Workers' Compensation Discussion Forums

I agree Cap. this is a great honor for our country and our president.

What a wonderfull honor and congrats for his accomplishment.

Thank you Cap for doing this because whether some of the american population agrees with who our president is or what he is doing, the world did see something in this man. This alone says he deserves our respect. Most people would say that he deserves our respect just because of his office, which is called positional power, however, social power, intellectual power, I believe far outweigh earning respect due to what your position in life is.... he has won the world over...because of WHO he is, be proud of that. This is a BIG achievement, not only for our President but the people he respresents to the world. Red

Well said Red, Well said..........

Del and I have had some very lengthy discussions about this situation with the nobel prize. The discussion do not even assume to cross into the area of expertise of the board who gave it to him. However, during our talk, I guess I recognized something that I wanted to share with you. I do not know if I can explain this to the point of painting a picture for you through my example but I do want to have an opportunity to try.

Most of you know me from beginning to end ... which was recently in my mind when I betrayed my own set of belief's ethics, and values. This was not something I set out to do but did it I did. Many of you have a different feeling about me so you may just throw what I am going to say right out the window.. humbly I asked you not too but say I do understand and accept your position.

Since my diagnosis of MS, which occurred 10/30/96.. yes on my 40th birthday, at Walter Reed Army Hospital my life has changed beyond recognition I believe as has many of yours. However, that was said to say, my losses have been numerous to being picked up at the board in DC for an 04 or Lt. Commander which is equal to a Major in the army, airforce, and marines (navy has always been just a tad bit different...lol), to never wearing it due to a medical board. For you see, if I can't climb a stair well in a ship then what good am I to the Navy ... so I lost my job as many of you have done as well. then after about a year, I learned to walk, eat, toilet myself, brush my teeth, etc etc etc all over again. I did this to the point that I could actually be responsible for and the director of nursing of a long term care facility that heal 530 beds of residents and had over 600 staff members on my position control. Can you even begin to imagine the budget I controled ... for salaries, insurance expenses, pharmacy needs, supplies, capital items, etc etc etc... ? This was almost unheard of for a person who has MS. The most interesting part is this building was going to close within days due to poor care. This is my reference to where I am going with this.

President Obama, no matter if you agree or don't agree with how he is doing so far, walked into a mess. Our nations finances are upside down, the employment rates are sky rocketing, people are loosing their homes and living on streets as in some cases, states are going broke to the point that they are not recieving money from their overpayment to the state etc etc. Our country was not well recieved by other countries at all. Been there, lived it saw it first hand.

So back to me, I walked into a building that had 4 large buildings all of which were connected by breeze ways. My first week there, we had a strike by the union of all aides which was a disaster for my residents and my upper level staff... however, again I understood there reasons, but even as this is true my focus had to be on replacing them to assure continuity of care to my elderly residents. There are not enough upper level nurses to cover this number of people on a strike. That happened on Wednesday morning beginning at 6 am after I walked in the door as the director of Nursing on Monday at 7 am. I didn't find out about this lack of contract until 6 pm on Tuesday night by the health care administrator who was suddently beside his self. Never the less, I went in to action and made things happen to protect our residents.

Now to Obama..... he also walked in to a mess with a head filled with expectations and hope for the future. He gave hope to many. My first few days at the home, I spent it getting to know my residents and staff not knowing what was about to happen. I walked around attempting to let them see what I saw as a vision of what could be, not what is, but if we worked together what could be. That is exactly what a vision is...it is an acknowledgement of what could be. That is what was happening during Obama's compaign.

Then suddently I find out about the strike, action began. In Obama's case, his action has begun also, the difference for him is that the hospital who own my nursing home had a financial potential loss and would do anything I asked to make the mess go away. For Obama...he did and still does have a dream about what America could be but he doesn't have anyone backing him per say becasue most of our congressman are more about themselves and what each decision means to them versus what it means to all of us... the population. Even in my case, the hospital was more concerned about what it meant to them than what it meant to the residents and staff living and working there. However, in this case it worked to my benefit.

We barely get the strike undercontrol by the end of the day on Wednesday and here comes the Department of Health. DOH regulates Long Term Care. They walked in on Friday of my first week. The issues were multiple. Lucky for me and the home, they could not site us for what I had already identified and wrote a plan of correction for. Now this POC was not in effect as of yet...I have been there less than 5 days.

For Pres Obama he is has been in office for less than 1 year. during his campaign it was said by me also, that he talks as if he is as they say, "Pie in the Sky." However, what he was trying to sale was a dream that could happen if WE ALL WORKED TOGETHER. Unfortunately that has not happened. So in his case, when he attempted to put his vision into action by getting his goals together, writing his plans of correction, implementaion could not occur until our country decided to back him up versus ridicule him. If during the strike, if I could not have managed with the help of many, show how a contract was in the best interst of the hospital who potential financial losses at risk, then strike would have continued, if when the DOH came in and gave them 6 level G's, 4 I's which put them into what we call an immediate jeopardy was an expense to the hospital and a expense also in terms of publicity then the vision and goals could never have been implemented and successful. Obama will not be successful until we all get together and care more for one another than ourselves....back him up. Help him to see the vision he sold to us come to fuition. Help him put his goals into action. Help him implement some of the most important legislature of our time. Our children, their children and their children are depending on it.

My life will be shortned due to my disease, and I have not left a great legacy after my last stunt, but does that really outweight the 52 years before that. I think not. I learn from it and go forward. We need to learn from our mistakes as a country and move forward backing our leader and president.

I know this is long...but please know I only used me as an attempt to paint a picture for you. Thanks for reading.. Red

I didn't re read so in advance I am sorry for any mistakes I made. I typed as I thought only.

Thank you Red for your insight,I couldn't agree with you more. We have to as a country stand together, or we will fail and then where will our future generations be. God Bless Our President and God Bless the USA...

We all stumble now and then, It would be a strange world if we were all perfect. What matters is that we pick ourselves up and move forward. Love Ya Tuffy

Red..I agree with all that you've written. Tuffy I agree with you also. I have so many thoguhts but really don't want to write them for obvious reasons.