Photo by the author
I went to the hospital a few weeks ago as an outpatient for a relatively minor issue. An attendant placed one of those plastic medical ID bracelets on my right wrist, the kind that couldn’t be pulled off by a John Deere tractor (but are easily removed with scissors). Every move I made, from the nurse escorting me in, then a technician taking x-rays, to the guy walking by with a white jacket, to the nice old lady checking me out of the hospital, asked for my name, date of birth and SSN as they looked at my plastic medical bracelet. Why be so careful?
According to a recent study by Johns Hopkins, more than 250,000 people in the United States die every year because of medical mistakes, making it the third leading cause of death after heart disease and cancer. It almost makes you want to stay home when sick, and not because of COVIS-19!
A few examples below:
This information helps me to understand why the plastic medical wristband and constant questions have become routine.
Another area of caution is aviation. As a former military pilot it hurts me to say this, but 85% of aircraft accidents are caused by pilot error. I was lucky enough to not add to that statistic, but as a young civilian student pilot, I landed on the wrong runway in Vandalia, IL during a solo cross-country training flight. But hey, it was a smooth landing!
Don’t even get me started on politicians! They made the word ‘gaffe’ famous: wasted money, bridges to nowhere, scandals, etc.
What’s My Point?
Everyone makes mistakes! Even well-trained professionals make mistakes. No one is immune. I’m speaking mainly to parents and especially to dads (only because you are my target audience). Parental mistakes are something all moms and dads will experience over and over! Maybe you underestimated a problem your son has mentioned, or you have or overly punished your daughter for something because you were in a bad mood. Apologize! But be assured that your children will make more mistakes without you! The imperfect you is better than the missing you with very few exceptions.
What would we do if doctors, nurses, or airline pilots were not willing to take chances with life and death decisions!? There are risks in life, but we can’t move forward without taking them. Of course, we take actions to minimize those risks. The hospital wrist band symbolizes risk mitigation, as does pilot checklists and political advisors.
Our kids do not focus on the mistakes we make. They may notice, but they soon forget. What they know is how much we care! If you don’t care, or don’t show you care, that’s not a mistake - that is a devastating personality defect. But it is reversible with a little help and insight!
Parents can minimize mistakes by not assuming parenting comes easily or naturally, especially for men. Read, ask questions, talk with your spouse, listen, count to 10, give yourself timeouts, think first, and be a student of your kids. Parenting may seem like a side job to a busy parent, but it’s not! You will continue to make mistakes, but when you do, don’t beat yourself up! I’ve seen the statistics when dads are missing, (data on crime, drugs, teenaged births, poverty, mental health, etc.) Click on that link and be shocked! When dads are missing, it’s tragic! So be not afraid of making mistakes, and certainly never give up! Your children need you!
#powerofdadhood
According to a recent study by Johns Hopkins, more than 250,000 people in the United States die every year because of medical mistakes, making it the third leading cause of death after heart disease and cancer. It almost makes you want to stay home when sick, and not because of COVIS-19!
A few examples below:
- Two men were mistakenly circumcised, while a woman had a lump removed from the wrong breast.
- The wrong toe was amputated from one patient, and two women had biopsies taken from their cervix, rather than their colon.
- Six women had their ovaries removed during botched hysterectomies, putting them into early menopause.
- Figures also show that some patients had procedures intended for someone else, including laser eye surgery, lumbar punctures, and colonoscopies.
- A two-year-old girl died during an operation when her anesthesiologist mistakenly gave her 20 times the anesthesia dose required. Tragic!
This information helps me to understand why the plastic medical wristband and constant questions have become routine.
Another area of caution is aviation. As a former military pilot it hurts me to say this, but 85% of aircraft accidents are caused by pilot error. I was lucky enough to not add to that statistic, but as a young civilian student pilot, I landed on the wrong runway in Vandalia, IL during a solo cross-country training flight. But hey, it was a smooth landing!
Don’t even get me started on politicians! They made the word ‘gaffe’ famous: wasted money, bridges to nowhere, scandals, etc.
What’s My Point?
Everyone makes mistakes! Even well-trained professionals make mistakes. No one is immune. I’m speaking mainly to parents and especially to dads (only because you are my target audience). Parental mistakes are something all moms and dads will experience over and over! Maybe you underestimated a problem your son has mentioned, or you have or overly punished your daughter for something because you were in a bad mood. Apologize! But be assured that your children will make more mistakes without you! The imperfect you is better than the missing you with very few exceptions.
What would we do if doctors, nurses, or airline pilots were not willing to take chances with life and death decisions!? There are risks in life, but we can’t move forward without taking them. Of course, we take actions to minimize those risks. The hospital wrist band symbolizes risk mitigation, as does pilot checklists and political advisors.
Our kids do not focus on the mistakes we make. They may notice, but they soon forget. What they know is how much we care! If you don’t care, or don’t show you care, that’s not a mistake - that is a devastating personality defect. But it is reversible with a little help and insight!
Parents can minimize mistakes by not assuming parenting comes easily or naturally, especially for men. Read, ask questions, talk with your spouse, listen, count to 10, give yourself timeouts, think first, and be a student of your kids. Parenting may seem like a side job to a busy parent, but it’s not! You will continue to make mistakes, but when you do, don’t beat yourself up! I’ve seen the statistics when dads are missing, (data on crime, drugs, teenaged births, poverty, mental health, etc.) Click on that link and be shocked! When dads are missing, it’s tragic! So be not afraid of making mistakes, and certainly never give up! Your children need you!
#powerofdadhood
