She knows!

last week i had the opportunity to speak to a group of thirty medical professionals at a local hospital.  during a three-day workshop on 'reviving the spirit of caring', ninety minutes are set aside for former patients to share their experiences of being in the hospital.  i remembered several positive and negative experiences and donna helped me fill in things that i didn't remember. 

revisiting these experiences was more intense than i expected, evidenced by an increase in hospital-related nightmares.  i also know that dreams are my brain's way of helping...  resolving and healing the memories of some of those events.

i will spare you the long list of experiences, thoughts, and emotions.  but i want to highlight one very special experience that i don't remember except through the eyes and ears of donna.  apparently, a female housekeeper had finished tidying up my room and i was thanking her.  her response gives me goosebumps whenever i think of it. 

donna told me this:  the housekeeper said that cleaning the rooms was her gift to the patients.

again...

cleaning the rooms was her gift to the patients.

this woman, who no doubt is invisible to many people, realized that what she did was more than useful...  it was important...  it was vital.  the shiny floors, the dusted furniture, and disinfected surfaces, the tidy bathroom impacted the well-being and the recovery of the patients she served. 

i won't suggest that we all hold hands and sing 'we are the world' with a couple key changes to make the song more alive.  and i won't submit her name to the vatican for sainthood.  either action would be most likely embarrassing to her.

but i would like to nominate her for a place at the table where other medical professionals discuss medical techniques, strategic planning, and clever marketing ideas to improve their performance ratings.

if you listen carefully to her voice, you might hear her say, 'i don't know much about medical things, but i do know what a good feeling it gives me to help our patients.  i know why i do what i do'.  a few people may politely thank her for her comment, someone may be making note about some brilliant idea.  but i would hope that for most people, this woman's words would ring true.  they would know that she hit the bulls-eye about what makes a hospital great.

of course i wish i knew the woman's name.  i would like to thank her.  and she would appreciate it.  but i have a sneakin' suspicsion that she appreciates much more the luxury of knowing her that she makes a difference in the lives of her patients.  it makes little difference whether they know it... or not. 

because she knows!