Right now, my mother and I are sitting in our screened in back porch at home eating pancakes, strawberries and grits. We've been talking about the different birds chirping and hopping from tree to tree and watching the squirrels run back and forth across the grass.
!3 years ago this week, I almost lost her to one of those "incompatible with life" diagnoses by the 'Almighty Whitecoats' ( of which I am one) in our traditional health care system. She had a massive brain hemorrhage and was given 96 hours to live
I did loose my mother, the personality that was Louise up until that time, but have been blessed to get to know my mother, Louise, the personality that emerged and has evolved over these thirteen years.
As her primary caregiver, I take care of this "new" Louise and encourage her to do whatever she can for as much as she can endure each and every day. The daughter in me misses the "old" Louise, my mother, running buddy and friend, but the new and albeit, improved model [smile] does just fine too! It's been rough [an understatement] but , fortunately, the bad times have been punctuated with long periods of very good times which continues to spur us both on and forward, each and everyday.
This afternoon, we're going over to Stone Mountain to check out the annual Pumpkin Festival over there. We'll probably come back pretty messy, but that all a part of it. Yesterday we went to the Great Georgia Air Show. She complained a little bit about the F-18 after burners noise, but after giving her a Coke and a smile, all the complaints subsided.
13 years and counting...
...my lucky number 13....
I cherish each and every moment, day... and 'number' I have with her!
Dr. Sybil Ingram-Campbell is a respected and experienced professional in the areas of healthcare information systems and regulatory compliance issues with significant knowledge on INFOSEC, bioterrorism/pandemic preparedness & readiness as well as the impact of HIPAA and Lifespan Respite Act regulations. With twenty-seven years of healthcare experience, she has been one of the nation's foremost speakers and active consultants for the HIPAA implementation challenges, addressing all major aspects of the Administrative Simplification Subtitle and affected entities/stakeholders. Dr. Ingram-Campbell has served as a clinician, clinical researcher and instructor, emergency preparedness and readiness specialist, I.S. and software product director as well as a I.V&V. evaluator and project manager for multiple national providers of healthcare services. She has held key positions for healthcare industry leaders such as HBOC/McKesson, Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Labs, the Georgia Technology Authority and the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC). In addition, Dr. Ingram-Campbell is nationally board certified by the American Society of Clinical Pathologists, a former associate with the American College of Healthcare Executives, founder of Enlghtened, Inc. Consulting Firm, a certified member of the Information Security & Audit Control Association and is a BioGenesis practioner. She is the active GA. representative for the National Family Caregivers Association and currently works with the humanitarian first company, Trivani International. Dr. Ingram-Campbell and speaks nationally and internationally on topics concerning leadership, privacy and security of health information as well as family care giving issues.