Jumping Into The Deep End

I have plenty of friends on Facebook: some very close and others through churches I have been involved in and yet others who are acquaintances. I will probably upset a few of you but if you really are my friend, it will pass. The rest can feel free to "unfriend me" but hopefully none of you feel so inclined.

Covid-19 has caused most of us to be on one side of the debate and as demonstrated by the protests in Ottawa and elsewhere in Canada, some are rather passionate about their beliefs. I think I have responded to many social media posts by writing a draft copy and then never posting them. However, since so many of you seem to have no difficulty making your opinion known to the whole world, I thought I would pop my nose in there for just a minute. The difference in my opinion compared to most of you, is that I come to it through personal experience and not because my friends, media or social media have convinced me to take the stance I have.

Again, despite this, some of you will become angry at what I am about to say. I do not apologize for that because my words come from a pure motive. Almost eight months ago I had my heart fixed as most of you know. A few hours later it was discovered I had internal bleeding and emergency surgery was needed to save my life. Over a year earlier, the pandemic had started in Canada and I remember it well because I paid a visit to the ER of Toronto General hospital right after officiating a funeral at Mount Pleasant Cemetery. In fact, I phoned 911 from my car sitting on Moore Avenue as my heart was racing and my vision became altered. EMS arrived and my final journey toward heart surgery had begun.

That surgery as already mentioned, would still be over a year away. That meant I would be going through a battery of tests to find out how bad my heart valve was. I already knew 4 years earlier that one day (was told within 10 years) the surgery would be needed so even after the scare on the streets of Toronto, I was optimistic that surgery would still be a few years away. Life continued however and there was another obstacle to overcome for all of us, called Covid-19.

I had already been forced to leave my position as chaplain in a long term care in St.Catharines because I could only work in one due to the coronavirus. I stayed on at the LTC in Oakville but to protect my heart, I stayed away for a week when an outbreak was declared. I was the oldest employee on top of that so management was quite accommodating as several employees who tested positive or were exposed to the virus, spent 14 days in quarantine at a local hotel. We lost many elderly residents to Covid-19 during this time and the numbers prove the seriousness of the time we were living in. As the chaplain, I hold memorial services twice a year for families who have lost loved ones at our home. In our first service during the pandemic, we had more than double the deaths we normally have in the same time period. Keep that in mind.

I was eventually advised in April of 2021, that my aortic heart valve needed to be replaced right away as the situation had become serious. Two months later I had the surgery. I was off work for 7 weeks and after returning I have again been off a couple of times during new outbreaks. I had already received 2 of my vaccinations prior to my surgeries and a third one in November of 2021. 

Since all the residents received their vaccines, including their third and now fourth, none have died as a result of Covid-19. Many have tested positive, along with a greater number of staff, but no deaths in over a year. Residents are obviously still passing away from other causes. For several months all employees have been wearing masks and now face shields. Almost all staff have been fully vaccinated and those who refuse, have been asked to stay away. All essential visitors and all staff are required to take Rapid tests each time they come into the facility. Staff is also required to get PCR tests once a week. Nobody is complaining because we want no more deaths due to Covid-19/Omicron. 

Guess what, it has been a challenge and it has caused problems in staffing. One Christian spouse early on in the pandemic, made it very clear that he did not believe in the need to be isolated or the need for masks. Vaccines were just being readied and were not yet available but he would have rejected the idea of his wife needing them. One day it was discovered that her roommate had tested positive because a family or staff member had come into the facility with the virus undetected. Within 2 weeks both the roommate and then the Christian lady were dead. The husband, who had become a good friend during the two years his wife had been a resident, never acknowledged her death was due to Covid-19. I was away for my protection during those days.

Before my heart surgery, I was asked to do small group debriefs with all the staff. At that time they were able to vent and share their personal struggles over the first year of the pandemic. As a police chaplain, I had participated in debriefs for the Toronto Police after the Yonge Street van attack that killed 10 people. As people were increasingly complaining about all the restrictions on media and social media, healthcare workers such as ours, were being accused of not doing enough. It was hard for all concerned because some still believed the pandemic was not that serious, while staff was working overtime to protect the most vulnerable. 

Now fast-forward to today. Government has not always got it right as they learned how to cope with a pandemic they knew very little about. They have been under pressure from all sides, to get it right...now! Most who are protesting today, seem to forget that this is a global pandemic. Political parties of all stripes are struggling to make the right decisions and yet for some in Canada, it is seen just as a Canadian problem. I am proud of the colleagues I work with. It hurts many of them to hear the things on social media which we all know are not true and yet they press on. I think last week we had over 50 employees off work because they had tested positive but almost none showing symptoms.

I want to end with that. I have heard a few people claiming the vaccines don't work and they "kill more people than they help". Nonsense! Vaccine mandates have saved lives but we will probably never know how many. There is a lot more I could say but it would eventually get people riled up and that is not my intent. I just wanted to share my personal story, not mixed with any emotion or false information. I doubt it will change too many minds but it is the truth. Blessings!