After my wife gave birth to our third child at midnight in a French hospital (our first real experience in a non-U.S. hospital) my wife and I and our new baby were left in the birthing room—resembling a supply room in every way but the smell and the mess. The nurses continually told us that they were working on getting my wife a room as they came in and out of the room to get supplies for other births taking place in adjoining rooms. When I left at 4:00 am I asked the nurses to take care of my wife and our little and asked where I would be able to find them when I came back the next day with our other 2 children. They pointed the room number 14, where it was obvious no preparations were being made to move my wife, and then I left. The next day when I returned I learned that my wife had been left in the birthing room that I could not stand any longer after 4 hours until 7:00 that morning. At which time my wife was crying and trying her best to ask someone to help her, she is not completely fluent in French. In response the nurses took the baby from her and treated her like she was crazy. I can’t help but think about my decision to leave and not be more insistent that the nurses get my wife a suitable bed for the night and the decision of the nursing staff to treat us as they did.
After all, before this episode I could not have even imagined that nurses would not do all they could to get a mother and her newborn into a room as quickly as possible. Going into this French hospital that night with a mental framework established in two different U.S. hospitals (and the fact that it was 4:00 in the morning) made it almost impossible for me to behave the way I now wish I had.
X travaille en tant que contrôleur de gestion dans une société privée d'aide médicale d'urgence. Le client appelle l'entreprise en cas de problèmes de santé. Un médecin répond et envoie si nécessaire une ambulance. Or le pdg a décidé de rentrer dans une démarche de réduction des coûts. Les ambulances coûtent cher et il faut en diminuer le nombre au risque de ne plus pouvoir répondre à une urgence. X sait bien que son entreprise et lui-même sont dans un paradoxe. X comprend bien que son entreprise vend un service qu'elle ne pourra plus rendre dans le respect de la vie humaine. X décide de rester dans la société, n'étant pas prêt à la quitter.
