“Where you stumble and fall, there you will find gold.” ~ Joseph Campbell
Sometimes circumstances make our bodies frail beyond normal aging. When such complications arise, one needs an extraordinary doctor. One such doctor is Orthopedic surgeon James R. Rollins, Jr. He did mom’s second hip replacement eleven years ago, and I liked him fine then. She has some very complicated health issues now that make anesthesia highly risky. The way Dr. Rollins and his incredible team at St. Joseph’s in Mt. Sterling handled her shoulder surgery today, forever and ever, he hung the moon as far as I’m concerned (‘hanged’ is proper English I suppose, but it sounds wrong to my ears). It’s not just that he’s a great surgeon, but his bedside manner with both mom and dad was touching. Had today’s surgery gone the other way, I would have never considered him a lesser doctor for it. His level of compassion rivals his surgical expertise, and that’s an extremely rare trait to find in a doctor. Fortunately, it went better than anticipated. Mom will have to hang up her baseball glove for good after this, but that’s far better than the alternative. To say I am grateful to still have her would be an understatement, and I am indebted to Dr. Rollins and his team for getting her through it.
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