A Special Shout-Out to Mission Community Hospital

I'm not going to get back into regular blogging for a couple of days, but before I forgot I wanted to thank some special people at Mission Community Hospital in Mission Viejo. Unfortunately, Dad was hospitalized there twice in the last 60 days and on both occasions the nursing and tech staff were just great.

This latest visit was understandably the most stressful. The emergency room staff handled Dad with great care and sensitivity. From there he was transferred up to the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit. Again, a wonderful nursing and tech staff dealing with some of the most complex and difficult cases.

Unfortunately, I don't remember all their names, and don't know any of their last names, but certain nurses stood out. Elvia, who handled Dad for a couple of 12-hour shifts, Wendy who had the difficult task of preparing the family and helping us make some very tough decisions when it became clear that Dad's last day had come. Her shift ended at 7:30 pm and John took over and helped us through the most difficult night I can remember. He was patient with us, gave us all the help we needed, stayed out of our way when we wanted it, and helped us understand what was happening with Dad and what to expect next. God bless them all.

The only other experience I had with Mission was 15 years ago when my son had to have surgery to correct an intestinal problem. Children's Hospital is on the 5th floor at Mission and they were simply wonderful with us.

I don't recommend being hospitalized, but if you have a choice, you can't go wrong with Mission.

And while I'm at it, I've got to thank the Orange County Fire Authority for the good work they do. Very professional, highly skilled, and just the kind of people you want showing up at your house when things are going wrong.