Three years ago on a February morning, mid-Covid outbreak, my mother and I picked up my dad at the curb of [a Massachusetts] hospital. He had suffered a significant traumatic brain injury a few days earlier and this was the first time we had seen him since he left by ambulance a few days prior. We were unable to visit during his stay due to covid related restrictions in place at the time.
It was about 30 degrees outside, and he was dressed in only a gurney and his underwear holding a plastic grocery bag of his belongings. He was extremely confused, had no idea where he was, and there wasn’t a staff member in sight to support his transition out of the hospital. I will never forget this afternoon. I lost a lot of hope in the American health care system that day. We tried to voice our concerns after the fact but almost everything we tried felt like screaming into the void.
The [actions of] Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital-Plymouth in its care for Rodney Riviello is the same case played again. How is it that an arranged pickup is facilitated for a routine procedure at BID but a TBI patient is left on the curb with a cab voucher and no call to family? It’s time to prioritize taking care of patients over hospital bed turnover and revenue per patient. Most of these facilities are supposed to be nonprofits, after all.
Our family’s thoughts and prayers go out to the Riviellos in this challenging time, and we hope Rodney is able to return home soon.
– Daniel Green