She was doing a routine self-exam and detected a lump in her left breast. Taking a deep breath, she took seriously, this latest development and scheduled an appointment for a professional exam. A series of tests followed and as a career nurse, as well as an intuitive person, she hoped for the best, but knew that it might not turn out as she wished.
In conversation, I suggested that in anticipation of the day she was to hear the results, she would say to the doctor, “Before you deliver the news, imagine that you are sitting before a family member who would be in my situation. How would you tell them the diagnosis?”
[For more of this story, written by Edie Weinstein, go to https://psychcentral.com/lib/h...e-treatment-process/]
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