Posted June 22, 2011 - 1:05pm by Tracy
Patients deserve praise for sharing stories
As most any newspaper editor will tell you, stories about real people and their experiences are the best stories — especially when it comes to health news.
But as Crain’s Chicago Business pointed out in a recent report, sharing a first-hand, often incredibly personal medical story with the world can be tough. Current and former patients often sacrifice their privacy to share their stories.
And yet, in return, these brave contributors serve as advocates to raise awareness about important medical trends and topics.
This often comes up in Well Community, as we often interview patients at Swedish Covenant Hospital and members at Galter LifeCenter as the basis for articles and reports. We never cease to be amazed and impressed by these North side men and women who open up to us about their experiences.
From Benita of Rogers Park who shared the story of her robotic-assisted hysterectomy and recovery; to Paul of Edgewater who allowed our staff to sit in on his stroke rehabilitation club meeting; to Nikki of Andersonville who opened up about her battle with breast cancer, each of these patients put building awareness about their conditions before themselves to educate others, and perhaps even guide or comfort others who may be experiencing the same things.
And the stories don’t stop there:
Diane of Yorkville walked us through her experience getting back surgery for a herniated disk. Ann of North Center shared her fears about an irregular heartbeat before a marathon. Ingrid of Logan Square described how she used Watsu therapy during her pregnancy. Leigh Ginther, Well Community’s editor-in-chief, gave us a play-by-play glimpse into her daughter’s first day of AquaBabies at Galter LifeCenter.
These stories are some of the very best that Well Community has to offer our readers, and that is entirely thanks to the bravery and selflessness of the people in our community who are willing to share a bit of themselves to help others.
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