A reader who prefers to remain anonymous writes:
I currently work for a ambulance department as an EMT in Southern Illinois so I’m constantly in and out of hospitals the area. Not too long ago, I was dropping off some paperwork at the local ER, when I overheard some nurses discussing patients who are difficult to deal with. One nurse chimed in with this little tidbit (I’m paraphrasing): . . . “Well, if some of these patients start asking for stuff over and over again, or are just being an asshole, I can always tell them I’ll report them as mentally unstable and they’ll get their FOID card taken away” . . .
The majority of the nurses I know are good people, hardworking and honest, but there are some who are there who have no earthly business being around other people. They are lazy, manipulative and would gladly watch someone’s rights be infringed, rather than delivering good patient care.
I understand that some people who have been diagnosed with serious mental instability shouldn’t own a firearm, but to say that you’re willing to take away a right because you don’t want to deal with a patient who may ask for a cup of water, or decide that they dont want an IV is just too much. It’s despicable.
I am concerned because, while we may still be anchored to the liberal bastion that is Chicago, we Southern Illinoisans are pretty conservative. So if this is already happening down here, I can only imagine what may be happening in the rest of the state. God bless the U.S and molon labe.