Monday, December 28, 2009

Get Well Cards For Great-Grandma No Thanks To a Nanny Government

The little ones are busy this morning making some get well cards for my husband, and I, to deliver to his grandmother at the hospital. Sadly, they are not allowed in to the hospital to visit.

When we headed out from Montana, Grandma, who is 92 years old, was recovering from infectious pneumonia. She was doing well, and had been moved from the hospital to a nursing home, for recuperation, before she was to be released to her apartment.

While we were in route, however, it was discovered that her medications, including a heart medicine, and a blood thinner, had been overdosed, and she had to be returned to the hospital.

We found out yesterday, that children under 12 are not allowed to visit at the hospital, due to concerns over the swine flu. We commented to the nurse, that our children were healthy, and not likely to be carriers of the flu, but discovered the concern was not for the patients, but for our children. Apparently, the state of Oregon is looking out for our children for us, and keeping them out of potentially dangerous places, where there is a small chance, that they might contract a disease, which has a small chance of making them very sick. Hmmm...welcome to the world of the nanny government.

While, I have no desire, that the children get sick, I do believe we could probably make sure they not stick things in their mouths, and wash there hands, and that sort of thing, on our own. We've lived in Montana long enough, that our first reaction was to say, "Well, if we want to get the flu, who are you to stop us?"

For today though, we'll settle for just hand delivering cards from the children.

2 comments:

Ticia said...

Bureacrats can be annoying sometimes can't they?
I'm praying she gets better soon.

Natalie PlanetSmarty said...

Tricky :) I think it does go both ways - theoretically healthy children could bring something to the hospital to people whose immune system is already compromised. I hope that your grandmother feels better - too bad that the kids couldn't see her in person.