It was over TWO HUNDRED years after it was first “eaten” (the dinner) before Thanksgiving (the holiday) became “officialized” in the United States.
Every pre-school child knows about the Pilgrims eating their first harvest meal with the Wampanoag Indians. They might not know the dinner was in 1621 and that Abraham Lincoln made it a national holiday in 1863; but, they do know about gratitude and being grateful—or at least I hope they do.
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We’re at number 35 in our countdown of the top 50 most influential doctors in history and have come to a physician born in a cave, at gunpoint, in Eastern Turkey where his parents were being held by revolutionary/outlaws determined to challenge the new Turkish government in Ankara.
Born “baby” Yaşargil on July 6, 1925 he went on to become Neurosurgery’s Man of the Century (1950–1999) for his revolutionary achievements and advancements in micro-surgery; but… we get ahead of ourselves.
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I’ve written about back to school diseases and problems before but it seems that questions and issues just keep the topic alive and asking for an update.
This will be just a quick update of 15 back to school diseases your child may encounter now that school bells are ringing again.
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We’ve explained that it’s the politicians and their meddling which has so far prevented medical research from delineating the truth about medical uses of marijuana, when it was clearly used hundreds of years ago for “medical purposes”—so-called: medical marijuana.
Misguided and incompetent laws have even prevented and delayed the finding of ways to remove the “drug’s” psychotropic side effects and make it safe for use!
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True compassion like that of Dr. Sam Rodriguez at the Stanford Children’s Hospital isn’t unique, just rare. A child’s experience with surgery is not the same everywhere; and, I’m sorry to admit, not all surgeons, anesthesiologists or hospital administrators are as caring—even if they are as talented. Compassion for others is a hard thing for parents to teach, as I’ve written about before.
The thing is, except for the gadgets and gizmos, a child’s hospital experience hasn’t changed much in the past 50 or so years. They are still afraid, they still don’t understand what is happening to them, they still feel disenfranchised and out of control… they still respond to people who care.
In the early 70s I felt inadequate next to my mentor Dr. Elwin at Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City Utah as he showed me how he engaged his patients in the world of Sesame Street. He had previously met them in the security of their parents close by and obtained their favorite character and flavor. He was now holding them in his arms with their flavor permeating the mask and singing a song in the voice of their character. Before a single verse they were asleep and quickly transferred to the table with an IV started.
My patients I felt were cheated! I bought a tape, listened to it incessantly until I had mastered the songs and voices and attempted the engaging patter I had been shown. Still, I felt inadequate next to my mentor; but, that single rotation altered the way I felt about and dealt with patients from then on.
Dr. Sam Rodriquez
Pediatric Anesthesiologist, Surgery at Children’s Hospital, Stanford
Preoperative visits, favorite character, options to choose from, feeling like you’ve got some control, favorite flavor—a doctor who “cares”; the perfect storm of techniques when a physician combines his medical skills with a love for children.
In the ’70s during it was Dr. Elwin at Primary Children’s Hospital—flavored scents in masks, Sesame Street characters and his “lap induction” technique; today it is Dr. Rodriquez at Stanford—flavored scents in masks, full field video projection and a surgical table that “blasts off.” Same thing—different era… still uncommonly rare and beautiful to watch.
Perhaps most, if not all, of you think of gangsters, terrorists, drug dealers and low-life “users” when you think of the word marijuana. And, with all the idiocy going on by politicians over “legalization” you might also think of societal breakdown, corruption, destruction of families… loss of moral values.
Or, after being beaten into a frazzle by the constant bombardment of so-called “do-gooders” on the media, you may be starting to feel guilty for living the life you’ve always lived trying to do right, knowing what you know about human nature and thinking what you think about the good and evil you’ve seen all around you during your life.
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