2016 Nov 2nd

What follows might sound like a bad script for an afternoon soap opera, but it is not fiction; it has all really happened.

Here is the update on Jim and Ann, but first some more background:  Ann, Jim’s wife, is a Chinese immigrant and a naturalized citizen. Her English is flawless although some illogical idioms can stump her. As I said, she and Jim are both graduates of a regional public Colorado college.  Ann is handicapped by intractable knee pain occasioned by multiple arthroscopic knee surgeries, each by surgeons claiming that his technique would cure her; none did. Ann receives a stipend of about $700/mo. for her disability. Jim lost his sales job some years back due to advancing technology. One thing led to another and that led to bankruptcy and the loss of their house. Jim was able to find very temporary odd jobs and got some income from selling his plasma twice a week. That’s how they came to be in a cheap apartment the evening a year ago when Jim had his stroke.

The important update is that they are still alive. In this past year, Ann had a mastectomy after a breast cancer diagnosis. Then she had gall bladder surgery. She was able to share a condo a couple of bus rides from the Boulder, Colorado, facility where Jim had been placed. Within the last week she has moved into a splendid new building available for the aged and the handicapped. She has is a one-bedroom apartment and is bringing their furniture out of storage to furnish it, She hopes that Jim will recover enough to join her soon. The residents here are charged on third of their income for rent. Ann pays less than 200 dollars a month. This is the government’s HUD Section 8 housing program for poor people doing its job. Republicans claim that if elected they would abolish HUD “on day one.”

Jim is recovering slowly. The skull piece that had to be removed to relieve brain swelling was replaced but had to be removed again because of infection. A plastic device was obtained that was supposed to fit perfectly but it caused bleeding and it had to be removed, now another plastic device has been obtained and it seems to be working.  Jim had been doing fairly well recovering some speech and walking with help. His right leg and arm are virtually useless. He has also lost a lot of weight. Then he had some seizures and his progress regressed a bit.

Ann spends time with him every day she is able. He gets speech, occupational and physical therapy several times a week. No one has given up on him, certainly not Ann who follows up on the speech therapists’ routines pushing Jim all she can.

Strokes can cause some personality changes. The brain has an inhibitory function; this is demonstrated in the uninhibited behavior of a drunk. When the drunk becomes sober the disinhibition goes away. The stroke victim has a similar problem but the disinhibition is much slower to resolve. This can be a problem for a caretaker who doesn’t understand what is going on. Jim is lucky to have a devoted caretaker like Ann.

Jim and Ann have no money, so all of this very expensive medical care is paid for by the government. There has not been the least hint that Jim’s care or Ann’s surgeries were skimped on because they weren’t paying customers. If this kind of care is to continue for the less fortunate it will depend on the outcome of this election. There is little doubt about which party would like to abolish it.