In the past year we have had many experiences with the medical field and I was recently thinking about how so much has changed in this field.
As a child I actually had my tonsils out - in a doctor's office in Bethlehem. I don't recall too much about it except that I can still smell the either that was used on me for the surgery. It's a smell that I wish I could forget.
Growing up in Lititz we generally went to Dr. Griswald who worked out of a home on Broad Street. I recall that he didn't make appointments and one could sometimes sit for hours waiting to be seen. He also did some home visits when necessary. A few times we had to see another local doctor who also worked out of a home. But he at least did have some sort of a machine to take x-rays.
Things continued the same until we got married. Then we went to Dr. Heinbach who worked out of an apartment on the main street of Selinsgrove. He was the one who told my father-in-law that my wife was pregnant even before he confirmed it with us. Not sure that would even be allowed today with current privacy regulations.
A few days after we moved to Silver Springs in Lancaster County, our first son began to cry with stomach pain. When he developed blood in his bowels we had to seek out a new doctor and the Lord led us to Dr. Bryson in Landisville. At that time I was working in an orchard and when I came home we rushed our son to Dr. Bryson. When he saw what was going on he immediately contacted a surgeon and sent us to the hospital. Craig had a rare bowel condition that needed immediate surgery. A few hours later the surgery was successfully done. The rare condition seldom happens in children until they are at least two years old. Craig was just four months. Most doctors never see a case of this serious intestine condition, but Dr. Bryson had - in his own daughter. We believe that God did a miracle to send us to Dr. Bryson.
And, as you can imagine, Dr. Bryson became our family doctor for many years. He also worked out of his home. He had one nurse and his wife often assisted him. He was very good to us over the years, handling our needs at all hours of the day and even on holidays. He also dispensed medicine from his home office.
But things change and as he got older Dr. Bryson developed heart problems. So he closed his practice to have his problem taken care of. He actually then turned his practice over to Dr. Howse who continued to work out of Dr. Bryson's home until he later took a job teaching at Hershey. Before he started there, he recommended specific new doctors to his patients. Our recommendation was Dr. Stengle, a young doctor also working in a home in Lancaster.
We enjoyed dealing with Dr. Stengel who had a small practice with one nurse and an office clerk. After several years, one Monday my wife called to make an appointment and she found the clerk crying. The Friday before, the doctor had blood tests taken and on Monday morning the results came back and he found that he had cancer. So he immediately closed his practice knowing that he had many days of difficult treatments ahead. It was a sad day for all of us.
After checking with numerous medical offices, we finally found a doctor who would take us and we began seeing Dr. Snyder at a small practice in Oyster Point. It was a change for us as this practice had about six doctors who worked out of a remodeled and expanded country home. We soon felt at home there and were cared for by many good doctors over the years. Incidentally, after he went into remission, Dr. Stengle actually joined the staff there and worked part timethere until his death. We eventually chose to see Dr. Fuchs, the founder of the group. He became a very good friend and took a personal interest in our needs. He was a very caring doctor.
But change happens and a year ago Dr. Fuchs retired, as did our back-up doctor, Dr. Weed. This has been a very difficult adjustment for us and we have not found replacements who measure up to them. And then they sold the Oyster Point practice to the Penn State group and a multitude of changes have resulted, including the sale of the original building and the moving of the practice to a brand new modern building at Lime Springs. The modern building has 76,000 square feet and houses five medical practices and many support services including those for lab work, radiology, physical therapy, ENT and eye and heart testing. It also will offer an After Hours program.
A few days ago the new building opened and we had our first appointment there. It was a shocking change. First we had to manage our way through the new phone system. Then a huge waiting room greeted us with probably about 20 check-in cubicles. There are four different wings housing doctor offices. Unfortunately the facility presently seems sterile and cold, much different than the smaller, tastefully decorated offices that we were used to for many years at Oyster Point. And it seems that today doctors are focused on their computers and quickly refer their patients to specialists instead of treating the problems themselves. They's also limited the schedules of the doctors and it is almost impossible to see the same doctor twice unless you make an appointment a month or more in advance. Both of us had to see three different doctors in our first visits there. My "family doctor" told me to come back in a month but he had no appointments available for two months. Hopefully, over the years we will adjust to these changes. But it is a stark contrast to the facilities and care that we have experienced over the years - from offices in homes to a massive multipurpose facility.
Will their service be better? Will we be able to see doctors who know us and care about us? Will we happily adjust to these changes? I guess time will tell. And I probably could make similar comments about changes in churches - but that is a topic for another time. Change happens - sometimes good ... sometimes not so good.
Abide with me; fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide;
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, oh, abide with me.
Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day;
Earth's joys grow dim, its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see—
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.
I need Thy presence every passing hour;
What but Thy grace can foil the tempter's pow'r?
Who, like Thyself, my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me.
I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness;
Where is death's sting? Where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.
Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes;
Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies;
Heav'n's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.
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