A neighbour and registered nurse, Claudia Dee, served the public system above and beyond. (wedding photo in Agincourt News 1964)

It seemed a wonderful coincidence. But it really wasn’t. Back in 1964, my father, Alex Barris, was admitted to Scarborough General Hospital for surgery to remove kidney stones. Then, for several days he remained in hospital recuperating.

One of the nurses attending him turned out to be a neighbour. Registered nurse Claudia Dee, whose family lived up the street from us in Agincourt, seemed assigned to attend Dad’s needs 24/7 – making sure that his pain was under control, that he got meals on time and that he got home as soon as possible.

“She was like a guardian angel,” I remember Dad saying. (more…)

ULTRA-SOUND_HUMANHEART — Even a decade ago, heart specialists would have to cut open a cardiac patient in order to see the inside of a beating human heart. Ultra-sound has changed all that.

Throughout the day, following my operation, I was restless. In fact, that night – last Friday – I couldn’t sleep in the hospital ward where I was recovering. Coincidentally, however, the Registered Nurse on the night shift had a few minutes to spare as she recorded my blood pressure and heartbeat, so she stopped for conversation. We talked about her birthplace – East Africa – and how she’d come to Canada in search of a career. Eventually, I asked her what her name was.

“Meseret,” she said. “It means foundation. My father chose it because it was a strong name.”

(more…)

Ted Barris

author | journalist

Posts with the Registered Nurse tag

The nurse I want attending

Getting my heart back