CHILLED, BABY.

It wasn’t until I was trying to explain why I wasn’t giving her proper understanding with my predicament with sciatica and why I refused all ambulance transport that I realized what I wasn’t quite letting be conscious. Today’s Montana health system has been literally bought by a big corporation that stretches across the top half of Montana. “System” means all the underfunded county hospitals mostly supported by Medicare. When Gianforte blocked the requirement for the employees to have vaccine series, he made it illegal for these little hospitals to hire anyone. Logan versus Gianforte. Leadership as grappling.

Montana has always had low standards for doctors. They say otherwise they won’t be able to get docs to come here. Most Logan employees live and practice on the Flathead side which is a little easier weather and a lot more people and stores. They are used to new state-of-the art machinery. New hires from back east trying to escape the Covid frenzy find out Montana is not Yellowstone.

The most basic principle of medicine is that it’s about people and understanding them. That means surprises and contradictions, remembering the sparse population and people’s reluctance to ask for help, like being driven someplace..Many docs these days signed on for prestige, money, control. They don’t call you back.

The slack is taken up by the children of the people who used to help each other. They are beginning to gather around me now. They get my mail, they loan me a phone when mine won’t work. I’m hoping someone one won’t mind washing my worst laundry, but it’s pretty bad. Still it’s innocent. Not a plot to wring money out of sick people through their insurance, forcing them in through the EMT system My helpers didn’t do that. I honor them.